Chapter 23
The fatty running the inn seemed sad to see us leave, but that was more likely to be because he was losing income than anything to do with us. But now that we had a place of our own, there was no need to stay in an inn.
It would be safer to stay inside the building I'd obtained from Grandpa Guan. That way I could keep a closer eye on Xiao Cui while continuing my healing business.
We had to first make a detour. I was in dire need of some new robes and Xiao Cui's clothes looked a little worse for wear. There wasn't much money left between us but it would be enough.
A few hours later we walked out of a shop called Madam Feng's Fine Silks, no longer looking like we'd been chased through a forest by spirit beasts. I had a verdant green robe that was extraordinarily comfortable and Xiao Cui picked up a white, form fitting robe that suited her features well.
After a walk through the city which took longer than it needed to thanks to little Cui dragging me to every shop or stall she found interesting, we arrived at the place where I was going to set up business. I believed she just wanted to show off her new clothes, but she insisted it was just to explore the city since we'd not had the chance.
I had to admit I felt extremely relaxed afterwards, without a care in the world. I'd handled myself well in the city lord's palace but the truth was that being a prisoner was non-stop stress and anxiety.
It hadn't been good for my psyche, even if I'd made tremendous gains by fishing in the troubled waters of Three River City's upper echelon. I knew something strange was going on between Councillor Gao, Wang Bao, and the city lord, but to be honest I didn't care right now.
When the time was right, I would return and deliver a little justice to certain individuals for daring to steal more of little Cui's childlike sparkle, but until then it was important to focus on my healing practice and developing this budding sect into something of value.
Speaking of the sect—I now had a disciple! I'd almost forgotten after the assassin nearly took my life, but Xiao Cui had begged and I had relented, which meant I now officially had to not just take care of her, but try and teach her stuff.
What was I going to teach her? Perhaps medicine, but without the advantages I had such as my physique and cultivation I wasn't sure if she would be able to use my knowledge to the same effect. I guess it wouldn't hurt to try.
"It's so big!" Xiao Cui exclaimed.
I chuckled, watching as the village girl walked up and down the street while staring at our new home-slash-place of business. After three laps of the immediate area she rushed up to the door and pushed it open, finding it locked.
She turned around and stared at me expectantly. I pretended to be confused for a few moments at which point she began pouting.
After my little self indulging teasing I headed over and unlocked the door using the token Grandpa Guan had given me. I found it strange that they'd not bothered taking my possessions while I was imprisoned, but I guess the city lord cared more for earning back face than looting some random Body Tempering whelp.
The inside was exactly as I'd left it, though much dustier. Xiao Cui danced around the marble reception area, eyes wide as saucers as she discovered every new, more resplendent feature.
Seeing it for the second time I had to admit that Grandpa Guan had given me a ridiculous bargain. I should visit the old geezer with a gift soon as thanks.
"This is all ours?" she asked, walking up the stairs.
"Every last tile," I replied with a smile. "Though most of it will be for the patients. I picked out a few rooms on the top floor for us to live in, but I will need to get some new furniture once we earn some money back."
I sighed and glanced inside my coin purse, seeing just a lonely silver coin and a few coppers. Once again, I was broke.
Well, unless you counted the half a spirit stone.
Which I did, but it was worth far too much to use in any daily transactions and until I knew whether I had any personal use for it I was loath to spend it. Actually…
After the gains I'd received from the poison qi and the healing pill—I still had two more of those—I was excited to see what other herbs or poisonous reagents I might be able to ingest to continue refining my body.
There was also the added bonus of the knowledge about each ingredient I gained after refining it. Until now, I'd learned about iceflower poison, blood lotus puppet poison, and mortal-grade healing pills.
That was a drop in the ocean when it came to alchemy and once I had a bit of free time I needed to look for a skilled alchemist in Three River City so I could try to learn from them. First though, it was time to make some money!
"Xiao Cui, head down to the market and start spreading the fact that we have a permanent place to stay. I want to see customers by the afternoon!" I shouted, hoping she would hear me upstairs.
****
While little Cui was out in the market, redirecting all my patients here, I needed to go shopping once more. With my meagre wealth I couldn't afford much, but at the very least I wanted to have a proper treatment room set up.
We could just repurpose the sign from the market for now—it seemed to be working, so why change it?—but after a few days of healing and earning money I would need to consider how to set up the whole 'medicine sect' business.
It was just a front for the hospital, using the familiar customs of this world to drop their guard and slowly spread the brilliance of the healing arts to the masses. However, since becoming master to my first disciple I felt an unfamiliar drive to create something lasting.
What every hospital needed was a well thought-out system of triage. A way of prioritising those who were most in need of treatment.
That would be wholly unfamiliar here. For the mortals at least. Cultivators had some level of brotherhood between them and wouldn't just watch an ally die, unless there was some ridiculous treasure to be snatched. Whereas the mortals were left to suffer and die if they were lacking wealth or power.
In the end, I managed to find a comfortable wooden chair with a fur-lined seat and back which I could use to rest on while performing my technique, as well as a comfortable bed for my patients.
