Chapter 81: Poisoned
Having reached the Mysterious Extreme Realm Middle Stage, Zhang Ruochen's Qi Sea capacity had expanded tenfold, allowing him to store more true qi.
The true qi that had been heavily depleted within his body rapidly recovered, becoming even thicker and denser. It flowed swiftly through his thirty-six meridians, completing a full circulation cycle in no time.
"Whoosh——"
Zhang Ruochen released his Martial Soul and, using it, deployed his Space Domain.
At the Mysterious Extreme Realm Initial Stage, the Space Domain could only envelop a ten-meter radius. Having reached the Mysterious Extreme Realm Middle Stage, the Space Domain's size expanded to a thirty-meter radius.
At the same time, Zhang Ruochen's control over the Space Domain became much more adept.
A Phantom Poison Bee flew into the Space Domain and attacked Zhang Ruochen. With just a thought, he activated the power of Space Distortion, altering the bee's flight trajectory.
With his current mastery of the Space Domain, even if he stood still and ten Phantom Poison Bees attacked him simultaneously, they would be unable to harm him.
"Whoosh!"
Zhang Ruochen swung his sword and cleaved. The Phantom Poison Bee was cut in two and fell to the ground.
Qing You stood not far away, a contemptuous smile on his face. "Even if you've broken through to the next realm, what does it change? It won't alter the outcome."
"Is that so?" Zhang Ruochen said.
"Blood Qi Like a Rainbow!"
A faint rainbow of blood light swirled around Zhang Ruochen's body. Stimulated by this blood rainbow, he charged forward explosively, reaching a speed of thirty-eight meters per second as he attacked Qing You.
At his current speed, he had already surpassed the vast majority of Mysterious Extreme Realm Small Extreme Position martial artists.
"Wild Elephant Stomping the Earth!"
Zhang Ruochen channeled all the true qi in his body into his arm. His palm was completely enveloped in true qi, and even the air currents in the space surged along with his palm strike.
"Azure Demon Hand!"
Qing You was fearless. Even if Zhang Ruochen had reached the Mysterious Extreme Realm Middle Stage, meeting him would still mean certain death.
"Boom!"
The two powerful forces collided, producing a thunderous roar.
A fierce gale erupted outward from the two of them as the center, shaking the surrounding trees violently and sending a shower of leaves fluttering down.
"Pfft!"
Qing You spat out a mouthful of blood. He felt a tremendous force transmitted through his arm, jolting his internal organs.
Zhang Ruochen's palm pressed against Qing You's, the force growing stronger and stronger, pushing Qing You backward in a sliding motion.
"Boom!"
Qing You retreated over ten meters, his body slamming into the trunk of a large tree. Another mouthful of blood gushed from his lips.
"Your strength... is actually greater than mine! You must die today!" Qing You's face twisted into a ferocious grimace as he roared, "Blood Qi Condenses into Beast!"
The blood within Qing You's body seemed to ignite. A vast cloud of blood mist appeared behind him, and within that mist, a two-meter-tall giant wolf shadow coalesced.
The hallmark of the Mysterious Extreme Realm Small Extreme Position was Blood Qi Condenses into Beast.
Blood Qi Boiling, Blood Qi Like a Rainbow, Blood Qi Surging to the Sky, Blood Qi Condenses into Beast...
For martial artists in the Mysterious Extreme Realm, each advancement in realm brought a significant increase in their blood qi, accompanied by different degrees of mystical changes.
For instance, a Mysterious Extreme Realm Initial Stage martial artist unleashing the power of blood qi could achieve "Blood Qi Boiling," increasing their combat power by ten percent.
A Mysterious Extreme Realm Middle Stage martial artist unleashing the power of blood qi could achieve "Blood Qi Like a Rainbow," increasing their combat power by thirty percent.
A Mysterious Extreme Realm Late Stage martial artist unleashing the power of blood qi could achieve "Blood Qi Surging to the Sky," increasing their combat power by fifty percent.
Upon reaching the Mysterious Extreme Realm Small Extreme Position, a martial artist's blood qi could condense into a beast shadow, making their power even more ferocious. Once they unleashed the power of blood qi, their combat power could double in a short period.
