Dream of the Red Chamber: Starting from Immortal Martial Arts

Chapter 128 Return to Tier 3!

While the undercurrents beneath the Huai River were surging, the Northwest was also far from peaceful.

Taiyuan Town, one of the nine important border towns, is also known as the Three Passes Town, namely Piantou Pass, Ningwu Pass, and Yanmen Pass. The town was initially established at Piantou Pass, but during the reign of Emperor Chongwu, it was moved to Ningwu. It commanded a total of 100,000 people, including armored border troops and hereditary guards, and was jointly controlled by the royal family and the founding line.

The commander-in-chief's name is Qi Erdong, the son-in-law of Emperor Chongwu. He has served as commander-in-chief since the 47th year of Chongwu's reign, and commands half of the troops, standing shoulder to shoulder with the two deputy commanders-in-chief from the founding line.

In recent days, Zhou Yi, the deputy commander of Taiyuan Town and a member of the Liu family, has been mobilizing troops in shifts, conducting a large-scale search of the deep forests at the border of Shanxi and Shaanxi provinces, from Mengjiayu in the north to Shangpingguan in the south. Many bandits have been killed, and many cultivators who were practicing in seclusion there have also been drawn out.

Generally speaking, when exploration teams from powerful families or hermits encounter large-scale military raids in the mountains, they will reveal their identities beforehand to prevent conflict, and then each will leave peacefully.

This time, however, under Zhou Yi's command and with the support of the second-tier cultivators in the town, every cultivator they found, regardless of their origin, was brought into the camp for a thorough check of their identity, causing quite a stir.

Inside the town, at the General's residence, in the council hall.

"So, this old bastard is leading troops to investigate the Blood Land?"

Dressed in military attire, with a square face and broad forehead, Qi Erdong sat in the main seat, frowning as he looked at the blood-robed cultivator before him.

"Yes, and blood-producing areas cultivated in Yanchang and Yanchuan counties of Yan'an Prefecture, Shaanxi Province have been discovered, and news has come from the Tongguan direction."

News also indicated that the local health station had reached the outer perimeter of the blood-scarred area in Huayin County.

Upon hearing this, Qi Erdong's expression darkened. It was fine that Chijian Ridge was gone a few days ago; he could find another secret place later. But if these two were discovered and destroyed, his Blood Pill would be gone, and how could he break through to the third rank?

"Where are the third-tier True Immortals who are in charge of the Northwest region?"

The man with blood blisters replied, "The last message was sent from Hanzhong Prefecture in Shaanxi Province; his current whereabouts are unknown..."

Qi Erdong pondered for a moment, then said in a cold voice, "Contact the True Man with the highest-level secret report and ask him to oversee Huayin. If the Blood Earth True Man is discovered, kill everyone who discovers him!"

"But if this blows up, they'll definitely send people to investigate again..."

"Then let them not have time!"

Qi Erdong raised his head and looked towards the pass, his eyes gloomy. He laughed and said, "The grasslands are in chaos. The Tartars inside are all fleeing to both sides. The major Tartar tribes outside the pass have absorbed a lot of soldiers. If we really kill the garrison soldiers, the Tartars will surely break through the pass and invade the border!"

"Hmm, not bad."

Upon hearing this, the man with blood blistering was not alarmed but delighted, laughing loudly, "The corpses of border soldiers are excellent fertilizer!"

The two exchanged a smile, their unspoken understanding unspoken.

April 13th, 1:15 AM, underground secret chamber of Ningguo Mansion in Xianjing.

Inside the room, the lights were bright and the atmosphere was solemn. Jia Tang, Niu Jizong, Liu Fang, Hou Xiaokang, and others gathered together, quietly waiting for their relatives who had been exploring the secret realm for two months.

Suddenly, an inexplicable aura surged forth, and a gate of light floated in mid-air and condensed. From within it, a group of men, their bodies entirely red and reeking of blood, emerged. Judging from the facial features of the leader, one could vaguely make out the likeness of Niu Chengxian.

