The First Sage of Military Strategists

Chapter 124 The Poisonous Scripture of the Underworld
Chen Linghui circled the camp again and again, constantly probing with his spiritual senses, only to find that the camp was even more heavily guarded than he had imagined.

"I never imagined that Han Qing, who is only twenty years old, would be so capable of managing an army. He has managed to run a small Tiger Might Camp so well; he is truly extraordinary."

"But it's a pity, that old dog Chen Muxiu sent me to kill you, so you must die!"

Chen Linghui pondered for a moment, then found a secluded corner, used his lightness skill to leap up, vault over the wall, and land directly in the camp.

He moved slowly through the camp, his mind sweeping around him, avoiding patrol teams one after another, and soon arrived at the center of the camp.

His senses were sharp, and he could hear people practicing martial arts in the courtyard, their laughter echoing endlessly.

"That voice is full of energy; it must belong to a martial arts grandmaster. It seems this person is protected by a master. If I want to kill him, I can't rely on brute force; I'll have to use some insidious methods," Chen Linghui thought to himself.

He didn't rush to make a move, but instead lay in wait near the courtyard.

Martial arts grandmasters have extraordinary physical constitutions and can go without food for three to five days without any problems.

He was cautious by nature and knew the importance of alerting the enemy. If he failed to kill the target on the first attempt, the target would become more vigilant, and the success rate of the second assassination would be greatly reduced.

Fortunately, he didn't have to wait long. In the early hours of the morning, a young man in black, accompanied by several attendants, stepped out of the courtyard.

Chen Linghui's gaze sharpened, and he immediately locked onto the young man.

The young man was none other than Han Qing, followed by a group of personal guards and two martial arts grandmasters, Chen Ming and Lin Yueqiu.

Despite the undercurrents in the outside world, Han Qing's own life rhythm was not affected in the slightest. He did what he was supposed to do, and every morning, he would patrol the camp as usual.

However, today, as soon as he stepped out of the courtyard, he frowned and sensed a faint but palpable killing intent.

However, the source of this murderous aura was clearly a master, as he couldn't pinpoint its location.

"Hmph!" Han Qing snorted coldly, his sharp gaze sweeping over the crowd before he shouted, "Hiding like a coward! Come out!"

This clear and loud shout startled Chen Linghui, who was hiding not far away.

"How did this child discover me? Could it be some kind of malevolent energy?"

His experience allowed him to immediately recognize this possibility.

However, he didn't have time to think too much. Now that he had discovered it, he took immediate action.

However, when he saw the two people standing on either side of Han Qing, he recognized the one on the left as Chen Ming, and immediately hesitated.

Immediately afterwards, he saw nine bearded old men in red robes rush out of the courtyard. Each of them looked fierce and exuded a chilling killing intent. They were none other than the Nine Elders of the Crimson Dragon.

"Another martial arts grandmaster!" Chen Linghui's pupils shrank.

Even though a cultivator at the Body Refining Realm is strong, being ganged up on by a large group of martial arts grandmasters is a death sentence.

"How can such a small Tiger Might Camp have so many martial arts grandmasters?" Chen Linghui wondered.

"The intelligence is wrong. I'm not doing this deal. Even if that old dog Chen Muxiu doesn't like me, I can't make a move!" Chen Linghui made up his mind immediately. He felt that everything else was secondary; his life was the most important thing.

If he were to make a move now, he would surely face certain death.

"go!"

Chen Linghui quietly retreated, preparing to distance himself from Han Qing and then look for an opportunity to leave the camp.

However, in the next instant, a vast and eerie wind suddenly swept across the world. Immediately afterward, black mist spread out in front, and a malevolent domain appeared, spreading outward at an astonishing speed, quickly covering a considerable area.

Chen Linghui was shocked. He had encountered many military strategists who cultivated their spirits, but he had never seen anyone's evil domain so powerful that it could cover such a large area.

He could see that the malevolent energy in this malevolent domain was so viscous that it was almost liquid.

"Damn it! That old dog Chen Muxiu has done me a great disservice! This Han Qing is clearly a Spirit Refining cultivator in the Body Reincarnation Realm!"

"A twenty-year-old Spirit Refiner at the Body Reincarnation Realm!"

A sense of fear suddenly rose in Chen Linghui's heart.

Cheng Xuanji, who was walking from the courtyard to the gate, also saw this scene and was shocked. He suddenly realized that Han Qing had become even stronger.

