Begin your practice with the crane-shaped stance.

Xia Dong, carrying the still-shaken Qin Wan, hurried back to her private room as the mine manager under the cover of night.

The most pressing issue right now is dealing with the poison in Qin Wan's body.

The paralyzing poison on the "Demon-Binding Rope" is extremely potent; if it is not removed in time, it may damage her very foundation.

Xia Dong helped her sit cross-legged on the bed, then used his fingers like a sword, relying solely on the powerful internal energy and blood to guide her, combined with the massage and acupuncture techniques honed through countless trials in the "Changchun Medical Classic," to force out the poisonous blood that had penetrated deep into her body little by little.

puff.

Qin Wan turned her head away and spat out a mouthful of foul-smelling black blood. Her originally pale face finally regained a rosy hue, and her stagnant magical power began to slowly circulate again in her body.

"Wan'er, stay here and rest for a while. I'll go outside and check the situation." Xia Dong handed her a silk handkerchief, whispered a word of advice, and then turned and pushed open the door without hesitation.

The night breeze was cool. Xia Dong skillfully applied a Concealing Talisman and an Invisibility Talisman to himself, and like a ghost in the night, he silently crept back to the vicinity of the abandoned mine.

Outside the mine, the illusion array set up by the assassin, resembling an inverted bowl, continued to operate silently, completely concealing the true scene inside. From the outside, it remained a desolate ruin.

As Xia Dong passed through the light curtain, the sight before him, despite his resolute will, made him shudder slightly.

Only a stick of incense had passed since the fierce battle, and the three assassins' corpses on the ground had completely withered, turning into three emaciated, hideous dried corpses. Their life essence had obviously been completely drained by the swarm of insects, and as for their souls, not even a trace of their breath remained, having been completely devoured by the Yin-Yang insects.

Both body and soul were destroyed!

Xia Dong silently stared at the dried corpse on the ground, feeling that the cruelty of the cultivation world was on full display at this moment.

If he had been overconfident tonight, or lacked sufficient strength, the one lying here now, a dried-up corpse, unable even to enter the cycle of reincarnation, would have been Xia Dong.

After confirming the condition of the body, Xia Dong turned his gaze to the deep mine shaft.

Those lice have completely disappeared.

He closed his eyes and first used his divine sense to carefully explore the depths of the mine. Then he activated the "Spirit Farming Technique" and quietly sensed the flow of energy deep within the earth's veins.

After a long while, Xia Dong opened her eyes, feeling completely at ease.

The pure flesh and blood and the yin spirit of the cultivators are a great tonic for these alien insects.

They are now clearly too full and have collectively retreated deep into the earth's yin veins, entering a period of deep digestion and hibernation.

The earth's energy is extremely calm, and it is highly unlikely that any more Yin-Yang insects will emerge to cause trouble in the short term.

Moreover, Xia Dong has experience in this area. Last time, the giant snake ate its fill and advanced, and it didn't move for a long time.

"These three assassins acted so ruthlessly tonight, I wonder if they're after me or Wan'er..." Xia Dong pondered to himself. "However, no matter who they're targeting, now is actually the perfect opportunity for me to condense the talisman seed."

Now that the Yinming insects have just had a good meal and are in hibernation, this mine is actually much safer than when he was preparing to go into seclusion.

In addition, there is an illusion array left by the assassins outside as a natural barrier, and since the assassins have just been wiped out, it is highly unlikely that a second wave of assassins will sneak over in a short period of time.

He had the advantage of both favorable timing and advantageous location.

"Let's seize this opportunity and condense the talisman seed in one go."

However, Xia Dong did not immediately go to the place where she had been meditating.

It takes him quite a bit of time to condense the rune seed.

Once Qin Wan's poison injury has subsided somewhat, if she doesn't see him return, she will surely be extremely anxious and run to look for him.

Although this illusion array can block the view, if she tries to break it in a hurry or makes a commotion outside, it may easily cause unforeseen complications.

It would be better to simply call Qin Wan back into this illusionary formation.

Moreover, having just revealed his true strength in the life-or-death situation, he still needs to smooth things over.

Once she made up her mind, Xia Dong swayed and, under the cover of night, quickly returned to Qin Wan's room.

...

...

Inside the room, the candlelight flickered.

Seeing Qin Wan's breathing gradually stabilize, Xia Dong didn't waste any words and broke the silence directly: "Wan'er, time is of the essence, so I won't say much. The protective aura I just used was activated by the inner armor that a 'top' weapon-refining master of the imperial court crafted for me. As for the aerial pursuit technique, I used an extremely rare high-level wind-controlling talisman. You should keep these things to yourself and not mention them to anyone."

