A god-level alchemist, starting by manually crafting forbidden pills.

"Soul-Corroding Powder?! When did you...?"

Yin Gu was both shocked and furious.

"I scattered it along the road while you were chasing us."

Luo Fan wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, grinned, and said, "Didn't expect that, did you?"

"you!"

The protective spiritual power of the Yin Bone caused a momentary stagnation.

That one moment is enough.

Bai Jie's longsword flashed with a cold light, transforming into a streak of light that pierced into Yin Gu's right shoulder.

The sword tip pierced through his body!

"what!"

Yin Gu screamed in agony and slapped out with his backhand.

boom!

Bai Jie was injured and crashed into the rock wall, spitting out a mouthful of blood before losing consciousness.

Before closing her eyes, Luo Fan's silhouette was reflected in her vision, as if she was unwilling to fall like this.

"Senior Sister!!"

Luo Fan's eyes were bloodshot.

He watched Bai Jie's limp figure on the ground.

Looking at the blood at the corner of her mouth, looking at her face as pale as paper.

The blood vessels in his eyes gradually spread.

"You...are...looking for... death..."

Luo Fan took out a handful of pills, and without even looking at them, stuffed them all into his mouth.

The violent medicinal power exploded within his body, causing his meridians to rupture inch by inch, yet his aura surged wildly.

Qi Refining Level 11!

Twelve levels of Qi Refining!

Foundation building!

Foundation Building Level Two!

"Blood-Burning Pill?! Are you insane?!"

Yin Gu's expression changed drastically.

This kind of pill forcibly enhances cultivation by burning one's essence and blood.

The side effects are severe; at best, one's cultivation will be completely destroyed, and at worst, one will die on the spot.

"crazy?"

Luo Fan laughed, a ferocious laugh. "I'll show you what madness really is!"

Holding the Soul-Severing Blade, he used the Ghostly Shadow Steps, transforming into countless afterimages as he pounced on Yin Gu.

Fighting with their lives!

Trade wounds for wounds!

Tragic

laugh!

The Soul-Severing Blade pierced Yin Gu's abdomen, and Luo Fan was also struck in the chest by Yin Gu's palm.

Three ribs were broken, and internal organs were displaced.

Luo Fan coughed up blood, but still gripped the knife tightly, stirring it wildly.

"what!"

Yin Gu screamed and slapped Luo Fan on the shoulder.

Click!

The shoulder bone was fractured.

Luo Fan used his other hand to grab Yin Gu's neck and strangle him tightly.

"Young man! Let me go!!"

Yin Gu struggled frantically, but Luo Fan's hands were like iron clamps, remaining completely still.

The two tumbled and wrestled, rolling from the shore to the edge of the cold pool.

The chill of the pool water made both of them shiver.

Yin Gu lowered his head and saw the pitch-black, thousand-year-old ice at the bottom of the pool, and fear finally appeared in his eyes.

"You're insane! That's ice below; if we fall, we'll all die!"

Luo Fan grinned, his mouth full of blood, his smile so bright it was chilling.

"Then let's die together!"

He wrapped his yin bones around himself and leaped down.

"No!!!"

The agonizing screams of Yin Gu echoed between the cliffs.

The two fell into the icy pool, splashing water everywhere.

Everything fell silent.

Only on the surface of the cold pool, the ripples spread out like waves.

Bai Jie woke up at some point.

She struggled to climb to the edge of the pool, looking at the dark water and the bloodstains spreading on the surface.

"Xiao Fan!"

She reached out as if to grab something, but only grasped a handful of icy water.

Bai Jie's lips twitched, and her eyes unconsciously became misty.

Her small fist clenched quietly, her nails piercing her palm, drawing bright red blood.

She stood there, motionless, as if she had lost her soul.

Until a gust of wind blinded her.

Only then did they see a line of small characters written in blood on a stone by the pool.

"Senior sister, wait for me for three days."

If you don't return in three days... forget about me.

Those are Luo Fan's words.

He wrote it hastily by using his spiritual power to spill his blood before jumping.

Bai Jie looked at the words and the blood spreading in the pool.

She suddenly smiled.

"Fool…"

"I'm waiting for you."

"I'll keep waiting."

The water beneath the cold pool was icy cold.

The pool was pitch black, with visibility less than three feet; only a faint glimmer of light from the sky shone through the water's surface overhead.

Yin Gu struggled frantically, trying to break free from Luo Fan.

Luo Fan wouldn't let him have his way; he tightened his grip and strangled him.

The Soul-Severing Blade was also stuck in Yin Gu's abdomen, carrying out wisps of black blood with the flowing water.

"open…"

Yin Gu transmitted his thoughts, his entire face contorted with suffocation.

Luo Fan didn't answer, but tightened his arms even more, as he could feel his life force draining away.

The backlash from the Blood Burning Pill, the severe internal injuries, the shattered bones, and the bone-chilling cold of the pool water were all consuming his consciousness.

He cannot let go.

Letting go means death.

The two sank to the bottom of the pool.

Beneath my feet lay hard, smooth ice, and the chill seeped into my very bones through the soles of my boots.

Luo Fan's legs were so numb that he lost all feeling in them.

Despair flashed in Yin Gu's eyes. He bit his tongue and spat out a drop of blood.

The blood droplet did not disperse; instead, it condensed into a strange, blood-red rune.