That was why even a gifted Mysterious Extreme Realm Late Stage martial artist would find it very difficult to defeat a Mysterious Extreme Realm Small Extreme Position martial artist.
It was said that upon reaching the Mysterious Extreme Realm Great Perfection stage of "Blood Qi Transforms into Spirit," unleashing the power of blood qi could increase a martial artist's combat power by two times in a short period.
At this moment, Qing You's power had doubled. All his blood vessels bulged prominently. He struck out with a palm, sending Zhang Ruochen flying seven zhang away.
"Whoosh!"
Qing You didn't give Zhang Ruochen any chance to catch his breath. He once again drew his sharp sickle. His speed was faster than before, and in an instant, he was in front of Zhang Ruochen.
The inscriptions within the sickle were activated, emitting a blinding blood-red light. Carrying a sharp blade aura, it swung toward Zhang Ruochen's neck.
"Space Distortion!"
Space twisted once more, and the sickle swung over Zhang Ruochen's head.
This time, Qing You finally sensed something was wrong. His face changed. "Impossible! What movement technique did you use? No, it's not that you escaped the Death Sickle's attack—space itself was distorted."
"You've finally noticed. Unfortunately, it's too late."
Zhang Ruochen thrust his sword in a backhand strike. The tip pierced through Qing You's throat, impaling his body.
Qing You's eyes bulged wide, filled with unwillingness. His entire body trembled violently as blood gushed from his mouth.
"Thud!"
He collapsed to the ground.
Qing You, the most outstanding genius of the Qing family in a century, had fallen.
If he hadn't encountered Zhang Ruochen, with his talent, in another twenty years, he would surely have reached the Heavenly Extreme Realm and become a martial arts legend.
Fortunately, Zhang Ruochen had broken through to the Mysterious Extreme Realm Middle Stage; otherwise, it was uncertain who would have lived and who would have died.
After killing Qing You, Zhang Ruochen finally let out a long sigh of relief. A wave of weakness washed over him, and his vision darkened slightly. He nearly fainted.
"I'm still too badly injured. And I've lost too much blood."
Zhang Ruochen knelt on one knee, supporting himself with his palm on the ground, struggling to stay conscious.
He took a Saint Nirvana Pill for healing and sat down cross-legged, circulating the true qi in his body to refine the pill's medicinal energy.
After a quarter of an hour, Zhang Ruochen's injuries had recovered by twenty percent, but he was still very weak.
If he encountered another martial artist or a savage beast at this moment, it would be extremely dangerous.
Suddenly, a sound of wind breaking came from above.
A massive black shadow swooped down from midair and landed in front of Zhang Ruochen.
Looking closely, it was a black giant cat the size of a lion, with a pair of black wings on its back.
"Meow!"
Xiao Hei let out a cat call, its body gradually shrinking until it was the size of a normal cat. It spoke in human language, "Exhausted! Exhausted! That guy's cultivation was no ordinary thing—he was a Beast Tamer who summoned a huge flock of Corpse Crows. If it weren't for that, I, the Emperor, would have taken him out."
Seeing that it was Xiao Hei, Zhang Ruochen breathed a slight sigh of relief. "Prince Huo Xing escaped?"
"That's right!"
Xiao Hei said, "Fighting him nearly drained the little true qi I had left. Young lad, give me a spirit crystal. I need to recover my true qi."
Zhang Ruochen took out a spirit crystal and tossed it to Xiao Hei, asking curiously, "How did your cultivation increase so much?"
He remembered that when he was at the Yellow Extreme Realm Middle Extreme Position, Xiao Hei's combat power was only at the Yellow Extreme Realm Middle Extreme Position as well, and even slightly weaker than his.
But just now, Xiao Hei had displayed combat power capable of contending with a Mysterious Extreme Realm Small Extreme Position martial artist, even beating Prince Huo Xing into retreat.
Xiao Hei said, "I told you long ago, all of my power is sealed within the Cosmic Divine Wood Map. Only you can unlock the seals. The stronger your cultivation, the more seals you unlock, and naturally, the stronger I become."
