Burial Furnace

Zhang Yuan's hands, which were originally dry and covered with age spots, became much smoother, the wrinkles faded considerably, and his skin was no longer that near-death waxy yellow, but instead had a healthy rosy glow.

Although his hair was still gray, a few strands at his temples had turned a faint black.

The wrinkles on my face have become much shallower; the deep nasolabial folds and forehead wrinkles that were once prominent are now almost invisible.

Her complexion was rosy, her eyes were bright, and she looked at least ten years younger!

He transformed from a frail, elderly man into a sprightly, elderly gentleman.

"My God..." Zhang Yuan touched his face and muttered to himself, "If this keeps up, will I regress to a young age?"

He couldn't help but grin.

He sat cross-legged, circulated the "Nine Revolutions Golden Body Technique," and began his cultivation.

This time, his speed of absorbing spiritual energy increased again!

It increased by a full ten percent!

"Thirty corpses, ten years of lifespan, a significant boost to talent... This is an absolute steal!" Zhang Yuan opened his eyes, his face full of excitement.

"Wang Hu, you are such a good person."

He could guess with his toes who put those corpses there.

In this Green Wood Town, who else could be the one who had a grudge against him and had the ability to bring so many corpses in one night, besides Wang Hu, who was at the second level of Qi Refining?

The next morning, Zhang Yuan grumbled as he swept the area in front of his door, then went to Wang Hu's place.

Wang Hu, the bald man, and two others were roasting wild boar in the yard, their mouths greasy with oil, when they saw Zhang Yuan storming in. The four of them exchanged a subtle glance.

"Wang Hu!" Zhang Yuan roared as he entered the door, "Did you put those corpses in front of my shop?"

"A corpse? What corpse?" Wang Hu spread his hands innocently. "Boss Zhang, what are you talking about? I don't understand."

"Stop playing dumb with me!" Zhang Yuan roared. "In Qingmu Town, who else but you would do such a despicable thing? You made me cremate thirty corpses for nothing and lose over a dozen mid-grade spirit stones! You have to give me an explanation today!"

"Boss Zhang, you're really wronging me." Wang Hu shook his head and said sincerely, "Although I, Wang Hu, am not a good person, I wouldn't do such a despicable thing. Besides, why would I go and move so many corpses to your shop entrance? I'm not just doing this for fun."

"That's right!" the bald man chimed in. "Boss Zhang, you can't just make baseless accusations! We stayed home drinking and eating meat all night; we didn't go anywhere!"

"That's right!" the tall, thin man chimed in. "I did see a man in black sneaking around your area. I thought he was a thief, but it turns out he was doing something like this!"

"I saw him too!" The short, chubby man nodded repeatedly. "That person was tall and thin; he's obviously not a local!"

The four of them took turns talking, and their story was quite detailed and convincing.

"It really wasn't you?" Zhang Yuan frowned, his gaze sweeping over Wang Hu's face.

"Of course not!" Wang Hu patted his chest and said, "I, Wang Hu, swear to God that if I did such a thing, may I be struck by lightning and die a horrible death!"

"Hmph!" Zhang Yuan sneered. "It better not be you! If I find out it was you, I won't let you off the hook!"

Then, he strode out of the courtyard and disappeared around the corner of the street.

The four of them burst into suppressed laughter at the same time.

"Hahaha—this old geezer actually believed it!" The bald man laughed so hard he almost cried.

"He never dreamed that those corpses were prepared specifically for him!"

"Tiger Lord, that was a brilliant move!"

Wang Hu smiled smugly, picked up a piece of roasted meat, took a big bite, and chewed until his mouth was full of oil: "This is just the beginning. From now on, we'll send him a batch of corpses every few days. I want to see how long he can hold out!"

As night deepened, Aoki Town once again drifted into sleep.

The shops on both sides of the street had already closed, and even the last tavern had turned off its lights.

The moonlight spilled onto the bluestone pavement, giving it a cool, clear glow. The entire town was so quiet that only the occasional bark of a dog could be heard from afar.

Zhang Yuan sat on a stool in the shop, feeling somewhat anxious.

There's no business tonight.

He had been waiting here for two hours, from dusk until late at night, but hadn't seen a single ghost.

He was getting ready to close the door and go to sleep.

"Squeak—"

The shop door was pushed open.

A tall male cultivator walked in from outside the door.

He wore a long black robe and a bronze mask that covered most of his face, revealing only his eyes and chin.

Those eyes were deep, like an ancient well with no bottom, revealing no emotion whatsoever.

His hair was somewhat gray, indicating that he was obviously not young, at least middle-aged or older.

His aura was very restrained; if Zhang Yuan's five senses hadn't become far more acute than those of ordinary people, it would have been difficult for him to even detect his presence.

The male cultivator closed the door behind him.

His gaze fell on Zhang Yuan, and he said calmly, "Boss, I have a corpse to dispose of."

Zhang Yuan was overjoyed and led the male cultivator to the backyard, where he pointed to the quietly standing furnace and explained its location.

The male cultivator nodded, took out five bulging corpse bags from his storage bag, and threw them into the furnace one after another.

"boom--"

Dark golden flames instantly ignited, turning the corpses into ashes one by one.

A stream of rich primordial power surged from the Immortal Transformation Furnace and flowed into Zhang Yuan's body.

The first body will have its lifespan extended by seven months.

The second body was granted an additional eight months of lifespan.

The third body grants an additional six months of lifespan.

The fourth body grants an additional nine months of lifespan.

The fifth body will have its lifespan extended by eight months.

A total of three years and two months!

"Holy crap, this guy killed five Foundation Establishment cultivators in one go?" Zhang Yuan was surprised and secretly gasped, and couldn't help but take another look at the masked man.

The man was able to kill five Foundation Establishment cultivators in one go without even a scratch on himself. His strength was probably close to that of the Golden Core stage!

The masked male cultivator looked at the pile of ashes in the furnace and nodded in satisfaction: "Not bad, very fast and very clean."

"Ten mid-grade spirit stones," Zhang Yuan quoted the price.

Without any hesitation or bargaining, the masked male cultivator took out 10 mid-grade spirit stones and handed them to Zhang Yuan.

Zhang Yuan was overjoyed.

10 mid-grade spirit stones!

That's equivalent to 1000 low-grade spirit stones!

I can practice my spirituality for a while longer.

"I'm gone."

A cyan flying sword appeared beneath the masked man's feet, carrying him into the air. He transformed into a streak of cyan light and vanished into the night in the blink of an eye.

Zhang Yuan returned to his room, closed the door, sat cross-legged on the futon, and began to cultivate. Sure enough, the speed at which he converted spiritual energy improved again.

He was overjoyed, took out a mid-grade spirit stone, held it in his palm, closed his eyes, and began to absorb it through his cultivation technique.

A mid-grade spirit stone was completely absorbed in just half an hour.

And the amount of true essence in his dantian has increased significantly compared to before!

Suddenly, a soft footstep sound came from outside the door.

Then, the shop door was pushed open.

"Boss Zhang? Are you there?" A clear voice came from behind, carrying a hint of girlish naiveté and shyness.