"Young man... how dare you!"

With his last ounce of strength, Yin Gu shattered the blood-red jade talisman at his waist.

A barely perceptible stream of crimson light pierced through the pool and shot towards the surface, disappearing in an instant.

"A communication talisman?!" Luo Fan's heart sank.

A sinister laugh echoed in Luo Fan's mind.

"The palace... has received the message... you cannot escape..."

"Now, you can't escape!"

Luo Fan grabbed Yin Gu's head with his other hand and slammed it hard into the ice at the bottom of the pool.

boom! boom! boom!

One, two, three...

The skull of the Yin Bone was shattered, red and white blood mixed with black blood, gradually dissipating in the pool.

His struggles gradually ceased, and the light in his eyes completely dimmed.

Luo Fan released his grip, watching the Yin Bone corpse sink deeper into the pool.

He clung to his last breath, his Insightful Eyes struggling to operate in the darkness, scanning his surroundings.

The bottom of the pool is not only filled with ice.

Ten feet to the left, there was a sunken ice cave, and deep inside the ice cave, there was a faint blue light.

The light was soft and pure, radiating an astonishing chill and vitality.

"Found it, the Thousand-Year-Old Jade Marrow!"

It was an incomparably precious wonder of nature, no less valuable than the Nether Spring Cold Fire.

Cold Jade Marrow is born deep within millennia-old mysterious ice, containing the purest ice-elemental power.

If one can obtain it, not only will one's injuries be healed, but one's cultivation will also greatly improve.

He bit his tongue, using the intense pain to stimulate his fading consciousness, and struggled to swim towards the ice cave.

Ten zhang is a distance that would normally be covered in the blink of an eye, but now it feels like the ends of the earth.

Every inch he moved forward exhausted his last bit of strength, but finally, he held on.

Luo Fan swam to the front of the ice cave.

Inside the cave, a fist-sized, crystal-clear, pale blue liquid floated quietly.

It illuminated the entire ice cave in a dreamlike manner, with the cold air so dense it almost solidified.

Luo Fan's fingertips trembled as he touched the clump of cold jade marrow, but before his fingers could reach it, he could no longer hold on, his vision went black, and he lost consciousness.

hum!

The cold jade marrow seemed to possess a spirit, and suddenly transformed into a beam of blue light, actively entering his forehead.

Cold, pure, and boundless icy power surged into the sea of ​​consciousness, colliding and merging with the Nether Spring Cold Fire.

A protective aura emanated from Luo Fan's body, lifting him upwards.

three days later.

Ten miles downstream from the cold pool, there is a shallow beach.

Sunlight filters through the sparse tree canopy, casting dappled shadows on the riverbank.

Luo Fan opened his eyes.

What comes into view is a blue sky, white clouds, and a babbling stream in the distance.

He lay on the riverbank, his body beneath soft sand and pebbles, the river water washing over his ankles.

There was no biting cold, no excruciating pain, no near-death weakness; on the contrary, I felt completely comfortable.

His body was filled with spiritual energy, his internal organs were intact, and even his broken ribs had healed.

His cultivation had reached the astonishing peak of the twelfth level of Qi Refining, only half a step away from Foundation Establishment.

To his even greater surprise, a pale blue ice flame appeared beside the Nether Spring Cold Fire in his sea of ​​consciousness.

The icy flames and the cold fire of the ghostly spring rotated slowly, forming a delicate balance.

Ice and fire, which should be mutually exclusive, coexist harmoniously at this moment, and even seem to have a tendency to mutually generate each other.

With a slight thought, a ball of dark blue flame appeared in his palm, with a glimmer of icy blue light in its center.

The flames appeared to be more subdued in temperature, yet more powerful than before; he could also condense ice-type spiritual energy.

"Ice and fire share the same origin..."

A look of joy flashed in Luo Fan's eyes.

The millennium-old cold jade marrow not only healed his injuries but also widened his meridians.

What's more, he unexpectedly gained mastery of ice-type spiritual power.

From then on, he possessed two of the five elements' original power, making his cultivation of the dual paths of fire and water twice as effective.

"Xiao Fan!!"

Hearing the shout, Luo Fan turned his head and saw a figure in moonlight white staggering towards him.

It's Bai Jie.

Her hair was disheveled, her clothes were stained with mud, and there were still traces of undried dirt on her face.

For three days, she searched along the downstream of the cold pool for a full thirty miles without sleep or rest.

Seeing Luo Fan lying unharmed on the riverbank, he immediately pounced on her, taking her warm and soft body into his arms.

"Thank goodness, you're still alive..."

Without saying much, Luo Fan could feel that she wanted to merge herself into his body.

Luo Fan grinned, "I'm sorry to have worried you, Senior Sister. Compared to the cold water, your body is much warmer."

hiss!

Bai Jie grabbed his ear, and he pretended to wince in pain!

"You little rascal, are you out of your mind?! Why are you fighting him to the death?!"

Bai Jie's eyes were red. "As long as we escape back to the sect, he won't dare to chase after us!"

Luo Fan remained silent.

Sunlight filtered through the treetops, casting interplay of light and shadow on his face.

After a long silence, he finally spoke, "Senior sister, do you know how my master died?"

Bai Jie was taken aback. "Didn't Elder Li die from a qi deviation during alchemy, resulting in the severing of all his meridians?"