With virtue

Zhao Yunshu pulled the iron sword from the Taoist's chest.

Even with such a simple action, he seemed stunned, as if he hadn't reacted yet.

How did that sword strike succeed? It shouldn't be like this. Even my true fire was knocked away by the opponent's sword, shouldn't I have suffered the same fate?

It is impossible for Master's seven souls to still retain consciousness.

The seven spirits are not the three souls. The three souls govern emotions and are what give rise to consciousness. The seven spirits themselves cannot bear will; they only possess the instincts of bodily functions.

But... the reason isn't hard to figure out.

That is, in the master's instinct, he would not be wary of the young Taoist priest.

The young Taoist priest would never harm himself; it was his master's instinct.

Thinking of this, Zhao Yunshu sighed, wanting to say something, but not knowing where to begin.

In this world, some masters keep their skills hidden, while others don't even bother to guard against them.

He opened his mouth, then closed it, shook his head, shook off the dizziness, and cleared his mind of distracting thoughts.

Then, he turned his head and looked around. There was only the gaunt corpse of the Taoist priest on the ground and a white ape covered in blood resting. He was a little stunned, but his mind was still racing.

Even now, there's still one problem...

Why did my master never mention the Yuntai Temple to me? Why did I never know he possessed such swordsmanship?

His trust in him was absolutely genuine, and he would never harm him. He would always save the best things for him. Master, Master, he was both a teacher and a father. The two had been together for twelve years. It couldn't be described as a loving father and a filial son, but the young Taoist asked himself honestly, no matter what his master did, he would never harm him.

So there must have been a major reason for his concealment, but the person is dead, so who can we ask?

However, at this very moment...

A chilling wind swept through the Taoist's corpse!

Zhao Yunshu's heart skipped a beat, and he immediately realized that something was wrong!

He was still young, and after successfully striking with his sword, he was so preoccupied with the matter of his master's seven souls that he forgot about this matter!

Wow! Although that old thief was extremely vicious, someone with such advanced cultivation would not have their soul disperse even if they were killed.

With his cultivation and understanding of Yin spirits and life, he could even find a way to transform himself into a ghost immortal. Although it would be extremely difficult to continue cultivating afterward, it would not be a problem to continue to exist in the world!

Losing the physical body is a huge loss, but it also allows one to abandon the body and escape this place! If the soul of someone who has cultivated to the point of Yin Spirit Astral Projection is not destroyed along with the body, this demonic cultivator can simply sever his tail like a lizard, discard his physical body, and find a dark and evil place to make further plans!

Sure enough, the corpse on the ground seemed to be pushed by something, or as if something inside it was about to burst out. It bounced twice like a Mexican jumping bean, and a cold wind, carrying some blood energy, flew directly into the sky from the Baihui acupoint!

The eerie wind was incredibly fast, and there was a face faintly visible on it, with two eyes and a mouth. What else could it be but the soul of that gaunt, demonic cultivator?!

Zhao Yunshu glared angrily, his heart filled with murderous intent; how could he possibly let him go?

However, he was completely drained of energy and spirit, and he couldn't even stand up, let alone continue chasing the Taoist's ghost.

The young Taoist priest, panting heavily, tried to get up, barely supporting himself with the iron sword. But when he exerted force, he almost slipped and fell. It turned out that the sword hilt was so slippery in his hand that he could no longer hold it, and it was covered with blood and sweat.

Seeing that he couldn't get up, he immediately mustered all his strength, disregarding any injuries, and clenched his fists at his liver and gallbladder, striking them three times in succession!

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

This time, the young Taoist fought extremely hard, each punch landing with a vengeance, as if he wanted to kill himself. With each punch, his liver and gallbladder felt as if they were being smashed by a golden hammer, his internal organs trembling violently. Three more punches landed in his inner vision, causing him to cough up blood.