"Another breakthrough? What terrifying talent!" he murmured to himself.

Suddenly, a black-armored deity appeared out of thin air above Chen Linghui's head and slashed down at him with a sword.

He ultimately failed to hide. After Han Qing achieved mastery of the Body-Possession Realm, his range of mental search increased significantly, easily covering a radius of a thousand paces.

As the black-armored statue slashed down, Chen Linghui felt an immense pressure descend upon him. He hurriedly rolled to the side, dodging the fatal blow. The blade landed on the ground, carving a trench in the earth.

Chen Linghui rolled over and stood up, a hint of anger flashing in his eyes.

Suddenly, a black shadow shot out from his sleeve, transforming into a streak of light that rushed straight towards Han Qing in the evil domain.

This streak of light was actually a sable, but because it moved so fast, it appeared to the naked eye as a blur of light.

This sable is called the Flying Night Sable, a notoriously poisonous creature. Even a martial arts grandmaster would be paralyzed if bitten, and if the poison is not detoxified in time, he would die within an hour due to the rotting of his internal organs.

The sable rushed into the evil domain, its speed suddenly decreased, and wisps of evil energy invaded its body, greatly reducing its movement speed.

"Another expert at the Possession Realm, but with such strength, he's far from capable of killing me!"

Han Qing sneered. Although the sable was fast, he could clearly sense its every move in the Fiend Domain.

He saw a human-like light gleaming in the sable's eyes and immediately realized that it was an avatar of a Refining Spirit in the Possession Realm.

Once a cultivator of any school of spiritual cultivation reaches the Body Reincarnation Realm, they can choose a spirit beast as their avatar.

Han Qing has never cultivated a clone because clones consume a great deal of magical energy. If he makes a choice casually, it will not be easy to change it later. Therefore, if he were to cultivate one, he would have to choose a powerful spirit beast.

He was busy improving his strength and dealing with various crises, so he naturally didn't have time to bother finding a suitable clone.

At this moment, Han Qing's eyes lit up at the sight of this flying night sable.

He knew how powerful this thing was; it was fast, extremely poisonous, and had great potential—it was a top-tier external clone.

So, he originally intended to use the Star Shuttle to destroy the Flying Night Sable, but suddenly changed his mind.

Whoosh!
The Illusory Soul-Suppressing Chains shot out, stopping the Night Sable in mid-air and binding it tightly.

The latter struggled, but was completely unable to break free and fell forward to the ground.

Then, with a thought, Han Qing felt a sudden gust of cold wind rise, and strands of magical energy pierced fiercely into his body.

In an instant, the two engaged in a fierce battle using the bodies of the Flying Night Sables as their battlefield, their magical powers clashing intensely.

Han Qing was clearly superior, instantly shattering all the magical thoughts Chen Linghui had left in the Flying Night Sable's body and seizing control of its body.

Chen Linghui was startled. Han Qing's power of thought shocked him greatly. Every strand of thought was as hard as a diamond.

The fact that his carefully cultivated clone was so easily taken away can only mean that there is a huge gap in strength between the two in the Dao of Dharma.

"catch him!"

As soon as Chen Linghui appeared, many experts and hundreds of soldiers around him noticed his presence and immediately surrounded him.

The Nine Elders of the Crimson Dragon charged ahead, instantly putting Chen Linghui in an extremely dangerous situation.

"not good!"

"That old scoundrel Chen Muxiu has done me a great disservice!"

"How could the Tiger Might Camp have so many top experts? It's truly a dragon's den and a tiger's lair. If I had known this, I shouldn't have barged in!"

Chen Linghui immediately felt immense regret.

He hurriedly shouted, "Young Master Han, it's a misunderstanding! I have no grudge against you. Please stop and let me go. Show mercy when you can!"

"This is the Tiger Might Camp. You sneaked into the camp and spied on me in the dark. You are clearly up to no good. Enough with the nonsense, take him down!" Han Qing shouted loudly.

A flash of anger appeared in Chen Linghui's eyes: "Even a clay figure has some temper. Han Qing, your attitude has completely enraged me. Then I'll show you what I'm capable of!"

At this moment, many experts rushed towards him.

Suddenly, a cold wind arose, and a pale yellow poisonous cloud appeared above Chen Linghui's head. Raindrops fell from the cloud, making a continuous crackling sound.

"what!"

A large group of soldiers were soaked by the rain and let out a series of screams.