It would be enough for now.
I just about managed to return in time. As I turned the corner into the street I saw Xiao Cui at the other end, leading a huge group of people towards the building. I raced inside, carrying the bed and chair with me.
When I got into the small room which I'd decided would be the first treatment room—my office, so to speak—I didn't think much about the layout. I simply threw the bed against the wall and then placed my chair nearby.
The moment I'd done that I heard the door open and the loud chatter of people in the lobby. I allowed myself a smile. Challenges like healing the blood lotus puppet poison were enjoyable, but straining myself that much had taken its toll.
I was looking forward to some more mundane healing. Part of the reason I'd become a doctor was that I enjoyed hearing people's stories, listening to idle chatter while I worked.
People tended to let slip some rather absurd stories when they were in the doctor's chair. Maybe it was the nerves that lowered their walls? I wasn't sure, but all I knew was that it had led to me meeting some interesting people in the past.
That was something I looked forward to here. Additionally, it would have the benefit of allowing me to learn more about this new world and the culture in the Celestial Jade Empire.
By now I'd become somewhat accustomed to them and could pass as a native for the most part, but there were some intricacies that you couldn't pick up in just a few months.
With all that said, I reached the bottom of the stairs. Little Cui turned to me, grinning ear to ear. "I managed to find a few custo—ahem, patients," she called out to me.
"Indeed, well done little disciple," I replied, patting her on the head. She squirmed out of it, but I saw her smile.
Turning to the group of people I swept my gaze over them, trying to see what I was dealing with. Anyone with severe and obvious injuries would get priority.
The citizens seemed to shrink under my gaze, a little fear in their eyes. It was to be expected. Most cultivators treated mortals like dirt, so even after I'd proven my healing technique and somewhat benevolent nature they weren't fully convinced.
I noticed one young man clutching his arm at an awkward angle. On a closer inspection I realised his shirt was stained with dried blood. It was dark, as though it hadn't been cleaned for a few days.
"You, you're first," I said, pointing at him and beckoning him closer. I heard a few grumbles but Xiao Cui stepped up and silenced the crowd as the man walked through.
"Relax, Heavenly Healer Zhao is simply treating the most wounded first. You will all get your turn," she said in a soothing voice with a warm smile. It worked wonders. "Just make sure to have your payment ready," she added with a slight smirk.
Well, it was important for any business to have the generous, hard workers like myself as well as the fiendish salespeople. I'd just leave that to her as she seemed confident and we'd been earning plenty of money before our untimely imprisonment.
The guy hobbled out in front of the crowd and I realised his injury was far worse than it seemed. I looked at the elbow of his shirt, which was ripped. Something was…
His bone was poking out of his elbow.
I grabbed him and whisked him upstairs, not waiting another moment. He exclaimed in shock but was powerless to resist the strength of a nine-star Body Tempering cultivator.
When I planted him on the bed, he gasped. "What are you doing?" he exclaimed.
"What do you think, you damn fool? How long have you been walking around with your bone sticking out of your arm? You're lucky you haven't died from an infection…" I muttered, grabbing his shirt and tearing the arm off.
"My shirt! That cost me 3 coppers, you know," he complained.
"Well, better 3 coppers than your life," I replied, grabbing hold of his arm and already reaching for my blood essence.
Even when the guy's arm started to knit itself back together and I was able to snap the bone back in place, the constipated look never left his face. Stingy bastard. Hopefully the other patients weren't going to complain this much…
****
In the end, only a few of my patients were difficult to deal with. I actually realised the young man had been rather docile when one granny actually started beating me with her walking stick.
And that was after I'd just cured her of a limp she'd had for fifteen years! Damn old people these days, so ungrateful…
But it was worth it. For the most part, my patients left with smiles on their faces and a spring in their step. And a few coins poorer.
Then again, you can't put a price on good health.
Well, I could—it was 63 silver and 4 copper—but life was better lived without the wear and tear of time and labour. I think most of the people who left the building that day would agree.
I stretched, feeling a little tired. My body was fine, but the endless socialising with the patients had left me drained.
"Little disciple, I think it's about time I taught you your first lesson," I said, waving Xiao Cui over.
She seemed excited, a glint in her eye. To be honest I wasn't sure why she'd left her home village to follow me.
Sure, the thrill of adventure and the allure of a powerful cultivator were hard to resist, but I hadn't personally shown anything that might be of interest to her. Had she done it because she felt indebted to me after I saved her life?
That didn't seem like her. So why?
My only guess was that she actually found what I did interesting. She'd told me as much when she asked to be my disciple—that I was different from other cultivators. I knew that, but it was mostly because I was from another world!
More to the point, I believed what she would find most interesting about me and want to learn was my healing arts. While anything to do with my physique or techniques that required one to be a cultivator were off limits, there was still a lot I could teach her.
I was armed with a myriad of knowledge from two worlds and if all she wanted to do was learn how to heal mortals, then it wouldn't be too difficult to help her take the first steps on that path.