The first update is on suduɡu.cc, with no typos. If you don't see the ".cc" suffix in the address, you can access the first update site. The moment the blood spurted out, it mingled with the thunderous sound, exploding into a bloody mist!

Before the blood mist had even dissipated, thunderous sounds echoed around, shaking the surrounding trees, grass, rocks, and cliffs. The white ape, which had been lying dead on the ground, was startled and took a half step back, suddenly opening its eyes, clearly terrified.

The cold wind was shaken by the thunder, and much of the blood energy on it dissipated. The human face vanished, leaving only a cold wind that emitted a mournful wail that was inaudible yet seemed perceptible.

The ghostly wailing was silent, yet it made the young Taoist priest and the white ape beside him feel their hair stand on end. The most obvious example was the white ape, whose white fur stood up as if it had bristled.

In the end, the yin wind twisted a few times and managed to hold on, but it was obviously severely injured. It was forced to drop the seven souls attached to it and fall down. Then it suddenly increased its speed and disappeared into the distance.

Zhao Yunshu could no longer hold on; her body swayed, and she could no longer even sit up straight.

He stared in the direction where the eerie wind had disappeared. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't move his body at all. He had no strength left, and even opening his eyes seemed so difficult.

Yuan Zhisheng was also badly injured. Although he was in better condition than the young Taoist priest, he was too weak to chase after him anymore. He walked to the edge of the cliff, looked out to confirm his location, and then said, "He escaped. The seven souls that were just thrown down should have dissipated naturally. Perhaps they went to the underworld."

Zhao Yun opened his mouth as if to say something, but his tongue wouldn't move, and he couldn't utter a word. In the end, he simply gave up and lay motionless on the cliff face.

He was completely exhausted, and his last breath had been released. Now he could only be carried on a stretcher, and he was likely to fall seriously ill afterward.

But he didn't give up. Instead, he slumped to the ground, trying to take a few breaths to regulate his internal energy. But no matter what he did, he couldn't regulate it properly. His internal energy was always in a terrible state of disorder, and he couldn't even catch his breath.

It makes sense. Tonight, he first fought a fire in the village, then battled zombies in the deep mountains, then rushed to the center of the lake to fight a ghost, then ran back into the mountains, where in desperation he ignited a true fire, and finally risked his life to strike the gaunt Taoist's ghost three times on his liver and gallbladder. This series of events had pushed the young Taoist to his limit. Now, every part of his body ached, and he felt weak even in his bones. Even if a celestial beauty came to tempt him, it probably wouldn't make a difference.

He tried to recover some strength by adjusting his breathing, but after two attempts, he almost lost his balance and fell off the cliff.

Fortunately, the white ape was fast and grabbed the little Taoist priest, otherwise he would have fallen straight down.

It would be a real joke if he didn't die from the withered Taoist but instead fell to his death while adjusting his breathing.

He gave a wry smile, then immersed himself in the inner world, intending to examine his current state.

The spirit of the heart manifests in the eyes, and the essence of the kidneys manifests in the ears.

The Tao Te Ching says: "The five colors blind the eye, the five sounds deafen the ear."

It is said that confusing one's senses will deplete one's spirit. Try this when watching a play: if one sits quietly and enjoys the music and entertainment, one will feel quite comfortable. But when the music and dance end, no one will be able to avoid feeling physically and mentally exhausted. This will give you a glimpse into the principle.

His heart and kidneys were already at their limit, so he was dizzy, seeing flashes of light, and experiencing constant tinnitus. It was really tough for him.

Judging from his internal appearance, his body was extremely weak at this moment, with almost no visible flow of qi and blood, and his blood was completely empty.

Humans know that the mind is the master of thought and breath, breath is the root of form, and form is the dwelling place of breath. The spirit and form are the means by which humans rely on each other to stand. If one thing is wrong, it will not conform to the ultimate truth, so how can it stand for long?