Their flesh rotted rapidly, turning into a puddle of mud in an instant.

Even the Nine Elders of the Crimson Dragon changed their expressions drastically and retreated hastily.

The rain was extremely powerful, and it was frantically corroding his protective energy.

"Hahahaha!"

"This is a secret technique of the Great Vajra Temple, a rain of extreme yin and poison from the heavens and the underworld. Even a grandmaster of martial arts would not be able to withstand it for long. Han Qing, you forced me to do this!" Chen Linghui laughed loudly.

"Get out of my way!"

Han Qing shouted loudly. He had read a detailed explanation of this spell in a book. The book mentioned that this was the number one poison technique, with extremely terrifying destructive power. It mainly targeted the physical body, but also had a certain destructive power on the soul.

Seeing so many soldiers die with festering sores, he was filled with murderous intent and dared not let his trusted confidants take any more risks.

He immediately manipulated the black-armored statue to attack Chen Linghui.

The black-armored statue was being washed by the poisonous rain, and although it faded somewhat, it was still far from collapsing.

Chen Linghui felt extremely apprehensive when he saw the black-armored statue charging towards him.

Based on his experience, he judged that the statue was extremely solid and its baleful aura was extremely strong. It could only be condensed by a cultivator who had reached the Great Perfection of the Body Refining Realm, while he was only at the Lesser Perfection of the Body Refining Realm, so it would be difficult for him to deal with the statue.

With a thought flashing through his mind, Chen Linghui waved his hand, and another wave of poisonous rain fell from the sky, directly enveloping Han Qing.

Suddenly, wisps of malevolent energy surged out from Han Qing's body, quickly condensing into a malevolent domain that enveloped the area above his head.

Wow!
The poisonous rain fell into the evil domain, where it clashed with the churning evil energy. The two forces fought each other, eventually eroding and disappearing.

Chen Linghui was startled. It was the first time he had ever seen such a dense and viscous evil domain. The black mist was rolling like ocean waves, and the poisonous rain was easily blocked.

This completely dispelled his idea of ​​dealing with Han Qing, and he only wanted to escape.

However, just as he was about to make a move, a streak of light flew in from afar – it was the Star Shuttle.

Chen Linghui was startled and, with a thought, controlled his flying sword to meet the attack, but the Star Shuttle's flight speed was too fast and its penetrating power was incredibly strong.

Ding-ding-ding-ding!

The shuttle and the flying sword collided dozens of times in an instant. The remaining magical power within the flying sword was quickly exhausted, and it then spiraled and fell to the ground.

In that short delay, the black-armored statue had already caught up with Chen Linghui from behind.

Left with no other choice, Chen Linghui let out a low roar, and a divine statue materialized above his head. This statue was dressed in a yellow robe and held a snake spear. At first glance, it looked like a Taoist priest, and it was surrounded by rolling yellow energy, which was also extremely yin and poisonous.

This statue is called the Statue of the Netherworld God, and it is an image of the Poison Path.

The two statues collided suddenly. The black-armored statue slashed out with its sword, and the Yellow Springs statue was no match for it. It was directly knocked back more than a hundred steps, and its image was fading rapidly.

The next instant, the black-armored statue flew forward and unleashed a second and third slash in quick succession.

The statue of the Yellow Springs was completely unable to resist. It was struck by the third blow and suddenly collapsed, turning into a gust of yin wind that swept in all directions.

"what!"

Chen Linghui let out a scream, a tearing pain shooting through his brain, his eyes filled with disbelief.

He had considered the possibility of defeat, but he hadn't expected it to be so quick and so devastating. He couldn't even withstand three strikes. This wasn't a battle; it was a one-sided crushing defeat.

"How can you be so strong?"

Chen Linghui was filled with fear. What was more terrifying than Han Qing's strength was her age.

At such a young age, he already possesses such formidable combat power and such a high level of skill. What will he be like in a few years?
"Chen Muxiu, you old scoundrel! I will never forgive you! You didn't send me to kill anyone, you sent me to my death!"

"The Chen family has offended this person; I think they are not far from facing disaster."

A multitude of thoughts flashed through Chen Linghui's mind in an instant.

At that moment, with a whoosh, a illusory and real soul-suppressing chain flew over and bound him directly.

Then the Star Shuttle flew over, whistling and whistling, piercing through his body dozens of times in an instant.

Chen Linghui was instantly covered in blood, his vital energy was greatly depleted, his aura plummeted, and he collapsed to the ground, completely unable to resist.

