fifth form

Chapter 3227 Seeking Help Again
Once Zhang Xuezhou had passed through Changxin Palace, he would not encounter a second obstacle.

He smiled amicably at Zheng Dangshi, who was in charge of order at Changxin Palace, and then entered through the gate opened by the eunuchs.

"I heard you brought me human medicine again. I really lack the energy to study cultivation techniques right now. Let that child Huo go back!"

The first meeting with the Empress Dowager was no different; the Empress Dowager's demeanor was almost exactly the same as before, only her words were slightly different.

The Empress Dowager, being ill, rarely saw people, but she was willing to visit her fellow patients and observe their conditions.

Li Jiao was taken away and seemed to be sent to some secluded place, while Cheng Bushi did not have any symptoms of brain pain. Tian Fen was trying various nourishing and expensive medicines, and Zhang Xuezhou was sleeping soundly for long periods of time, with longer sleep durations than before.

Among the many people, the Empress Dowager considered herself the only rational one seeking medical treatment.

Her gaze swept across Zhang Xuezhou's face, and she felt that Zhang Xuezhou's face did not seem to show any signs of pain or suffering.

The Empress Dowager felt nothing after taking the Ten-Ingredient Tonic Pill, but she was prone to madness whenever the effects of the medicine weakened. Sometimes she would envy Zhang Xuezhou for being so carefree and not taking his injuries seriously at all.

"This time it's not Xiao Huo, but two real human medicines. Take a close look at my hands!"

Are you carrying two people?

The Yang Po body that Zhang Xuezhou was carrying was extremely dull in color.

Like a flame, this Yang Soul Body would sway back and forth as Zhang Xuezhou moved, making it difficult to maintain its shape and resembling a ribbon.

Once Zhang Xuezhou had stabilized himself in the main hall of Changxin Palace, the two avatars of his Yang Soul gradually began to resemble human figures.

"Whose Yang Soul Body is this? What is your purpose in bringing these Yang Soul Bodies here?"

When the Empress Dowager saw the two naked yang spirit bodies, she felt that Zhang Xuezhou had gone mad. He actually captured and played with the yang spirit bodies of cultivators. These two cultivators were really unlucky to run into someone like Zhang Xuezhou.

Although surprised by Zhang Xuezhou's 'madness,' the Empress Dowager still asked him questions in a very rational manner.

"These two men ambushed Shen Chong, the Prefect of Jingzhao, and were subsequently shot dead by the Sima Gate Guards. They left this behind when they fled!"

Zhang Xuezhou pushed the two Yang Soul incarnations to the ground.

As if subjected to uncontrollable fright, the two Yang Soul incarnations opened their mouths wide as if to scream, but because their level of Yang Soul incarnation was insufficient, they could only make the appearance of opening their mouths to scream, and then they scurried around in a frantic manner.

After Zhang Xuezhou swept his sleeves a few times, the two men's bodies floated and swayed, making it difficult for them to regain their shape. Only then did they obediently stand still, trembling like startled quails.

"Was there a yang spirit body left behind after being shot?"

The Empress Dowager quickly raised her head, which was resting on her head, and then stood up from the recliner.

Her body floated for a couple of steps out of habit, then she quickly changed to walking when her brows furrowed, and then approached the two avatars of Yang Soul.

"Where are their bodies?" the Empress Dowager asked.

"They might be under the Sima Gate tower, or they might have been dealt with by Shen Chong's men!"

"Zheng Zhanshi, go to Sima Gate immediately and bring the corpse here!"

As soon as Zhang Xuezhou replied, the Empress Dowager quickly summoned Zheng Dangshi, who was at the entrance of the main hall, to leave the palace on business.

Her hands traced the bodies of the two yang spirits with extreme gentleness.

The strength of this Yang Soul incarnation is severely insufficient, perhaps because the body died too quickly to take shape, or perhaps because the two people's cultivation level is limited.

It's of little use for a living great cultivator to condense such a Yang Soul incarnation, but it's much more significant when a dead cultivator still retains such a Yang Soul incarnation.

The highest level of Yang Soul Incarnation is no different from the physical body. If a person can survive in the state of Yang Soul Incarnation without the physical body, it means that the person can survive by changing bodies even if the original body is severely damaged.

The issues involved also included the integrity of the divine existence and the lifespan of the Yang Soul incarnation.

Of course, the most important thing right now is to check whether the original bodies of these two Yang Soul incarnations are truly dead.