"To be honest, I don't know that much about your goals in this life, little Cui. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, but I think I have a good idea anyway," I told her. Her eyes widened a little and she nodded.
"Would you like to learn how to be a healer?" I asked, giving her a while to think about her answer.
She took the time, scrunching up her face at first then going through the seven emotions and six desires in record time. It was like an emotion speedrun.
Eventually she nodded three times and replied, "Yes master!"
I smiled and nodded back, preparing to answer when she suddenly frowned.
"But I'm not a cultivator, so how can I be a healer like you?"
"Don't worry," I replied, realising she'd been struggling with this fear for a while. "You can't be a healer exactly like me, but you can certainly still be a healer."
"Really!?"
"Of course, now come, let me teach you some basics about the human body," I said, motioning for her to follow me up the stairs.
She took a step then suddenly screeched as a loud bang shook the lobby. I rushed back down and saw the front door wide open, a man standing in the entrance.
He took a step towards little Cui and she yelled, sprinting towards me. I rushed past her and raised my fist, ready to strike down this intruder.
As I got a closer look at the bastard I was so shocked it was like I was struck by lightning.
Chapter 24
I was just one step away from the man who'd forced his way into our building when he suddenly groaned and collapsed to the ground. At that moment I realised he was covered in bloody wounds and barely breathing.
Rather than an intruder, it was more likely that this guy was a patient. It was the middle of the night, but I wouldn't turn away a fellow man in need.
After shutting the door to stop the cold wind blowing into the lobby, I called Xiao Cui back over. "It's alright, I don't think he's here to hurt us. See how injured he is," I said, waving at him.
Then, I knelt down beside him and tried to inspect the damage. Little Cui went to grab him and lift him up but I stopped her.
"It's dangerous to move someone when you aren't sure what's wrong with them. First make sure to inspect their airways and visual responses. Those tell you if their life is in immediate danger," I explained while waving a hand in front of his eyes.
When I realised his breathing was okay, just weak, and he didn't seem to have any brain damage, I concluded it was safe to roll him over. We did so with some effort.
The moment his face was revealed, Xiao Cui let out a gasp of shock, which I couldn't help but mirror.
"Chief!" she cried, shaking the man.
"Calm down, you don't want to hurt him," I replied, despite being just as surprised as her to see the head of Nine Paddy Village here in Three River City.
He stirred, groaning once more. Apart from the cuts and bruises all across his body he seemed to be okay.
I placed a finger against his skin and within ten seconds or so he was already looking much better as my technique worked to heal him. Soon after that he seemed lucid and sat up.
"Xiao… Cui?" he asked, then when he realised who it was his face suddenly dropped. "Xiao Cui, Cultivator Zhao! I'm so glad you're alive," he cried as tears began streaming down his face.
"Calm down old man, what's wrong?" I replied, helping him stand up. "Did something happen in the village?"
I barely reacted to the tiny bit of blood essence streaming back into my body. I wasn't even sure it helped improve my cultivation anymore since I'd already reached the pinnacle of the Body Tempering realm, but I supposed that it couldn't be a bad thing.
"They-" he choked, unable to continue. We gave him time to compose himself. "They came in the middle of the night. It was a slaughter. Even the children…" he sobbed, breaking down as he began to tell us how he'd come to the city.
When he finished telling his tale I had to stop myself from rushing out the door then and there. I knew the city lord had let us go free too easily…
"What are you talking about, chief?" Xiao Cui's face was pale, her eyes wide as she tried to come to terms with what had happened. "Then, my parents… are dead?"
The chief tried to speak but suddenly coughed. I wasn't sure why. My technique should've healed all his wounds. Perhaps it was something deeper…
Often emotional and subconscious pain can cause real damage to people. There were even cases of that back on Earth; people who died of grief after losing a partner, for example.
Knowing what had happened, I didn't blame him. My thoughts went to the old granny and that black cat. Had the city lord's men not even spared her, sleeping in her bed?
My fist clenched, shaking as my knuckles went white. I gnashed my teeth. Burning rage filled me but eventually I was forced to push it down inside. There was nothing I could do.
Yet.
I'd wanted to spend more time researching and getting acquainted with my physique before trying anything drastic, but I could no longer hold myself back. Getting revenge on these sick bastards was now my only priority.
I placed a hand on little Cui's shoulder, squeezing it gently. "Disciple, I know how you must be feeling right now but make sure not to do anything rash," I told her with a stern face.
She turned to me with tears in her eyes and nodded. I pulled her into a hug and she squeezed tighter than I expected. I let her stay like that for a few moments before continuing.
"Look after the chief and stay out of the busy parts of the city. I need to leave for a while," I said.
"What? You're going to leave now after everything we've just heard?" she said, wiping her eyes. "Heartless master!"
I scoffed. This little girl had a sharp tongue and it was getting deadlier by the day. This was proof that big cities were bad for your mind. I wasn't angry though, she could've attacked me right now and I would let it happen.
Losing one's parents was… not something I'd experienced, but I imagined it would be awful. When my grandfather died I'd not left my house for a week, secluding myself from friends and society.