"You think you can assassinate me with such meager skills?" Han Qing snorted coldly.

The group of martial artists around him witnessed this battle and were secretly astonished.

Han Qing captured a Spirit Refining Realm cultivator in a one-on-one battle, and completely crushed him; such strength was truly overwhelming.

"With your abilities, young master, I think you could be considered the number one person below the half-saint level!" Cheng Xuanji, standing next to Lin Yueqiu, murmured.

He secretly compared his own strength with that of the assassin and found that his combat strength was about the same. In other words, Han Qing could easily defeat him now.

“He’s stronger than he was a few days ago!” Cheng Xuanji immediately concluded, even more shocked.

He had heard that there were exceptionally talented people in the world with amazing comprehension, who could gain insights from every life-or-death battle and greatly improve their strength. Han Qing was clearly such a person.

At this moment, Han Qing stepped to Chen Linghui's side and asked in a deep voice, "Now your life is completely in my hands. I ask you, who sent you to assassinate me?"

"I am Chen Muxiu, the governor of Youzhou. I am a retainer of the Chen family. I sought refuge with him in my early years to avoid trouble. I was protected by him and worked for him. I never expected that you would have such strong combat power at such a young age. I, Chen Linghui, admire you from the bottom of my heart. I hope you will not kill me. I cultivate the Azure Heaven and Yellow Springs Codex and am the number one poison master in the world. Keeping me alive will definitely be more useful than killing me!" Chen Linghui did not want to die, so he rattled off a lot of things.

"So it's that old bastard Chen Muxiu. I heard that he was seriously injured a few years ago and almost lost his life. Is that true?" Han Qing asked.

“That’s right. Back then, when Yuelu Academy was attacked by all sides, he wanted to get a share of the spoils, but he was severely injured by Su Jin and almost died. Luckily, he was saved by the Five Spirits Dao Saint. Although he survived, he became like a living dead, hiding in the darkness every day and unable to see the sunlight.” Chen Linghui hurriedly replied. “You’re quite cooperative.” Han Qing smiled.

"I sincerely wish to pledge my allegiance to you, young master. I beg you to spare my life!" Chen Linghui pleaded.

Han Qing glanced around and saw the filth on the ground. Many soldiers' bodies had turned into mud in the poisonous rain, and the air was filled with a stench.

He could sense that many of his confidants and soldiers harbored immense hatred for Chen Linghui.

Therefore, after a moment's thought, he quickly abandoned the idea of ​​subduing this person.

Moreover, this person is an expert in poisons, capable of killing without leaving a trace, making it far too dangerous to keep by one's side.

Then, Han Qing suddenly swung his knife, and Chen Linghui cried out, unable to dodge in time. His head was immediately severed and fell to the ground, blood gushing out like a fountain.

The Seven Killings Stele then gained another soul light spot, which flickered with Chen Linghui's face.

With Chen Linghui dead, the anger on the faces of the surrounding soldiers vanished instantly.

"Keep this man's head safe, I need it. Bury the body somewhere!" Han Qing ordered, then turned back to his room without continuing the patrol. He decided to absorb Chen Linghui's soul light first to see if that old thief Chen Muxiu had any other moves.

...

the other side.

Yongzhou.

Tiannan City.

In a spacious garden in the city center, Han Zhuang is practicing martial arts in the training ground.

His body surged with crimson light, and his sharp gaze swept over everyone: "All four of you, come at me together!"

The four sparring partners beside him did not hesitate and pounced on him from different directions.

Han Zhuang's figure flashed, and his fists struck in all directions at an extremely fast speed, leaving a trail of fist shadows everywhere.

Crackling!

With a muffled thud, the four martial artists were almost simultaneously sent flying, crashing onto the open ground in the distance. All of them had expressions of pain on their faces, rolling on the ground, unable to stand up for a moment.

Han Zhuang withdrew his fist, a hint of contempt in his eyes.

"waste!"

"Mr. Wen, next time arrange a few stronger martial artists for me. These few are too weak; I can defeat them with a flick of my wrist. They don't serve the purpose of real combat training," Han Zhuang said loudly.

Beside them stood a middle-aged man with a pockmarked face, dressed in brocade robes, waving a jade fan. Upon hearing this, he smiled and said, "Young master, it's not that these four are too weak, but that your combat power is too strong. Your Crimson Dragon Fist Technique has reached perfection. I believe that in a battle between people of the same realm, you are invincible!"