Zhang Ruochen said, "What if all your seals were completely undone?"
Xiao Hei raised its large head arrogantly. "That would be the time when I, the Emperor, descend upon the world again, slaughtering heaven and earth, unrivaled and supreme. You just need to follow me and be my servant, and I, the Emperor, guarantee you can walk sideways across the Kunlun Realm."
Then, Xiao Hei sighed again. "Unfortunately, that bald monk Xumi had long planned it out. With your current cultivation, there's no way you can undo all the seals. Enough said. I'll go to the inner space of the Time-Space Crystal first to recover my true qi. Young lad, give me a spirit crystal."
Zhang Ruochen said, "There are plenty of spirit crystals stored in the inner space of the Time-Space Crystal. Help yourself. How long will it take you to recover your true qi?"
"With the spirit crystals, just half a day!" Xiao Hei said.
Zhang Ruochen absorbed Xiao Hei into the inner space of the Time-Space Crystal, then stood up to clean up the battlefield. He had come to realize that Xiao Hei could never escape the seal of the Cosmic Divine Wood Map.
Moreover, it absolutely wouldn't dare to harm Zhang Ruochen. If Zhang Ruochen died, it would be sealed back into the Cosmic Divine Wood Map.
Qing You was dead, and so were the other seven martial artists from the Four Directions Commandery. Only Prince Huo Xing had escaped.
Zhang Ruochen searched Qing You's body and found eighteen beast eyes, equivalent to hunting nine Second-Tier Lower Grade savage beasts.
Qing You also had a Two-Star Noble Card, along with thirty-eight spirit crystals and three hundred silver coins.
Zhang Ruochen didn't hold much hope for that Two-Star Noble Card. Without finding the blood of Qing You's direct relatives, even if the card held a large amount of silver coins, he wouldn't be able to withdraw them.
Zhang Ruochen picked up the Death Sickle from Qing You's hand and infused it with true qi. He discovered that the sickle contained twenty-three inscriptions, making it a Fifth-Rank True Martial Treasure, worth at least one hundred thousand silver coins.
The Death Sickle was a fine item, priceless, and once sold, it would bring a huge fortune.
Afterward, Zhang Ruochen collected the beast eyes, weapons, spirit crystals, and silver coins from the other seven young martial artists, storing them all in the inner space of the Time-Space Crystal.
Now was not the time to tally the spoils. Prince Huo Xing could return at any moment, and in his current severely injured state, Zhang Ruochen was no match for him.
He had to leave this place immediately and find a safe spot to slowly count his gains.
Zhang Ruochen suddenly thought of Zi Qian. He quickly entered the dense forest where he had fought Qing You earlier, searching for traces of her.
"Mm... ah... mm..."
Before long, Zhang Ruochen heard a woman's rapid, gasping breaths, accompanied by what sounded like alluring moans.
Zhang Ruochen parted the thick grass and saw Zi Qian lying on the ground, her jade-like hands clutching her chest, her entire body trembling. When she saw Zhang Ruochen, a blush spread across her pretty face, and she said in a trembling voice, "I... I've been poisoned... save... save... me..."
It didn't sound like a plea for help. The seductive voice was more like a soft moan.
Her state was clearly abnormal. Her eyes were dazed, her eyelashes fluttered gently, her red lips were slightly parted, and her snow-white skin was tinged with a layer of pink, exuding beads of fragrant sweat.
"Poisoned? What poison?"
Zhang Ruochen noticed a bluish-black palm print on Zi Qian's right shoulder—a wound from Qing You's Azure Demon Hand.
The poison of the Azure Demon Hand!
"No, it seems to be more than just the Azure Demon Hand's poison!"
Zhang Ruochen found bloodstains on Zi Qian's lower abdomen, marks from being stung by a Phantom Poison Bee's tail.
Zi Qian's body had three sting marks in total, located on her neck, lower abdomen, and the root of her left thigh.
Her long, slender legs trembled gently, intertwining and rubbing against each other, as if even her trousers and skirt might tear. Whether it was from pain or some other reason was unclear.