https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-68-The-Infamous-Ox-Demon-and-the-Minor-Heavenly-Cycle-Pulse-Opening-Technique/12932884/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-70-The-Mysterious-Temple-of-the-Tri-Eye-Wrathful-Lord-They-Are-All-Dead/12932886/
Chapter 69: Spirit Vein Perfection, Masked Alliance
Chapter 69: Spirit Vein Perfection, Masked Alliance
The hurried footsteps abruptly ceased outside the courtyard.
Rain mixed with snowflakes fluttered down from the sky. Li Che put away the page of the Spirit Vein Technique into his Heaven Earth Space and then turned to look towards the courtyard gate.
A gentle knock echoed, and Li Che got up to open the door.
There stood a towering figure wearing a hood, exuding a mighty presence, with his vital energy burning like a raging fire, making one feel the heat even from a distance.
His black hair fluttered, his muscles were knotted, and his sinews were like enraged pythons.
Standing there, he seemed to be silently raging, roaring without a sound.
The courteous knock of the towering figure improved Li Che’s attitude somewhat.
"Who are you?"
"Master Li, I come from the City Governor’s Mansion, and my name is Cao Qingyuan." The burly man's eyes gleamed as he swiftly glanced around the courtyard, not seeing anyone else, and his thick eyebrows raised.
"Cao Qingyuan..." Li Che was taken aback.
He then bowed with a fist salute, "This humble citizen, Li Che, greets Young City Lord."
"Master Li, you are too kind. Since you have become a Master of Divine Sculpture, you are a distinguished guest of our City Governor’s Mansion... My father specially sent me to invite you to undertake a task."
The burly man, Cao Qingyuan, smiled and returned the bow, his demeanor quite humble.
However, Cao Qingyuan's presence exerted immense pressure on Li Che, like facing an angry Buddha, making his hair stand on end.
This was due to the [Wrathful Maitreya] Divine Foundation Divinity emanating from Cao Qingyuan, constantly stimulating Li Che.
Young City Lord Cao Qingyuan of Thunder City! A Divine Foundation Cultivator!
It was no secret that City Lord Cao Guang had a son who had reached the Divine Foundation stage. In his early years, there were the Four Noble Sons of Thunder City, one of whom was Cao Guang's son, Cao Qingyuan.
But once Cao Qingyuan reached the Divine Foundation stage, the title of the Four Noble Sons no longer suited him.
"Young City Lord, I apologize, but I am currently at a crucial stage of Bone Tempering, about to challenge the Blood Transformation Barrier, so... I may not be able to accept the City Lord’s task."
Li Che politely declined Cao Qingyuan.
Cao Qingyuan was not bothered, smiling and saying, "No problem, Master Li. You can focus on the Blood Transformation for now. As long as you complete the wooden sculpture within a month, it will be fine."
"The design of the wooden sculpture is here, along with a deposit of a hundred gold leaves. The remaining four hundred will be delivered upon completion."
A Divine Foundation Cultivator visiting, with a gentle attitude and no strict deadline, made Li Che understand that this was a soft approach to prevent him from refusing.
If he refused again, it would be seen as ungrateful.
After some thought, Li Che no longer refused, accepting the design and the hundred gold leaves.
Seeing this, Cao Qingyuan’s face lit up with a smile. He pressed down his hood, took a deep look at the Independent Workshop, and then left.
Looking at the wooden sculpture design in his hand, Li Che narrowed his eyes.
"Eighteen Maidens Offering Lotus to Wrathful Maitreya..."
...
...
Cao Qingyuan returned to the City Governor’s Mansion.
Removing his hood, Cao Qingyuan slowly entered the room.
Though it was daytime, the room was extremely dark. Numerous white candles were lit, densely arranged in a staircase-like pattern. Beside each candle, there was a thumb-sized wooden sculpture carved from red wood.
Under the candlelight, each wooden sculpture seemed to be bleeding.
The flickering candlelight shifted between yellow and green.
Cao Qingyuan felt as if his heart was being gripped, even as a Divine Foundation Cultivator, he dared not breathe heavily.
"Did Li Che accept the commission?"
A faint, raspy voice echoed from deep within the mansion. Cao Qingyuan bowed respectfully, "Father, he accepted."
"That's good..."
"Since the Xu Family has already sold him to us, his acceptance saves us the trouble of forcibly bringing him here."
"As long as he completes the carving, it will be sufficient..."
"Father, what if he accepts the commission but doesn’t carve it?"
The room fell silent.
After a moment, the voice spoke again, "He won’t dare to..."
"Furthermore... the Thousand Buddha Feast is still missing three Spirit Children. The An Family has one, the Yang Family has none, but... the Xu Family’s Divine Academy has two..."
"The Xu Family has two?"