Qin Wan was slightly taken aback.

She knew things weren't that simple.

But she didn't point it out.

In the cultivation world, there are countless ruthless and heartless people. If Brother Xia were truly a ruthless person who would stop at nothing, he could have simply silenced her earlier. There would have been no need to waste time healing her and expelling the poison, nor would there have been any need to give such a somewhat awkward explanation.

Since Brother Xia was willing to give her an explanation, it meant he considered her one of his own people whom he could trust.

"Brother Xia..." Qin Wan raised her head, her eyes clear, her voice soft yet unusually firm, "I was just poisoned by a potent poison and fainted from the pain. I didn't see how you subdued those assassins at all."

Xia Dong gave Qin Wan a deep look.

The two understood each other without words, and Xia Dong stopped dwelling on these trivial matters, instead adopting a serious expression: "The assassination tonight was sudden, but now is definitely not the time to investigate the mastermind. Midnight is approaching, the yin energy is at its peak, the perfect opportunity for me to cultivate my secret techniques. We'll deal with the three assassins after I emerge from seclusion. You will continue to protect me."

"I understand, Brother Xia's cultivation is important." Qin Wan immediately stood up and moved her still somewhat stiff hands and feet a little.

Under the cover of night, the two returned to the illusion array within the abandoned mine.

As soon as she stepped into the light curtain, Qin Wan's gaze fell on the three dried corpses on the ground, which looked like withered branches.

Even though she had mentally prepared herself, the horrific scene still sent a chill down her spine. Looking fearfully into the deep, dark cave entrance, she asked anxiously, "Brother Xia, those Yinming worms inside... are they really not coming out again?"

"Don't worry, they've devoured the life essence and spirits of the three assassins and are now fast asleep deep within their lair. They won't make a sound anytime soon. You can just stay here and guard the lair."

"Okay." Qin Wan gripped the magic sword in her hand tightly.

Xia Dong frowned as he looked at her slightly frail back and said in a deep voice, "Wan'er, your reaction to the sneak attack was too slow. In the world of cultivation, life and death are decided in the blink of an eye. Your injuries haven't healed and your magic power is damaged, so I suggest you stop keeping your life-saving talismans in your storage bag. Take them out directly, hold them in your hand, and if you sense any danger, don't worry about anything else, just throw them out immediately."

Qin Wan's cheeks flushed slightly, and she lowered her head in embarrassment, saying, "I...I know."

Seeing her like this, Xia Dong sighed softly, her tone softening a bit: "It's my fault for not thinking things through enough. I should have reminded you to make these preparations earlier."

"Brother Xia, please don't say that." Qin Wan suddenly raised her head. "It's all because I haven't had enough experience and haven't been careful enough in my actions."

Tonight's experience made her realize the cruelty of the cultivation world even more deeply. Ultimately, it was because she wasn't cautious enough or strong enough.

"We'll analyze the enemy's identity later. Even if we knew who sent them now, it wouldn't make much difference," Xia Dong patted her shoulder.

"Yes!" Qin Wan nodded solemnly, then took out the life-saving talisman bestowed by her master from her storage bag and clenched it tightly in her palm.

After making the arrangements, Xia Dong turned around and walked back into the dark, abandoned mine without looking back.

Walking through the cold mine tunnels, Xia Dong reviewed the battle he had just fought, secretly feeling fortunate.

Fortunately, I had the giant snake as a sparring partner. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to turn the tables so easily tonight.

What surprised him even more was that after the life-or-death battle, his blood and magical power did not weaken due to the intense consumption; instead, they underwent a deep cleansing under high pressure.

At this moment, Xia Dong felt clear-headed and had a profound sense of enlightenment.

"That's the biggest takeaway tonight."

He strode to the rocky depression he had chosen earlier and sat cross-legged in the center of the circle marked by the insect repellent powder.

Close your eyes, and your mind will instantly sink into your body.

As midnight approached, the malevolent energy within the mine seemed to be summoned, converging towards Xia Dong's location.

Xia Dong's chest rose and fell rhythmically, and the Xuan Yin magic power within his body was like a hibernating dragon awakening, surging and roaring in his broad meridians, creating a strong resonance with the Yin Sha Qi flowing in from the outside.

Everything is ready.

"Break the Taiping Yin Fu Jing!"