The Empress Dowager always maintained a serious and meticulous attitude towards research. She was well aware that if there was even the slightest oversight in such research, the subsequent findings would be impossible to establish.

Even though Zhang Xuezhou had mentioned that the two people's physical bodies had been killed by a hail of arrows, she still wanted to verify the details to avoid any possible mistakes. "If the Yang Soul Body can replace the physical body, and doesn't even care about the death of the physical body, then this is a path!"

Even the strongest Yang Soul Body is not as good as the original body, but cultivators inevitably suffer injuries and damage in battles, so this can be considered a life-saving technique.

For example, the Empress Dowager's Yang spirit was extremely strong, even surpassing that of most people in the Three Realms.

If the Empress Dowager were to cultivate the Yang Soul Incarnation Technique, given sufficient resources, she would surely achieve success and thus escape the taint of the evil energy and survive.

The Empress Dowager was also taking precautions, preparing for the possible bad situation before she died.

If her Yang Soul Body could be separated from her physical body, she would be free from the entanglement of the Dao Lord's flying knife technique.

“That’s right,” Zhang Xuezhou nodded repeatedly. “If one can integrate with the cultivation level, it’s not surprising that one can unleash the full power of their physical body in the future!”

Zhang Xuezhou was so proactive for no other reason than that he was still pursuing his own small goal: to ask the Empress Dowager for help in assisting Huo Qubing.

Once Huo Qubing achieved a certain level of mastery, and Dong Zhongshu analyzed Huo Qubing's artistic realm, Zhang Xuezhou could simply copy it.

He didn't expect Huo Qubing to reach the Realm of True Self; as long as he could reach the Realm of Sole Self, it would be considered a success.

He didn't need Huo Qubing to possess any control or domain power; even a mere showy display of his cultivation level would suffice.

"You're quite direct!"

Zhang Xuezhou's little scheme is not hard to guess.

The Empress Dowager was indeed quite adept at forcing growth.

Regardless of her strength, the progress she has made in the realm of techniques is genuine.

She mentored not only Tian Fen and Yi Shuo, but also some promising cultivators from Changxin Palace who received her guidance to varying degrees.

"I don't help people cultivate whenever I want. I need to have the ability to cultivate to a certain level before I can continuously push their level to grow by breaking through their weaknesses," the Empress Dowager said. "It's very difficult for you to designate someone like this, especially since Xiao Huo is just a child. His body is not fully developed, so it is very difficult to give him guidance!"

“Incomplete physical development may result in a lack of acupoints, but cultivation level and acupoints are not inextricably linked,” Zhang Xuezhou said. “Humans have 365 acupoints, and there are many demons with over 200 or 100 acupoints. They are not affected by the lack of acupoints and still possess high cultivation levels and realms!”

"Why are you so fixated on Xiao Huo?" the Empress Dowager asked with interest. "You yourself have a son; it would be better to raise your own child!"

"My child doesn't have the ability to cultivate realm techniques!"

Zhang Xuezhou waved his hand.

Given what he's doing now, Zhang Xuezhou thinks it's best for Dongfang Jia to remain invisible to avoid being implicated if things go wrong in the future.

He almost said that his own child was a good-for-nothing and not worth promoting at all.

After explaining, Zhang Xuezhou then emphasized Huo Qubing's rapid attainment of body control at a young age, and also mentioned that the Confucian tradition of "Zhongni Qiguan Shuo" distinguishes between simple and complex cultivation methods, and Huo Qubing chose the simplest path of cultivation.

"You can rest assured, if this method succeeds, I will lend Xiao Huo a hand. As for him..."

The Empress Dowager eventually agreed to the matter.

She was about to mention that she would do her best but could not guarantee it when she heard a distant wail coming from outside Changxin Palace.

"Sister, Dou Ying obtained the late emperor's edict. He said we are remnants of the Celestial Court and that we must commit suicide before the late emperor to prove our innocence. He wants us all to die together!"

Before they even entered Changxin Palace, Tian Fen's voice could already be heard.

As a cultivator at the True Self Realm, Tian Fen's fighting strength may be lacking, but he can still unleash minor spells with little power without any problem.

Zhang Xuezhou casually picked up the magic sound technique to play with, but Tian Fen was clearly quite good at it as well.

The other party was still a mile away from Changxin Palace, but their voices had already reached the palace.

"How come the late emperor's edict is with Dou Ying!"

The Empress Dowager bit her lip slightly, feeling that the dead Emperor Jing was truly a worry, and that her deep-seated desire for revenge had been wasted.