At least little Cui still had the chief… I shook my head, dispelling such thoughts. It was harsh but I couldn't afford to dwell on the awful massacre the city lord had ordered. I needed to become strong enough to take him down.
Which meant doing something I really didn't want to do.
****
I stared out at the treacherous path leading into the mountains. A narrow gorge was walled in on both sides by craggy cliffs covered in sharp rocks and precariously balanced boulders that could fall at any moment.
This mountain range was about fifty li from Three River City, but with my speed it had only taken me twenty minutes to get here. The reason I was in this dangerous area, which typically anyone below Qi Gathering should avoid, was because of a rumour I'd heard.
That and I had a cruel idea of how to improve my cultivation in the shortest time possible. For most cultivators that would be a foolhardy idea, rushing ahead and leaving unstable foundations in their wake.
However, I'd not yet experienced any downsides to my rapid pace of advancement and decided to take an informed risk.
My cultivation improved by healing others and until now I'd only used my techniques offensively twice—once on those bandits and the other time on the spirit snake. I'd waited for injured people to appear in front of me and not taken much initiative to seek them out, reaping the harvest without sowing the seeds.
Today I was going to take a more brutal approach. One that I didn't want to use on other humans, hence the location. The Jagged Sword Mountains were famous for the number of violent spirit beasts that resided here.
I figured that if there was nothing powerful enough for me to heal in order to continue advancing, then I would just need to change that. Find some nine-star spirit beasts, beat the crap out of them and then heal them up.
A simple plan.
When I encountered the first beast I'd seen since that nine-star spirit bear, I wasn't too anxious. It seemed weaker than that bear. A boar with large tusks growing from its snout, so large they seemed to weigh it down.
It was almost as tall as me, but its size worked against it as I dodged its opening charge with a simple sidestep. Based on the strength it displayed I estimated it to be around six or seven-star Body Tempering.
Usually when hunting spirit beasts, that would be the point where the more powerful cultivator would act decisively to slaughter their prey. Instead, I was going to keep my prey alive.
Which in many ways could be considered even more cruel than simply slaughtering it, but at the end of this it would walk away alive. So really it was better to encounter me than another cultivator who would just tear it apart for resources like its beast core and body parts.
At least that was my thought as I began to methodically beat up and then heal the various beasts I encountered. For some reason they all seemed terrified even after I brought them back to full health, often even stronger than they were before.
People were often ungrateful to their doctors… Even back on Earth you could have situations where a team of surgeons worked their asses off for almost a full 24 hours to save someone from near death and then they would wake up…
…Only to say some bullcrap like "Thank God I'm alive" or "God is great". Not that he thought religion was stupid. He thought it was nice to have something to believe in and a sense of community.
It just hadn't been for him. And he thought that even if you were a devout worshipper of one god or another, it would be a pretty nice gesture to say "Thanks" to the group of people who'd actually saved your life.
But none of that mattered anymore. The only god in this new world was the heavens. And the only measure of success was the strength of your fists.
But he was determined to change that. Even if he died trying.
****
At the same time as Zhao Dan had steeled his resolve to step on the true path of cultivation, though with some deviation from the rest of his peers, a group of disciples from the Cloudy Falls Sect was making their way through the Jagged Sword Mountains. Among this group was a youth that Zhao Dan would recognise instantly—Wang Ren.
Most of the disciples were in the early stage of the Qi Gathering Realm, Wang Ren included. Though he had progressed from one-star to two-star in the time since he'd said goodbye to his Junior Brother Zhao Dan.
In fact, advancing one star in a few months was considered a prodigious speed of cultivation for most and it had earned him even more favour among the inner sect disciples and Elders. He had tried not to let it inflate his ego, but some things were unavoidable. It was human nature to strive for more success after all.
Perhaps if he knew that untalented junior of his had managed to leap through five minor steps since they'd parted he might think differently. That whelp had soared from a measly four-star Body Tempering brat to a peak nine-star practitioner on the cusp of breaking through to the Qi Gathering Realm. Wang Ren would be so surprised he might cough up blood and faint on the spot.
Unfortunately, there was not much chance that he would meet Zhao Dan again. As a four-star practitioner he would live a little longer than most mortals and retain his health far longer in life, but even then he would succumb to the clutches of old age.
As for Wang Ren, breaking the limits of mortality and stepping into the Qi Gathering Realm had granted him a massive increase in vitality. Even a one-star Qi Gatherer lived for almost four hundred years, double the lifespan of a peak Body Temperer.
These were thoughts that had run through his mind a couple times during the last few months. Most of the outer disciples were forgettable to him, easy to ignore until they proved themselves.
But not Zhao Dan.
That guy had always been annoying as hell. A thorn in his side and one that he often had to stop getting bullied by his peers… As for why he did that, he still wasn't sure, but the guy had seemed enthusiastic when he'd left the sect. He hoped he was enjoying life.
Maybe he would settle down and marry some cute farmer's daughter, have a bunch of kids and live out the rest of his days in peace.