Mr. Wen chuckled and said that his words were half flattery and half the truth.

The Crimson Dragon Fist is also a top-tier martial art, and reaching its perfection is no easy feat, demonstrating Han Zhuang's exceptional martial arts talent.

On the other hand, as the most favored member of the Han family, Han Zhuang was extremely spoiled and could not tolerate any criticism. He had to be coaxed and flattered in everything he did. Knowing this, he was always flattering Han Zhuang.

Upon hearing this, Han Zhuang's face remained expressionless, but he was quite pleased inside, as he liked this about Mr. Wen.

Just then, a figure flew down from the top of a pavilion not far away.

"Who?"

Han Zhuang shouted, and many of his personal guards around the training ground immediately rushed over, drawing their swords to surround the newcomer.

"slow!"

Han Zhuang waved his hand, and the soldiers stopped in their tracks.

He recognized the person as Yang Wanxiu.

Although he was extremely favored in the Han household and had the power of life and death over his servants, there were a few servants who were extremely afraid of him, including Yang Wanxiu.

Yang Wanxiu was among the first to follow Han Yi and was deeply trusted by him. The young masters in the manor all vied to curry favor with him, hoping that he would say a few good words for them in front of Han Yi, so that they might be spared punishment if they broke the rules of the manor one day.

However, when he saw that Yang Wanxiu had lost an arm, his heart was filled with shock.

"Elder Yang, what happened? You've lost an arm, and your breathing is erratic. Who did this? Could it be Xiang Ying?"

When Yang Wanxiu arrived in the north, the two communicated via secret letters. He knew that Yang Wanxiu had two missions: one was to capture Han Qing alive and bring him back to the capital, and the other was to track down Xiang Ying. If he could recruit him, he would do so; if not, he would kill him. At the very least, he would try to find out how capable Xiang Ying was.

He felt that if anyone could inflict such severe injuries on Yang Wanxiu, it must be Xiang Ying, that martial arts prodigy with a naturally superior martial bone.

Yang Wanxiu coughed lightly and glanced around: "Young Master Zhuang, there are too many people here, it's not convenient to talk. Let's talk inside."

"it is good!"

The two immediately headed towards the nearby pavilion, and soon entered the room, where many servants were driven out.

"Old Yang, just how strong is this scoundrel Xiang Ying?" Han Zhuang asked, sitting in his chair.

Yang Wanxiu shook his head: "My arm wasn't broken by Xiang Ying, it was that little bastard Han Qing who did it."

Although it was embarrassing, he felt that he couldn't hide it anymore.

Moreover, given Han Qing's impressive martial arts talent, the most urgent task is to kill him as soon as possible, lest he one day reach the level of a half-saint or even a saint, becoming a formidable force and making it extremely difficult to kill him then.

"What? Is this true?" Han Zhuang was extremely shocked and stood up from his chair.

His impression of Han Qing was still that of a prodigy from Sichuan. Although Han Qing had killed Luo Ding, he didn't take him seriously at all.

There are countless geniuses, but only a few can truly become the best.

But now that Han Qing has severed Yang Wanxiu's arm, the situation is completely different.

"Young Master Zhuang, you must not underestimate this person. I rushed here to protect you."

Han Qingnian was only twenty years old, yet he was already a Refining Spirit in the Body Reincarnation Realm and a Grandmaster of Martial Arts. Throughout history, there have been very few people with such talent, and even the patriarch in his youth was far inferior to him.

Such a person's strength is improving rapidly, and it may not be long before they become one of the world's top masters.

Moreover, he is surrounded by a large group of top experts, including no fewer than ten martial arts grandmasters. Young Master Zhuang must be careful.” Yang Wanxiu said solemnly.

Han Zhuang's pupils contracted: "A twenty-year-old expert at the Body Reincarnation Realm? This boy cannot be allowed to live; he must be killed as soon as possible!"

He picked up the hot tea on the table and drank it all in one gulp, which calmed him down considerably.

"You mean, he dares to bring people to kill me?"

“Indeed! I observe that this person is extremely audacious and decisive in killing; he is definitely not a kind person. He knows where Young Master Zhuang lives, so he may very well take action.”

"My assassination attempt failed this time, and he will definitely hold a grudge against the Han family. He might even take action against you!" Yang Wanxiu said with absolute certainty.

Just then, a series of hurried footsteps came from outside.