At this moment, Zhao Yunshu could feel that due to the weakness of his physical energy, his body was withering away, and he was even beginning to feel cold; his previous immunity to heat and cold had disappeared. When the central energy weakens, the ascending and descending functions become obstructed; kidney water becomes cold and the essence becomes diseased; heart fire flares upward and the spirit becomes diseased; liver wood stagnates on the left and the blood becomes diseased; lung metal stagnates on the right and the qi becomes diseased. A diseased spirit leads to fear and restlessness; a diseased essence leads to seminal emission; a diseased blood leads to stagnation and obstruction; a diseased qi leads to blockage and obstruction.

All diseases of the four cardinal directions are caused by the central qi.

The central qi is the mechanism for harmonizing water and fire, and the axis for the rise and fall of metal and wood. Taoists call it the Yellow Woman. The interaction between an infant and a young girl cannot occur without a matchmaker. Its meaning is profound.

At this moment, the "central energy" in his body had weakened to the extreme. Water and fire were not in harmony, blood and qi were not flowing smoothly, and his meridians were dry and cracked everywhere.

A bitter and dry taste at the root of the tongue, slight numbness in the fingertips, and shallow, rapid breathing are typical symptoms of insufficient Qi. It can be said that the body is completely empty, like a hollow shell.

To recover, you need to rest. Then your body will naturally break down the existing flesh and bones, making you thin. The material that is lost will then be used to replenish the depleted blood and vital energy.

He opened his eyes and sighed, "I guess I'll have to lose about ten pounds before I can stand up again."

However, at this moment, Yuan Zhisheng glanced at him and returned the longsword to its sheath with a backhand.

Then, he pulled out a wooden box from somewhere.

The box was ordinary, no different from those medicine boxes.

The white ape opened the box, inside which lay two pills the size of longan, mostly black with a slightly oily sheen, looking somewhat like hawthorn dumplings.

The moment the box was opened, a mouthwatering aroma wafted out. It didn't smell like pills; it was more like some kind of compressed biscuit. It smelled so good… I really wanted to eat it…

The aroma wafted into Zhao Yunshu's nose, instantly invigorating him. It was as if just smelling it lessened the dull pain in his chest. However, the hunger pangs in his stomach made him miserable, and he couldn't help but look at the pill.

Yuan Zhisheng didn't explain. He simply picked up one, tilted his head back, threw it into his mouth, chewed it twice, and swallowed it. He then tossed the other one directly to Zhao Yunshu.

Zhao Yunshu reached out and caught it, holding it in his hand.

He looked up at Yuan Zhisheng with a puzzled expression.

Yuan Zhisheng ignored him and simply closed his eyes to rest.

But then, something amazing happened.

After taking the medicine, the white ape closed its eyes and took two gentle breaths.

He had fought the Taoist for a while, which not only greatly depleted his energy, but also left him with wounds on his arms and legs. The wounds were obviously serious, with one wound so deep that the bone was visible. In the context of the battlefield, such a wound would be considered fatal.

However, after taking the medicine, the bleeding from the wound slowed down in just a short while. In fact, if you looked closely, you could see that the edges of the white ape's wound were slowly scabbing over, and its complexion was becoming rosy.

Seeing this, the young Taoist priest was secretly surprised.

He had seen many medicines for healing wounds and stopping bleeding, and because Daoist medicine and traditional Chinese medicine are closely related, he could even prepare some of them. But the best medicines for treating wounds can only stop the bleeding and stabilize the wound to prevent it from worsening, festering, or even becoming gangrene.

As for healing, it can only be achieved by waiting for the body to heal on its own.

Can this medicine accelerate healing? Could it really have the effect of restoring flesh and bone?

Zhao Yunshu stared in astonishment at the pills in her hand.

After observing for a while, the young Taoist priest finally couldn't help but ask, "Mr. Yuan, what kind of medicine is this? Could it really be the legendary elixir that can revive the dead and heal bones?"

"Returning the Elixir," the white ape said casually, his eyes closed as he regulated his breathing.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Yunshu pinched the pill in her hand with two fingers and admired it from various angles.