Suddenly the leader of their group, a handsome guy with perfect features except for a nasty scar over one eye, stopped and raised his hand. "Spirit beast ahead, just eight-star Body Tempering," he said calmly, killing intent filling his gaze.
A second later he disappeared from view and then reappeared, holding a small red marble in his hands. A beast core.
"If you see any beasts that are easy to kill, feel free to claim them for yourself. Just don't get into any arguments. I don't want anything to slow us down while we're on the way to the place the Elder mentioned," he ordered.
The rest of the group nodded. A few extra beast cores would be nice to have, but compared to the natural treasure they were on their way to claim it was a drop in the ocean.
Besides, apart from one particularly talented outer disciple who'd been sent along with them, everyone in the group was at least one or two-star Qi Gathering. Body Tempering beast cores didn't have much use to them anymore.
And most of all, none of them dared to defy the command of their group's leader. Sun Deng was the prized disciple of First Elder Deng, a man second only to the sect leader.
He was a five-star Qi Gathering cultivator and one of the strongest inner disciples of the Cloudy Falls Sect. Challenging him was foolish, since no one wanted to risk the wrath of the first elder.
With the order, the group picked up their pace as they made their way towards the centre of the Jagged Sword Mountains. In a few days, a natural treasure that only made its appearance every couple thousand years was due to bloom.
The recordings of the sect rumoured that one petal of this flower, the Ten Ascensions Lily, would let a cultivator advance an entire star in the Qi Gathering Realm. Naturally, all of them were eager for a chance at such a potent treasure.
Of course, they weren't the only ones vying for this chance.
And among all the groups looking to claim the natural treasure, there was one man who was completely unaware of the convergence of fate around him. Near the outer regions of the mountain range, a man dressed in green robes with rather handsome features was currently chasing down an eight-star spirit monkey.
That monkey had a terrified expression on its face as it sprinted for dear life. Over the course of the past hour it had been beaten until it saw the warm embrace of King Yama reaching out, the six paths beckoning, only for it to be suddenly healed. And then the cycle would repeat.
It had thought the Qi Gathering beasts in the inner mountain range were scary, but this insane cultivator was far worse…
****
I sighed as I watched the spirit monkey sprinting off into the distance, clambering up the razor sharp cliffs with ease. I'd thought that this would be easier.
However, since I was unable to climb those cliffs without carving my hands into ribbons I was forced to fight the beasts down in the gorge. Until now I'd only encountered one nine-star spirit beast, another monkey.
That had been a decent fight and when I'd healed it after I noticed my blood essence increasing noticeably for the first time in a while. Unfortunately, that did nothing to change the sensation that I'd hit an unbreakable wall.
It was a disappointing realisation. I somehow knew that no matter how much more blood essence I obtained I would never reach the Qi Gathering Realm. After a certain point the benefit of a larger quantity of blood essence became negligible.
A large swarm of bugs could take on a weaker beast, but even the aura of a powerful awakened beast—one that had reached Qi Gathering—could cause those same ants to drop dead.
It was the same for cultivators. Perhaps I could fight to a standstill against a one-star Qi Gathering cultivator, but against even the weakest two-star I would be beaten one-sidedly.
Then again, I had a secret weapon that I wasn't sure any cultivator in this world would expect. My ability to induce cancer-like growth in their cells. However I didn't know if it would work on cultivators much stronger than me. I needed to test it.
Which meant finding stronger beasts. My gaze turned towards the inner region of the Jagged Sword Mountains. I'd avoided getting closer until now, staying in the outer regions, but it seemed I would have to take drastic steps to achieve the strength I needed to claim revenge.
Not just for my own wounded pride, but for Xiao Cui's family and all of Nine Paddy Village. Teng Shi would suffer, but right now I couldn't even damage a fingernail of his, let alone bring him to his knees.
So I let the monkey go and took the first step further into the Jagged Sword Mountains. The sun was just beginning to rise over the horizon, lighting up the stone and sparse shrubbery in a golden glow.
I wouldn't return until I'd broken through to Qi Gathering. Or at least figured out if it was even possible for a cultivator with shattered spirit roots to do so…
The gorge started sloping upwards, taking me further and further into the mountains. At the end of the valley I would approach one of the larger mountains, a tall, craggy summit that resembled the fang of a beast.
I wasn't sure what awaited me on that mountain, but I was eager to take on the challenge. Lost in thought, I hadn't noticed a pair of yellow eyes gazing at me from within a crevice.
As I took another step forwards I felt a sharp pain slice across my shoulder and just about managed to dodge the second stone spike that had been aimed at my neck.
I turned in the direction the spikes had come and saw another monkey hanging from the cliff. This one had dark grey skin and fur, almost the colour and texture of the stone around us.
As I watched, it raised its tail and pointed it towards me, the end looking sharp and jagged just like the stones I'd just been hit with. That wasn't all.
Trying to get a read on the spirit beast, I realised it was perhaps even stronger than myself. Not quite in Qi Gathering, but perhaps almost there. A half-step away from breaking through.
Instead of feeling nervous or scared, I had a different emotion coursing through my veins.