As soon as Niu Chengxian returned to the Daoist chamber, he threw down the slightly curled first-tier Yuan weapon in his hand with a clatter, then squatted down on the ground, panting heavily.

A faint gleam of joy flashed in Niu Jizong's eyes, but he still managed to shout, "You wretched child! So many relatives and elders are waiting here, and you're just taking a break? Speak quickly!"

Niu Chengxian wiped the slightly dried blood from his face and exhaled a breath of turbid air: "Ever since we entered the secret realm... no, the alien realm, under the leadership of True Man Jinhu, we started from the southwest of the Shu Mountain region and fought our way to the northeast. For six hundred days, we have not stopped for a moment."

Xiao Niu's voice trembled slightly: "The whole journey was about slaying demons and monsters, taking drugs to call for help when encountering powerful enemies, and then opening up new battlefields!"

"All of us at the first level and below are merely catalysts, used to gradually lure the so-called Golden Core and Nascent Soul demons and monsters from other realms."

"I haven't drunk a drop of hot water in six hundred days, haven't touched a woman once. When I'm thirsty, I drink the blood of demonic beasts; when I'm hungry..."

They eat all sorts of strange-smelling monster meat. Tiger brother, I'm in a terrible situation...

"Later, because we killed too many, the demons and monsters of the whole world seemed to unite. Under the leadership of the Nascent Souls of the three factions of demons, ghosts and monsters, the various tribes surrounded us, which even triggered a great war between humans and demons at the God Transformation stage."

"We didn't find out until right before our return that this was all part of the plan!"

"Brother Tiger, let me tell you, our old man from the Niu family is being trained so badly by Master Golden Tiger that he's almost urinating blood, and you..."

Niu Chengxian was recounting the injustices he had suffered in a foreign land when he suddenly noticed the strange expressions on everyone's faces. Then, the questioning voice of Master Jinhu Jia He exploded in his mind!

"Um?"

Upon hearing the sound, Niu Chengxian leaped up and instantly flew behind Niu Jizong, remaining silent.

Upon seeing this, everyone's faces twitched, barely suppressing their laughter.

Jia He, Niu Lian, Hou Xiaoli, and Ma, the four True Immortals, emerged from the gate of light first, followed closely by the second and first level cultivators from various mansions and families. Since Jia He could not use the power of half of the Tiger Talisman's blood and qi, none of them returned to the Mortal Refinement stage; they had all either broken through or died.

As the expedition team slowly returned, everyone's hearts grew increasingly anxious. Just from Niu Chengxian's words, it was clear that this journey had not been smooth sailing.

Everyone had anticipated or prepared for the losses; they could only hope that the losses wouldn't exceed their minimum expectations!

Jia He, ignoring the scrutiny of the crowd, approached Jia Tang with an indifferent expression, handed over the tiger tally, and bowed, replying, "My lord, this expedition to explore foreign lands involving the eight prefectures and twelve families of the Immortal Capital consisted of 260 people at the start and 142 people on the return journey!"

Upon hearing this, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. It hadn't even reached half of what they had hoped for; some had even predicted a loss of 70%.

"Among them, there are four at the third rank, twenty-two at the second rank, eight lost and six new, one hundred and sixteen at the first rank, only nine of whom are internal energy, the rest are external energy or have complete internal energy."

At this point, Jia He paused, a look of joy appearing on his face, and said with a smile, "A total of thirteen third-tier qi and blood power have been accumulated, seventy-nine second-tier qi and blood power, and one hundred and seventy-three first-tier qi and blood power."

At the same time, the half of the tiger tally, its surface covered in a layer of blood, flew back into Jia Tang's Yellow Court, merging with the other half and transmitting a message: "New dragon-tiger energy has been added, purifying 1087 strands from 41 third-tier beasts, 933 strands from 214 second-tier beasts, and 802 strands from first-tier beasts, totaling 2822 strands. These ten thousand strands condense into one, which can be bestowed upon all generals for enhancement."