"Lord Han, urgent report!"

A servant in black rushed into the room, knelt on one knee, and presented a secret letter with both hands.

Han Zhuang took the letter, opened it, glanced at it, and his face darkened.

"That little bastard has some nerve!"

Yang Wanxiu scanned the letter with his mind, and its contents immediately came to mind.

"I didn't expect this kid to act so quickly. He has wiped out all the experts at Ronghu Manor. Young Master Zhuang, you must also be careful. I suggest you don't show your face in public for a while."

A sudden surge of immense fear welled up in Han Zhuang's heart.

"Elder Yang, with you here, and with tens of thousands of city guards in the city, and my mansion full of experts, can't even you protect me?"

"It's hard to say, but it's best to be careful. You are Madam Luo's most beloved son, and nothing can happen to you," Yang Wanxiu said in a deep voice.

"Then what do you think should be done?" Han Zhuang asked.

"Hide first. I've already sent a letter back to the capital. I believe the patriarch will have a solution soon," Yang Wanxiu said.

"Hide away? I never thought that I, the eldest son of the Han family, would be forced to this point by a country bumpkin." A cold glint appeared in Han Zhuang's eyes. In all his life, others had always avoided him, never the other way around. His anger surged within him.

Yang Wanxiu said in a deep voice, "Young Master Zhuang, please calm down. The army of the four battalions in the north has opened the passage to the ice plains. The imperial court has been mobilizing troops all over the country, preparing to launch a general offensive against the demon race."

"My Han and Luo families also have experts arriving in Yongzhou soon. At that time, Young Master Zhuang will no longer need to worry about being assassinated by Han Qing."

Han Zhuang nodded: "I heard that many experts will be gathering in the North this time."

"Indeed, the demon race once dominated the world in ancient times. Although they have declined, they still have a large amount of treasures left behind, including a large number of ancient magical artifacts and spells, which are fatally attractive to the world's top experts."

"Furthermore, the imperial court wants to kill the Demon Emperor and seize his heart to prolong the Emperor's life, which is something many people don't want to see and will definitely do everything in their power to obstruct it. I suspect that not only will the major forces within the Great Yu Kingdom intervene, but also forces outside the Great Yu Kingdom such as the Western Mang Tianlang Fortress and the Great Vajra Temple. This is likely to be the largest martial arts event in the world since the suppression of the Yuelu Academy, and countless Martial Saints, Half-Saints, and even Saints will emerge from seclusion." Yang Wanxiu said in a deep voice.

“It is indeed advisable to keep a low profile during this period.” Upon hearing this, Han Zhuang felt immense psychological pressure.

He has a terrible reputation in the capital, and as a member of the Han family, he has many enemies throughout the country, so it's hard to guarantee that he won't be targeted by others.

“Young Master Zhuang is absolutely right. I will stay in Tiannan City to protect you during this time. You don’t need to worry too much. With me here, it’s wishful thinking for anyone to kill you,” Yang Wanxiu said in a deep voice.

"Thank you for your trouble, Elder Yang." Han Zhuang nodded.

...

Three days have passed since Chen Linghui was killed, and the Tiger Might Battalion has briefly returned to calm.

However, with repeated assassination attempts, the atmosphere in the entire camp was extremely tense.

From Lin Yueqiu and other experts to ordinary soldiers in the camp, everyone was on edge, not daring to relax even a little.

Han Qing remained calm and composed, continuing his daily routine for the past three days. He did what he was supposed to do, patrolling every morning and spending almost all his other time practicing martial arts and meditating.

At this moment, in the room, he sat cross-legged on the bed, absorbing and transforming a poison-based spirit-refining technique from Chen Linghui, named the Yellow Springs Spirit-Condensing Technique, which is the number one technique in the poison path.

However, no saint has ever been born in the Poison Path. It is a minor, unorthodox path. Even the first method of the Poison Path can only allow one to cultivate to the Body-Possession Realm at most. Beyond that, the path is cut off. To continue, one must have a genius to open up the subsequent path. Only when a saint is born will the Poison Path become the Great Path.

"The poison arts that Chen Linghui learned came from a secret manual called the Yellow Springs Poison Manual. It is mainly divided into three parts: first, the method of refining the spirit; second, a spell called the Azure Heaven Yellow Springs; and third, the hundred arts of poison. By learning it, one can master all the poisons in the world, poison techniques, and know how to make, administer, and detoxify poisons," Han Qing murmured to himself.