Excitement.
Chapter 25
The monkey launched the spike at me faster than I expected and I barely dodged it. I was forced to roll to the side, which gave it the opportunity to close the distance.
Even though it had a potent long-range weapon it didn't seem to mind getting close and brawling with our fists. The first punch made a few bones in my hand break as we collided.
Not only was its skin the colour of stone, but seemingly made of it too. It really made me regret not finding a weapon of some kind.
Even a simple one might've made these fights easier. Then again, I was a healer not a warrior. I knew some martial arts but had never trained with weapons.
In fact the only blade I knew how to wield was a scalpel.
Wait… maybe that could work? I'd need to find a talented blacksmith to forge a suitable one but there was some merit to having a high quality scalpel.
Both for my healing arts and perhaps fighting. For now though I had to put those thoughts to one side as the monkey grew enraged and threw dozens of punches and kicks at me.
I blocked most of them but a few slipped through my guard, not quite breaking bones but leaving nasty bruises and making me stumble. However, I wasn't so easily beaten.
Since I'd fully refined my lungs, my body healed at a much faster rate which meant these surface level wounds didn't bother me too much. At least from a beast at a similar level to myself.
I had to restrict myself from using my tumour touch since that would probably kill the monkey faster than I could heal it. If I could even heal it at all after using that technique.
Also, I really needed a better name for that. Currently it made me sound like some kind of psychopath. Almost like a cultivator, I couldn't help but chuckle to myself.
The monkey punched me again but this time instead of blocking I let it make contact. Tensing my shoulder muscles made the blow a little easier to withstand.
I grabbed hold of its arm and it sensed something was wrong, but it was too late.
My open palm smashed into its elbow as I pulled its wrist back towards me. I felt a lot of resistance from its tough skin, its stony fur lacerating the skin on my palm, but my move was destructive.
A sickening crunch sounded out as the monkey's elbow snapped and its arm bent the wrong way from my strike. Following that I didn't let up and delivered a punch to its throat.
The monkey gasped for breath and clutched at its neck with its one good arm, but that just gave me the space I needed to finish it off. I unleashed a rapid torrent of strikes that broke almost every bone in its body and left it bruised and bloody in a matter of moments.
It feebly raised its tail, pointing the jagged spike towards me, but it flopped to the ground soon after. It had no strength left, walking the line between life and death. Only a few breaths kept it from the afterlife.
But not for long.
Blood essence sparked in my fingers and I thrust them against the monkey's neck. Almost immediately it took a sharp breath and started twitching. It took a lot longer to heal than the other beasts.
Unlike the other beasts which had seemed quite scared of me afterwards and tried to run away, the monkey stared at me with fury and screeched loud enough that I almost let go.
Then right as I felt the feeling of blood surging into me, it punched me in the face. Blood promptly spurted back out of my nose and I staggered backwards.
However, there was a grin on my face. This was more like it. A punching bag that didn't escape after just one round. Which was great, because I'd actually felt a noticeable difference in strength from the amount my blood essence had increased.
Strange, given that I still felt like I was blocked from advancing further. For now though I wouldn't question it.
I knew that the answer to whether I could break through lay in these mountains, I would just need to beat my way through the endless spirit beasts to find it.
****
Li Feng sighed as he tried to focus his qi towards healing his wounds. His respite was short-lived however, as the damnable bastard Huo Jin soon approached him.
"Junior Brother Li, get off your ass and go harvest more beast cores. I won't let Sun Deng's group beat us to the Ten Ascensions Lily," he ordered, releasing his qi and making Li Feng shiver.
Huo Jin had been assigned to lead their group by Elder Jin, an act of blatant nepotism However, the guy was the strongest there by far and none of the others dared to stand up to his tyranny.
The entire day they'd been forced to fight every spirit beast they came across to harvest their cores, only for Huo Jin to keep them all for himself. Stingy bastard, Li Feng cursed.
In total, five groups of inner disciples from the Cloudy Falls Sect had been sent out to compete for the Ten Ascensions Lily. No doubt some groups from the Soaring Sword Sect had also snuck into the mountain range to try and snatch the rare treasure for themselves.
Of the five disciples chosen to lead the groups, Li Feng cursed his luck for ending up with Huo Jin. Even Sun Deng, their leader's eternal rival, wasn't this despotic.
Nonetheless, he didn't have the strength to complain. For now he would simply bide his time and wait until the opportune moment came. The moment he could snatch the Ten Ascensions Lily from that bastard Huo Jin and overtake him, reaching the heavens in a single leap.
Well, maybe just the peak of the Qi Gathering Realm, but to most inner disciples that was as close as it got to heaven. Only the Elders and talented core disciples were able to reach the Foundation Establishment Realm and they were few in number.
Suddenly, a small rock slide occurred and nearly buried him alive. He managed to jump back just in time to avoid the falling stones when a nine-star spirit monkey suddenly rushed at him.
As a one-star cultivator, he could fight evenly with such a beast in the right circumstances but as he was now the beast would get the opening strike and claim the momentum.