Wow, this thing, how can I not eat it? He suddenly felt that his injuries weren't so bad, and he felt that he could still hold on. Could he keep it?

It's a elixir!

The so-called "elixir of immortality" is exactly what it sounds like.

Returning to one's original essence is called "returning the elixir".

Simply put, it involves taking the refined elixir, using a unique method, and refining it back into its raw materials, then refining it again. Each refining is called a "turn," and this process is repeated, which is why there are "three-turn elixirs," "four-turn elixirs," and even the legendary "nine-turn great elixir."

The more times it is turned, the less erysipelas there is and the purer the medicinal properties become. It is said that after nine turns, all erysipelas will be eliminated, with only benefits and no harm. It can be said to be an extremely effective and miraculous substance.

This is not a particularly strange situation; it happens in everyday life.

For example, rice often becomes stale.

Rice becomes soft and delicious after being cooked, but if it is chilled and then dried, it will become "hard" again, becoming similar to a "raw" state.

If you steam or boil it again at this point, it will become cooked again, and you can eat it simply by soaking it in water.

What alchemists do with refining elixirs is to make all the materials used in alchemy into this state.

First, refine it once, and then return it to its original form.

The difficulty of this is similar to turning cooked meat back into raw meat.

Therefore, it is called "returning to one's true nature" and is known as the Elixir of Rejuvenation.

Needless to say, this method is extremely difficult to refine. To turn cooked meat back into raw meat would be an incredibly unbelievable feat.

The young Taoist had only heard of such miraculous techniques, but had never seen them before! As for how they were accomplished, he had no idea, not even a guess.

How many alchemists in the world can refine the Elixir of Rejuvenation?

That's truly... incredible skill!

He held it in his hand and looked at it again and again, somewhat reluctant to eat it.

Therefore, the elixir is so precious that ordinary cultivators can hardly eat it, and it is even difficult to see it. As a result, Zhao Yunshu felt that his injuries had healed a lot and there was no need for him to eat it anymore.

"If you're not going to eat it, give it back to me," the white ape said with its eyes closed.

"Eat, eat, eat, why aren't you eating? By the way, Mr. Yuan, what grade is your Rejuvenating Elixir?"

"How many cycles? Nine cycles, if you eat it you'll ascend to heaven on the spot and join the ranks of immortals." The white ape, who was originally aloof, couldn't help but roll his eyes.

Even a single-stage elixir is a miraculous pill! It's a wondrous substance that can turn iron into gold. This little Taoist priest, does he really want to eat a nine-stage one?

Upon hearing this, Zhao Yunshu laughed heartily, relaxed, and stopped being polite. He immediately imitated Yuan Zhisheng's earlier actions, putting the pill in his mouth and chewing it.

While chewing, he casually pulled out the yellow book to take a look.

Sure enough, an extra page appeared in the yellow book. "Li Han".

That's my master's name.

Upon seeing this page, Zhao Yunshu seemed lost in thought. She quickly put away the yellow book, closed her eyes, focused her inner vision, and began to guide the medicinal power.

Taoist practitioners often need to take secret medicines, which requires them to refine elixirs and other medicinal materials. Therefore, a major effect of internal vision is that it can guide the medicinal power within the body, allowing one to directly "see" where the medicinal power is going, resulting in particularly rapid absorption.

Furthermore, many highly toxic drugs, without the aid of internal cultivation, will not only be ineffective but may also poison the user.

Therefore, there is an old song that says: "Sages pass on the medicine but not the fire, and few people have ever known the proper timing of the fire."

The young Taoist was greatly amazed when he observed the elixir from within!

It truly lives up to its reputation as a divine object. Only by examining it with my own inner vision can I truly appreciate the wonders of the Elixir of Rejuvenation.

This thing seems to contain some kind of spiritual cultivation principle!

Returning to one's essence, could it be... returning to one's innate nature?