He had thought he could directly inherit the Yellow Springs Poison Manual, but the Seven Killings Stele separated the three parts. If he wanted to learn them, he would have to inherit them separately, which made him very regretful. Otherwise, he could have inherited two more martial arts skills.

However, Han Qing wanted all three martial arts techniques. The Refining Spirit Technique goes without saying, the Azure Heaven and Yellow Springs is an extremely powerful spell, and he was extremely lacking in spells, so he couldn't miss it. Finally, the Hundred Poison Remedies technique could also provide a lot of help in many situations, and he wanted to inherit it as well.

In the past three days, he has successively inherited the Hundred Antidotes to Poison and the Secret Technique of the Underworld.

Chen Linghui had only mastered this secret technique to a high level, but its destructive power was already extremely terrifying.

This method can transform a person's thoughts into poisonous rain, harming both the body and the soul, or it can transform into poisonous fog, killing people invisibly.

This technique is most powerful when used by a Poison Path Refiner, especially when combined with their special abilities; however, it can also be learned by Refiners of other schools.

Time passed slowly, and another hour went by in the blink of an eye. On the panel, the proficiency of the Great Completion level Yellow Spring Refining Spirit Technique was rapidly decreasing, while the proficiency of the sixth chapter of the Ceasefire Scripture was slowly increasing.

In a short while, Han Qing's proficiency in the Yellow Springs Refining Spirit Technique completely dropped to zero. He opened his eyes, slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air, and glanced at the panel. The Zhige Scripture had increased his proficiency by a total of 6%, which was a very low conversion rate.

However, this was normal, and Han Qing wasn't surprised.

But during this process, he made another discovery.

"I once read in a book that there are two very obvious hurdles in the path of Dharma thought. One is the Condensation Realm, where Dharma thought must leave the body and be baptized by the sun and moon. This is a great test of willpower. Many geniuses, even those with outstanding talent and comprehension, cannot withstand such excruciating pain because their willpower is not up to par. They are blocked from the Condensation Realm for life, and their Dharma thought cannot leave the body."

The second is the realm of semi-saint, which requires an extremely thorough understanding of life and death, the ability to truly overcome the great terror between life and death, to no longer fear death, and to undergo a transformation of mind, so as to be reborn and take a step to become a semi-saint.

If this cannot be achieved, then even if a cultivator reaches the perfection of the Body Reincarnation Realm, even if they have exceptional talent and cultivate diligently every day, they will ultimately stop at the Body Reincarnation Realm.

But the book doesn't say how to see through this illusion; it only mentions that it requires personal understanding and a trigger to touch one's soul.

For each person, the opportunity is different. Many thoughts flashed through Han Qing's mind.

Today was the first time he had experienced this layer of illusion.

In the past, as one's spiritual realm improved, one's Dharma thoughts would grow rapidly and smoothly.

This time, however, Han Qing felt that his Dharma power was being restrained. Although it was still growing stronger, it seemed to have reached a certain limit. He had to break through the restraint and the limit in order to continue to grow stronger.

This constraint is likely the barrier or illusion that Kong Xiu and many other masters referred to.

"As my realm continues to approach the perfection of the Parasitic Realm, my understanding of this barrier will only become more and more profound."

To break through this barrier, one needs to experience the immense terror of life and death. It seems I must confront a powerful opponent and seek a transformative opportunity for my mindset amidst bloodshed.

Han Qing pondered for a moment, then stopped worrying and put the matter aside for the time being.

He got up and went out, calling out loudly, "Yue Xiaobiao, Elder Yan, come with me to the Yinshan camp."

"Yes!"

This morning, Cao Zhen sent a message, seemingly a reply from Qi Wufeng, urging him to hurry to the Yinshan camp.

At this moment, Han Qing absorbed Chen Linghui's soul light points and had nothing urgent to do, so he immediately headed to the Yinshan camp.

The eleven men rode at breakneck speed and arrived at their destination in a single day.

"Greetings, Lord Cao!"

Upon arriving at the camp, Han Qing greeted Cao Zhen with a respectful bow and a loud shout.

This time, Cao Zhen was mentally prepared and was not startled by the loud shout. However, when he met Han Qing's eyes, he felt that Han Qing's eyes were like a vast vortex of stars, truly unfathomable, and he couldn't help but want to immerse himself in them.

"What terrifying eyes!" Cao Zhen muttered to himself.

(End of this chapter)