He raised his arms to guard his vitals, but the blow he was expecting never came. Opening his eyes and lowering his guard he saw the monkey sprint past him, an expression of pure terror on its face. What in the heavens is going on? he wondered to himself as he observed the spirit beast's odd behaviour.
A second later another stone fell to the ground beside him and he tensed up, expecting another attack.
Instead, a streak of green raced past him in pursuit of the spirit monkey. He just about made out the features of a handsome man with sword-like brows and a majestic… hold on Li Feng, you don't swing that way, he caught himself. It wasn't his fault, the guy was just that handsome.
Even stranger, he didn't recognise the robes the man was wearing at all. No one in the Cloudy Falls Sect wore green robes and he was fairly certain that none of the disciples from the Soaring Sword Sect should be wearing robes of that colour either.
So just who was the strange cultivator?
He decided to forget about it. The expression on the monkey's face, the terror of facing a deadly predator, told him everything he needed to know.
A man who could make a nine-star Body Tempering beast scared enough to run for its life was a man he didn't want to mess with. So, Li Feng just continued searching for weaker beasts to hunt as his group made their way to the centre of the Jagged Sword Mountains.
When he rejoined the group, he didn't tell anyone what he'd seen. Hopefully they didn't encounter that scary cultivator again.
And if they did, he would just try to throw Huo Jin in the way and run for his life, just like that monkey.
****
I began to wonder if all spirit beasts were cowards or if it was only those in the Body Tempering Realm. This spirit monkey had shown great promise when it defiantly struck me after I'd healed it.
However, after the third round of being beaten and healed, instead of getting back up to fight it instead sprinted in the other direction. I wasn't going to let my source of free blood essence escape so of course I had chased after it.
At one point I thought I saw another person in the valley as I chased the monkey over a small cliff, causing a minor landslide, but it might've just been my imagination. Then again, just because the Jagged Sword Mountains were dangerous didn't mean everyone avoided it.
It was a great place to find spirit herbs and harvest beast cores for cultivators. I knew plenty of inner disciples from the Cloudy Falls Sect would come here on expeditions.
I put it out of my mind. Even if that guy was a disciple of my former sect it wasn't like I needed to stop and make friends with him.
I had a goal to accomplish and the only way to do that was by hunting spirit beasts and then healing them. Or so I'd thought when I first started this mission of mine.
Now after repeating the same actions without much change, I was starting to feel like a hamster in a wheel. Stubborn determination hadn't failed me before though, so at least for now I would keep doing what I set out to do.
After a while I realised I was never going to be able to catch up with the spirit monkey. Especially not in this terrain. The monkeys, which were clearly the most plentiful spirit beast around, had adapted to live on the sharp, rocky cliffs and mountains.
My speed was pretty ridiculous when I compared it to a mortal's, but I was used to moving on easier terrain. I couldn't keep up here, even at nine-star Body Tempering.
So I let another monkey escape my clutches.
I didn't mind though because I knew there would be plenty more unsuspecting beasts ahead of me to battle, heal, and then repeat until I had grasped some semblance of an answer about my path.
****
Another six monkeys later, four of which had fled, one I was currently healing, and one which I accidentally killed while battling it when I forgot to control my strength. Despite the effects being massively reduced at the peak of nine-star, I had actually improved quite a lot with my practice, going beyond the limits.
I wasn't sure how to describe my cultivation. Often those who were at the peak of a certain realm, on the cusp of breaking through to the next but missing one key insight, were known as half-step cultivators of the next realm.
However, I didn't think that describing myself as a half-step Qi Gathering cultivator was accurate. Because I wasn't just one insight away from breaking through—I was entirely barred from advance, because of my shattered spirit roots.
Yet my strength continued to increase.
And my knowledge of my healing technique and blood essence with it. I heard a crack as the final bone of the nine-star spirit monkey snapped back into place and I was flooded with blood essence shortly after.
I stumbled backwards and coughed blood, my body suddenly feeling like it was going to burst, the sheer quantity of energy within too much to handle. Had I broken through some kind of safe limit before advancing to Qi Gathering?
I was not going to be outdone by my own body. Perhaps cultivators were not supposed to possess this much blood essence or perhaps it was due to my lack of spirit roots I was starting to experience instability in my cultivation.
I didn't care. I clenched my teeth and focused inwards, forcing my will on my erratic blood essence until it calmed down. I still felt swollen, like a balloon about to burst, but it was manageable.
Looking down at the monkey, I saw it opening its eyes. This was the third time I'd beaten and healed this one and I figured it was about to run for its life.
If I really wanted to I could keep it down and refuse to let it have a fair fight, but that would feel too much like torture. I wasn't that kind of man.
With a sigh I released it from my grip and stood up. I had reached the end of the narrow valley and the cliffs were less steep now. The path had opened up to reveal a towering mountain, the entrance to the heart of the Jagged Sword Mountains.
With a few more steps I left the valley behind and approached a thick forest, one that seemed to cover the side of the mountain almost to the peak. I hoped I would find more powerful beasts inside, perhaps even ones that had broken through to the Qi Gathering realm.