"Benefit what?"

Jia Tang sensed the last two indistinct characters and asked about the tiger tally twice, but received no response.

I didn't pay much attention to it, since Wanlu was still quite far away.

Jia Tang snapped out of his daze, his face lighting up with joy. He laughed heartily, "Excellent! Very good! Worth it!"

"With so much to show for it, how did you manage to protect so many people?"

Niu Lian chuckled and replied, "We owe it all to our comrades in that other realm. Because of us, the humans and demons there have engaged in a full-scale war between good and evil!"

"Although there are fewer humans who have reached the Nascent Soul stage, each of them possesses numerous magical treasures, and their combat strength is comparable to that of demons."

"After the great war began, we became guest elders of the Shu Mountain outer sect, serving as the vanguard of the human alliance. Together with our comrades from Shu Mountain, Mao Mountain, Shenxiao, and the Li clan, we were dedicated to conquering the land where the great demon Panheng resided. We spared no expense in providing life-saving medicine for anyone injured, ensuring rapid recovery and even advancement. For example, these youngsters, each one fearlessly fighting beyond their level, have progressed from the early stage of Inner Strength to the late stage of Complete Qi in just two years, and each of them has single-handedly killed a demon at the early stage of Golden Core!"

Upon hearing this, the four generations of direct descendants, including Niu Chengxian, Liu He, and Hou Zunqi, all raised their heads high and looked down on the sky.

"Hahaha~"

Hou Xiaoli, the usually irritable old monkey, stepped forward and chimed in, "Fortunately, Yu Yin established initial relations with Shu Mountain and the Li Clan the first time, allowing us to exchange all our spoils for the bodies of demons!"

"Only in this way can such a large amount of vital energy be obtained."

As soon as they entered the other world, Jia He unleashed all his vital energy, after all, they were all people whose names were recorded in the Tiger Tally and Jade Register, and comrades who would follow each other through life and death.

Niu Jizong and the others were somewhat surprised. What was this Qi and Blood? Why was it so important?

Seeing this, Jia He explained, "Breaking through within a level requires three streams of qi and blood from the same level. To break through to the next level, you need ten streams from the same level or two streams from the next level, doubling the requirement!"

Upon hearing this, everyone froze in place, staring blankly at Jia He, then shifting their gaze to Jia Tang. When they saw him nod, their expressions instantly turned to wild joy!

Even after deducting the blood and qi needed by Jia Tang, there is still enough left to produce a considerable number of third- and second-tier individuals. It wouldn't even be a problem to help a fifth-level blood refiner break through from the first tier all the way to the third tier.

Zhenzhen is really getting better!

Of course, they were just thinking about it; they knew that the actual distribution power was in Jia Tang's hands.

After a moment's thought, Jia Tang realized that he needed four channels to break through to the third tier. Jia Ping and Jia An needed thirty-two channels to enter the third tier. Liu Shi, a mid-stage second-tier member, needed thirteen channels of Qi and Blood to enter the third tier. If two more mid-stage second-tier members were selected from the twelve families, they would need twenty-six channels of Qi and Blood. There would still be nine channels of third-tier and eight channels of second-tier Qi and Blood left. This would be enough to create two more third-tier members. The first-tier Qi and Blood could either add more than a dozen second-tier members or even create more first-tier members.

This time alone, the number of people in the third tier of this lineage can be reduced to the size of two hands. In addition, there are four powerful generals and the unpredictable him, truly giving them the qualifications to dominate the world!

Jia Tang suppressed his thoughts and said in a deep voice, "Jia Ping, Jia An, Liu Jin, Xie Yu, and Jiang Tongshan, step forward and sit cross-legged around the battle flag."

o

"only!"

Jia Tang immediately sat down beside the array flags, and his mind communicated with the tiger tally, which manifested, allowing his thick, jade-like blood energy to flow into the tops of everyone's heads.

"Jia He, activate the formation at full power to isolate ourselves from all sight and sound!"

"Everyone else, exit the basement and wait!"

