Taotie Method [Vice-Stomach User]

Ren Qing agreed on the surface, but in truth, he was already planning to find a time to advance the Taotie Method, since the degree of aberration wasn't obvious anyway.

He asked about some doubts that had arisen during his cultivation, and Song Zongwu held nothing back, even using himself as an example.

Before they knew it, the conversation turned to the forbidden zones.

According to Song Zongwu, there were four forbidden zones near Sanxiang City. The core Eerie Objects of two were at the Ghost Envoy Realm, and one was at the Yin Messenger Realm.

As for the remaining Disaster Aversion Forbidden Zone, its situation was unclear and would require investigation.

Because of the forbidden zones scattered outside the city, trade between towns was limited, with only the waterways being somewhat safer.

Ren Qing's heart sank. Since cultivators could advance through independent cultivation, the number of forbidden zones was certainly uncontrollable.

Then why did the Forbidden Guard allow gangs to let ordinary people access techniques?

He couldn't help but ask Song Zongwu, who remained silent for a long time without giving a clear explanation, only vaguely telling Ren Qing.

"For cultivators, forbidden zones are merely one of the threats across the vast land..."

Ren Qing understood that his vision was limited by his strength, so he didn't press further, but inwardly he grew more eager to advance to the Ghost Envoy Realm as soon as possible.

Song Zongwu still had to prepare for sealing off the forbidden zone, so after giving a few instructions, he left the Fire Refining Hall.

Ren Qing didn't continue cultivating but instead rested for a full night.

After waking up, he noticed changes in his body. The pork that had filled his stomach had been completely digested.

This was something he could never have done so quickly before, indicating that his digestive functions had improved further, enhancing the life-extending effects of Pig Eyes.

Thinking of this, Ren Qing felt a surge of excitement. If he could resolve the issue of insufficient lifespan, stepping into the Ghost Envoy Realm would be within reach.

Based on his current progress, consuming Pig Eyes nonstop for twelve hours a day would take at least half a year to accumulate enough.

Even if others couldn't hope to match his pace, it still didn't erase his wariness of this world.

And to be safe, it was best to have a lifespan of at least Fifteen Years before advancing to the Ghost Envoy Realm.

Otherwise, if something unexpected happened after advancing—like being trapped in a forbidden zone and unable to extend his lifespan—it would be a huge problem.

Ren Qing had control over all the Pig Eyes West of the City, and through experimentation, he found that the life-extending effect had reached about fourteen or fifteen days per day.

But before he could rejoice for long, he noticed that as his lifespan grew, the life-extending effect of Pig Eyes had actually weakened slightly.

Ren Qing immediately realized that the life extension from consuming eyes must have a specific upper limit.

He wasn't discouraged, though. Relying solely on eating raw Pig Eyes to achieve immortality was indeed unrealistic. He would have to find new methods of extending life.

In fact, a bold idea even crossed Ren Qing's mind.

Searching through techniques one by one was too inefficient. It would be better to look in forbidden zones where techniques were concentrated—provided he had enough strength.

Ren Qing pushed aside the distracting thoughts.

He returned to his daily cultivation routine, practicing his blade and visualization, sticking to a two-point line.

Before he knew it, the Yamen had finished preparing to seal off the forbidden zone.

The people of Sanxiang City could clearly feel the storm brewing. The number of Constables patrolling the streets had multiplied several times over, and entering the city now required a thorough inspection of one's belongings.

The gangs behaved themselves and stopped causing trouble, which allowed the Stewed Offal business to develop steadily, gradually expanding into every alley West of the City.

All the pig offal was stewed and braised by Butcher Zhang, and the finished products were distributed to stalls affiliated with the Bloodhound Gang.

Song Zongwu privately revealed to Ren Qing that because the forbidden zone involved was rather eerie, only five Forbidden Guards and a dozen or so Yamen runners would participate.

The largest force was several thousand soldiers, who would clear out bandits near the forbidden zone to prevent them from interfering with the Forbidden Guards.