"One is Li Che’s daughter, and the other is a Big Head Spirit Child... hehe, buy one, get one free..."
"Did the Xu Family agree?"
"The Spirit Child in the city has already been noticed by the Divine Sect... The Xu and An families can't keep him, so they might as well use him as a bargaining chip."
"The Xu, An, and Yang families all want to reap the benefits... so they decided to withdraw from Thunderbolt City... and they had no choice but to agree."
"A bunch of fools, living alongside the Temple Deity... What an honor that is?"
A hoarse voice echoed faintly, carrying a hint of disdainful laughter.
Cao Qingyuan fell silent.
"Who killed Zhao Xuanhai?"
"Zhang Xiangyang or Zhou Ruoguan?"
After a long while, Cao Qingyuan furrowed his brows and asked.
The silence within the room was broken.
The hoarse voice reverberated.
"The Yang family."
...
...
Li Qingshan gave Li Che three days to break through the Pulse Connection.
In reality, he had given him more than enough time.
Inside the Independent Workshop.
Li Che first used the Chess Sage Fruit to set up a spiritual chessboard around him, perceiving the situation and ensuring it was safe before attempting the Pulse Connection.
The Qianyuan Sect's Minor Heavenly Cycle Spirit Vein Technique provided by Li Qingshan was not as complex as he had thought, which was why he readily agreed. It was mostly theoretical content.
The actual execution still depended on the cultivator's own abilities. Li Che, with the foundation of the Dragon Elephant Vajra Fruit, had an incredibly solid base. Although breaking through the Pulse Connection was challenging, for Li Che, it felt like a smooth and effortless process.
Snowflakes fell, but as they approached Li Che, they were instantly twisted and flung away by an invisible force.
Li Che stumbled and sat down in the courtyard, surrounded by invisible currents of air swirling around him in a spiral motion.
The energy within his vital energy merged with his inner strength, circulating through his five viscera and six bowels, along the Eight Extraordinary Vessels, forming the Qianyuan Sect's fixed Minor Heavenly Cycle Qi pulse network, connecting the Six Harmonies.
The inner strength of the Fourth Heaven merged with the energy generated from the Pulse Connection, becoming 'Inner Qi.'
The inner qi enveloped his heart, and as his heart contracted and expanded forcefully, the inner qi surged along beneath the membranes, flowing through the intricate and dense Minor Heavenly Cycle meridians that connected the five viscera and six bowels!
Li Che opened his eyes, and a bright, sparkling light seemed to flicker and fade.
He stood up, his muscles and bones resonating, and the transportation of vital energy became faster and more powerful, resulting in an even more formidable force.
Huff—
Inhale!
With a single breath, the wind and snow of the world seemed to swirl, as if the energy merged with the heavens and earth.
"The Qi Pulse is connected!"
...
...
Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
After breaking through the Qi Pulse, Li Che utilized the extra time to cultivate the Bodhimanda Golden Robe, a divine secret technique, reaching the initial level of success.
Zhao Xuanhai's divine essence chess piece had been refined by Li Che, and now, within his Pineal Interior, the Wrathful Bodhimanda Divinity flowed like a gentle stream, Cultivating Nature Like a Stream.
Looking up at the sky, he noticed that the weather had cleared up, a rare occurrence without snowfall.
Although the air was still chilly, there was a hint of warm sunshine.
Li Che changed into his stretchy clothes, put on a hood, and sat under the eaves, carving a cuteness bull mask with a carving knife at a steady pace.
After putting on the mask, he checked his poison-coated sleeve crossbow, the Guanyin Poison Lotus, Bodhi Blood Tears, and other hidden weapons. He then took inventory of the 6,000 Wooden Ravens stored in the Heavens and Earth Jade Armory before leaving the Independent Workshop with peace of mind.
In the past, Li Che would never have left the city, as he couldn't bear to be so far away from Xixi.
But now, with the 'Thunderbolt City Chess Sage' ability, as long as the divine essence chess piece remained on Xixi, he could travel with ease, knowing that he would sense her if anything happened and quickly rush to her aid.
With his daughter's safety assured, the old father could focus on his plans without worry.
The 'Sleeping Lion Elephant' ability to conceal his presence became increasingly powerful.
He almost completely erased his own existence.
Leaving the inner city was effortless, and the outer city's defenses were even weaker.
Just as he exited the outer city...
A hunched and short figure appeared silently.
Li Che glanced at the newcomer, who was also dressed in black and wore a cat-faced mask.
"Senior Qingshan?" Li Che's voice was muffled beneath the cuteness bull mask.
"It's me," came the response from behind the cat-faced mask.
Li Che: "..."
Why are you wearing a mask too?
Everyone is wearing masks...
The Masked Alliance?
Please support with your votes and recommendations!
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
