Chapter 61

"This thread of sword intent is indeed a bit strange and difficult. However, in just seventeen days, I could have dispelled it a few days earlier. But for whom do you think I did this? I kept it just to show you."

Zhao Yanran snorted and unceremoniously extended her hand: "Hand it over! Twenty fetal refinement pills, twenty snow soul pills, five fire spirit pills, and a snow spirit unnamed sword! I’ve waited these many days to keep this thread of sword intent, so I’ve done my part for you."

The red-clad woman did not get angry. She casually touched the black wound, and immediately, an abnormal ripple appeared in the surrounding air.

Just then, a few mosquitoes happened to pass by. Struck by the ripple, they immediately fell to the ground, lifeless.

All the weeds within a yard around them withered instantly.

"Madwoman, you should be grateful that you didn’t act rashly and that I happened to arrive just in time! If you had rashly dispelled it, you would have suffered greatly!"

As she spoke, the red-clad woman looked at the withered plants on the ground with admiration: "What a sword intent! Truly unprecedented and unheard of. It’s deadly and carries a strong aura of death. Fortunately, this person’s cultivation is insufficient, and the sword intent hasn’t fully formed, so it can’t be fully expressed. Otherwise, you would have been dead by now!"

Zhao Yanran’s expression changed, and she touched her neck with a lingering sense of fear. She knew the consequences of rashly dispelling the sword intent, though it wouldn’t have been fatal. However, she would have been injured again.

Her momentum faltered, and she felt a bit weak. But in the next moment, she became even more assertive: "So what? Being able to keep the sword intent latent without releasing it, aren’t you even more delighted, old hag? You must have been secretly smiling just now, right? Don’t try to hide it from me, I saw it! In this world, who is more suitable than him to learn the Taihao Primordial Spirit Sword of your Taiyuan Sect?"

The red-clad woman felt a headache and rubbed her forehead: "My sister, who is so wise, how could she have taken you as a disciple? You’re so disrespectful. Although I won’t eat you, I will definitely throw you into the Jinnan Cave. I’m sure those high monks will be very happy to chant scriptures for a hundred days to enlighten you, this female demon!"

Zhao Yanran’s pupils immediately constricted, and a trace of fear appeared on her face. She was fearless of anything but the chanting of the monks.

However, the red-clad woman’s face also turned red with anger, and she awkwardly coughed, her eyes suddenly turning cold and stern.

"Enough talk! Where is that person? What is his name? What is his background? If you can’t find your junior brother, it won’t just be the Jinnan Cave, but the Mingmiao Temple of the Two Realms Mountain!"

"Junior brother? You’re really being too presumptuous!"

Zhao Yanran’s face turned pale again, but she raised her eyebrows defiantly: "He might not even look at the Lingyun Sect, let alone your Taiyuan Sect. With his talent, which major sect in the world would he not be able to join?"

"Lingyun Sect?" The red-clad woman laughed derisively and coldly snorted: "It’s just a minor holy sect. Our Taiyuan Sect controls the third and seventh holy lands! He has no choice but to agree! Anyone who dares to compete with me, I will destroy them!"

※※※※

Inside the black mud swamp, it was drizzling, but thousands of miles away, the sun was shining brightly.

Over these ten days, Zong Shou’s place for martial arts practice had moved from inside the carriage to the roof, taking over Xue’er’s territory.

Human marrow and bones, though warm in nature and the source of yang energy in the body, often accumulate a lot of yin cold energy in the deepest parts of the body over time.

Therefore, the best place to refine marrow and bones is where the sunlight is strongest. Using the assistance of the sun, the effect of expelling cold energy and refining marrow and bones is greatly enhanced.

For this marrow refinement, Zong Shou chose the secret marrow refinement technique of the demon race, the Great Sun Bright Fist.

In his memory, this was a top-tier technique for refining marrow and bones, passed down from the legendary demon race. It was highly praised by countless martial arts masters in ancient texts as the best among its kind, surpassing all others.

However, few humans practiced it later on because the human and demon races have different physiques, and the effects are naturally different.

Now that Zong Shou has awakened his demon body, using this fist technique is mutually beneficial. Therefore, he decisively abandoned the other top-tier marrow refinement techniques in his memory and directly chose this demon race’s ultimate technique.

Unlike the Fetal Breath Spirit Fist, the Great Sun Bright Fist is fierce from the start. On the roof of the carriage, the wind force around it was stirred, creating a series of resonant sounds.

Zong Shou’s footwork, however, was of a different style, extremely agile.

The Cloud-Flipping Carriage had already left the black mud swamp and entered a hilly area. The carriage body swayed and rose and fell with the terrain.

However, Zong Shou’s figure was completely unaffected. His feet seemed to have suction cups, firmly standing on the top of the carriage, moving freely and at ease.

Su Chuxue watched quietly from the side, her eyes fixed. Even Yin Yang, who was driving the carriage, was distracted, spending most of his time looking back to carefully observe Zong Shou’s fist technique.

Although both of them had long passed this stage, they knew this was a rare opportunity.

Not only was the fist technique itself a rare and unparalleled technique, but the martial arts philosophy Zong Shou displayed while practicing also inspired deep reflection.

The power of the punches became softer and softer, and by the end, it was completely different from the fierce and powerful nature of the Great Sun Bright Fist, resembling the soft and gentle appearance of the Fetal Breath Spirit Fist at the beginning.

However, each punch produced a dull "thud" sound. Although the sound was not loud, the wind force generated by the rapid movement of the Cloud-Flipping Carriage was repelled several yards away.

Su Chuxue couldn’t fully understand it, but she knew that learning from her young master was always right. She still remembered the day when Zong Shou forced Zhao Yanran to admit defeat with seventy-six swords on the Bright Sword Platform, breaking eighteen sword puppets.

Yin Yang’s eyes, however, became increasingly bright. One hand involuntarily followed Zong Shou’s fist movements, and his body’s energy fluctuated, surging with spiritual energy. However, it was held back by an invisible barrier, unable to break through.

After about half an hour, Zong Shou finally collapsed weakly. The Great Sun Bright Fist was extremely energy-consuming, and being able to sustain it for two hours was due to the recent dramatic increase in his soul power, suppressing the dual meridians and significantly improving his physical condition.

"Fetal Breath is truly beneficial. In just seventeen days, my marrow refinement is only one step away from completion! In my previous life, it took me a whole year to complete this step!"

Three consecutive Seven Spirit Fetal Refinement Pills made Zong Shou’s Fetal Breath extremely strong, and the marrow refinement was a natural progression. Hundreds of bones in his body seemed to have a warm flame, providing a large amount of blood energy.

With just three more days, he could completely eliminate the accumulated yin cold energy in his bone marrow.