Breaking through to the third rank is vastly different from breaking through to the second rank. The condensation of martial talismans is intentional, and the amount of vital energy required to break through to the next rank is also enormous, forming a whale-like suction force that can be easily observed by others!

"only!"

Jia He accepted the order, and the powerful golden energy quickly merged into the garrison flag, causing a colorful, hazy light membrane to emerge from the ground, instantly enveloping the three prefectures of Ning, Rong, and Wei. The garrison mountain lord, appearing and disappearing, lay horizontally on the banner, coldly staring at the prying eyes from all sides!

"Hiss~ Why has the Jia family activated the formation again?"

"With Jia Tang in charge of the mansion, and supported by Jia Kang, Shi Cuiyue, and Chen He, who would dare to provoke such a powerful figure?"

"They don't necessarily all live in the capital. What if they were the ones who did the things in Lianghuai?"

"Perhaps someone has made another breakthrough, and this is used to cover it up?"

"Nonsense, the formation itself made quite a commotion; how can this be considered concealment?"

Upon seeing this, many cultivators in the capital city had their own suspicions and were discussing it amongst themselves.

Inside the room, Jia Tang, sitting cross-legged, felt a surging torrent of qi and blood rushing into his body, constantly being stimulated by his internal organs and dantian.

The physical body absorbed the energy, and the Qi liquid in the dantian condensed rapidly. Compared to how it used to take several days to condense a single drop, it was now like a fine drizzle.

At the same time, the nine radiant martial patterns arranged in a circle within the dantian began to slowly rotate as the amount of qi liquid increased, and then suddenly disappeared into the Huangting (Yellow Court).

Huang Ting, the divine consciousness of Jia Tang surged forth overwhelmingly, enveloping the nine martial runes and gradually merging with them.

"Roar~"

As time passed, the immense power of divine consciousness merged with the qi, forming a square, blank martial talisman about three feet in size. Immediately following were fierce and violent tiger roars, surging waves of water, raging seas of fire, and destructive thunder... Numerous supernatural phenomena appeared one after another, and martial patterns transformed into celestial and terrestrial runes, depicting and outlining the blank martial talisman, rendering it in a riot of colors.

The moment the martial talisman was formally formed, the world seemed to freeze, and an inexplicable great power surged from the talisman, filling Jia Tang's dantian and Huangting divine soul.

The range of Jiuli's divine sense increased rapidly, from ten li... fifteen li... twenty li... twenty-five li... until it reached twenty-seven li. At this point, the threefold increase in divine sense from the second to the third stage was complete.

Finally, an immense suction force surged from the martial body, drawing in the dense, mist-like multicolored elemental energy whale within the underground chamber, into the Three Palaces.

A massive funnel-shaped vortex, over a hundred feet long, swept through the sky, frantically engulfing the surrounding energy and gradually solidifying the liquid sea of ​​qi within the dantian. This made the martial body feel as if it were soaking in a warm, nourishing pool, causing lifespan to leap dramatically!

"Buzz"

Jia Tang suddenly opened his eyes, and a brilliant light flashed within them, causing the space in front of him to ripple with fine waves!

With a thought, a phantom tiger-shaped beast, about 180 feet tall, quietly appeared in the sky above the three prefectures. A delicate glint appeared in its cold eyes, and the powerful energy fluctuations within its body seemed capable of tearing a hole in the sky!

Thus, the third stage is complete!

The range of a third-order supernatural power is five, six, or seven times that of a second-order late-stage power. For example, Jia Tang's second-order late-stage power was 36 zhang, but once he entered the third order, it reached 180 zhang, which is larger than the ordinary third-order late-stage power of 160 zhang, and therefore more powerful!

The next instant, the tiger-shaped behemoth quietly turned into specks of light and vanished, then abruptly transformed into Jia Tang's figure, floating in the air as a fighting force.

He stared at the palace on the east side for a few moments, then disappeared!

"Old Chen family, it's time to talk to you about compensation for stealing my luck!"

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