This bandit suppression lasted about three days, and the corpses of the mountain bandits were not brought back to Sanxiang City but were burned on the spot.

Only after the soldiers returned would the Forbidden Guards set out for the Disaster Aversion Forbidden Zone.

They had to first determine the approximate location of the Disaster Aversion Forbidden Zone, so they departed ahead of time.

The Yamen runners would wait another day, forming groups of five Fire Refining Hall workers and two Constables, each group taking a different route.

The team leaders were the supervisors of the Fire Refining Hall, and the routes were pre-determined to be safe. Even if danger arose, they had means to contact the Forbidden Guards.

The quota of Fire Refining Hall workers was divided evenly. Excluding those who couldn't leave, each street's Fire Refining Hall had to send two runners.

Ren Qing chose to bring Xiao Wu. The Li brothers were too bulky and unsuitable, while Bo Feng stayed behind to handle miscellaneous affairs.

Even if danger struck, Xiao Wu's half-grown frame could use his Werewolf transformation to grab Ren Qing and flee far away.

With the Forbidden Guards leaving one after another, the time for the Yamen runners to head out of the city drew near.

Ren Qing naturally had his own plans. As soon as Song Zongwu left Sanxiang City, he immediately began preparing to advance the Taotie Method.

A few days earlier, he had already instructed Butcher Zhang to collect a large number of Pig Eyes.

To him, the Strange Stomach's Mustard Seed Space was extremely important, as it allowed him to carry Pig Eyes with him at all times.

As long as he had Pig Eyes, even if he was injured, he could recover in a short time, greatly increasing his safety.

Knowing that they would set out for the forbidden zone tomorrow, Ren Qing chose to advance the Taotie Method late at night. The process was dangerous but ultimately successful.

Beside his stomach, there was now a fist-sized Strange Stomach. On the surface, it seemed useless, but inside, it contained a space of one cubic meter.

If used to store Pig Eyes, it could easily hold several dozen to a hundred catties or more.

As for the location of the Strange Mouth, Ren Qing chose to grow it in the palm of his right hand, making it extremely convenient to retrieve items.

Whenever the Strange Mouth opened, rows upon rows of densely packed, tiny teeth could be seen, sending chills down one's spine.

But Ren Qing had unconsciously grown accustomed to this netherworld aesthetic, even finding this mouth somewhat endearingly cute.

Besides storing Pig Eyes, Ren Qing also bought some hidden weapons from Zhao Hu.

Though his throwing aim was poor, the advantage was that he could silently retrieve them through the Strange Mouth, and they might come in handy someday.

Aside from the Mustard Seed Space, a Vice-Stomach User gained almost no boost in combat strength, but the next promotion would be entirely different.

[Prison in the Belly: Bind Stomach as Prison]

From the literal meaning, it was clear that the space of the Strange Stomach would undergo considerable changes, and it would also be able to bind others.

As for the other two mutation paths of the Taotie Method, they were:

[Spirit of the Hill: Body Contains All Things]

[Spitting Nether Spring: Melt Souls, Corrode Bones]

Among them, Spirit of the Hill required a greater price to be exempted, consuming the most lifespan, thus reaching a year and a half.

Ren Qing carried medicinal herbs and dry rations with him, the Great Miao Saber brazenly strapped to his back.

As for Xiao Wu, no matter what weapon he used, it never quite suited him, so he simply grabbed a large iron wok, sturdy enough to defend against danger.

Besides them, Zhu Ding from Hexing Street also joined the team.

Zhu Ding originally didn't need to go outside the city, having only recently taken up his post, but unfortunately, with shallow seniority, he sometimes had no choice.

Seeing this, Ren Qing requested him from Clerk Zhao, allowing Zhu Ding and Xiao Wu to look out for each other.

The other two Fire Refiners traveling with them were unfamiliar faces, from the Fire Refining Hall on East Street, already over thirty years old.

The Constables were the same; they had never even been dispatched outside the city by the Yamen, seemingly lacking even Xiao Wu's courage.