I suspected that in order to break through—if it was even possible—I would need to heal someone, or something, that was already in the Qi Gathering realm. Blood essence was used to temper the body, the hallmark of my current realm.
It was effective at doing that, but it was far from enough to gain the spark of inspiration needed to claim the spiritual energy of the world and form a dantian. Qi was an energy far more mysterious and powerful.
As I entered the forest I felt a light breeze brushing against my face. It relaxed me, a single breath rejuvenating me and filling me with strength. Within the wind there was an almost familiar scent.
I took another breath, inhaling through my nose and realised what it was. A potent herb lay within the mountain range.
Originally, I'd only come to the Jagged Sword Mountains to seek a spark of inspiration for my next breakthrough; to obtain the strength I needed to claim revenge on the city lord and those who dared to harm my friends and allies.
Now though I was tempted to chase another goal. Since I was already here, why not keep travelling further in and see what had released such a potent aroma?
I wasn't sure how much further I would need to travel but at the moment the spirit beasts were still not too powerful to handle. So I continued.
Five minutes passed and suddenly I heard a rustle in the trees and felt something in the air shift. I froze.
I ducked, my instincts warning me against an unseen attack. Right as I did, a thick stone spike ripped through the air where my head had been a moment before.
Screeching and snapping branches could be heard nearby and I looked up. Three spirit monkeys, all half-step Qi Gathering beasts, were hanging from the trees. They stared at me with mocking glares, tails raised to strike once more.
Chapter 26
The spirit monkey convulsed on the ground, its shoulder and neck misshapen and swollen. It had rushed ahead of its companions and I'd panicked, using my blood essence to cause the tumorous growths inside its body.
I hoped I could finish off the other two fast and then heal it, but I wasn't sure. They screeched, making me stumble as two stone spikes blasted towards me.
Dodging to the side, I avoided the first but felt a spike of pain in my side as the second pierced my gut. They screeched and I heard them jumping from the trees.
One landed on the ground next to the fallen monkey while the other remained in the canopy, already preparing another strike from afar. I wasted no time in pulling the spike out, letting my refined lungs get to work healing the wound.
I lacked medicinal energy, so I quickly took out one of the two healing pills I had left and swallowed it. I found it funny that it was more effective for me to break down the ingredients within and refine them, letting my lungs heal me, rather than simply allowing the pill to do so.
The monkey on the ground observed the convulsing monkey for a moment, then turned to me with hate filled eyes. It screeched louder than before and my eardrums rattled as it bared its fangs.
The air whistled and I dodged to the side, avoiding another stone spike. The screeching monkey pounced, unleashing a whirlwind of punches and kicks that I had trouble keeping up with.
I sensed these two beasts had almost grasped the nature of spiritual energy. Every attack was heavy, almost breaking through my skin and bones and striking something deep inside me.
For now it was manageable, but I wasn't sure how I would handle myself against a true awakened beast in the Qi Gathering realm. One step at a time.
While I blocked its blows I searched for an opening in the monkey's defences. If there was one thing I was confident in it was my perceptive sight.
As a doctor it was essential to pay excruciatingly close attention to detail when assessing patients and during surgeries and of course that skill translated quite well to martial arts. I'd always had a talent for finding weird gaps in my opponent's defences.
Sparring partners often complained that even though they had perfect technique I could still break through. I figured that if there was a gap to exploit, your technique wasn't perfect…
My arms were bruised from the constant attacks of the spirit monkey, but I was returning a few strikes of my own. There!
I suddenly spotted a gap. It had just kicked me and it was slightly off balance. I lashed out with my leg, my foot catching the beast in the ankle and it toppled. Its arms waved wildly as it tried to stay upright and I used that distraction to break through its guard.
I struck with precision, every punch hitting a vital point on the monkey. Within a few strikes it was downed, but I wasn't done.
It was still conscious, so I delivered a final blow to its temple, knocking it out. Just as I did that I felt a sharp pain in my shoulder and looked down to see a stone spike jutting out of my arm, blood dripping from the wound.
I leapt up and rolled to the side to avoid a second spike. The final monkey had made its move. Its eyes were bloodshot and it shrieked at me, gone mad with rage.
It crossed the remaining distance between us in a single leap and began throwing wild strikes that I barely managed to block. We exchanged dozens of blows in just a few seconds.
A strange feeling welled up inside me. I had chosen to continue my path of healing and medicine in this world and had only ended up in a few fights. Back on Earth, despite my career, martial arts had been the only way I could take my mind off my troubles.
I often threw myself into training with an almost fanatic vigour. Once more I felt that same passion, that excitement of dedicating yourself to a single goal.
This was a dangerous feeling. I knew that this was likely how most cultivators became so obsessed with reaching the peak that they would throw all else aside, leaving nothing but a mountain of corpses in their wake as they ascended the steps to heaven.
But I was not that weak. I punched a specific spot on the monkey's elbow and was rewarded with a crunch and the arm falling to its side. It seemed shocked but its rage pushed it onwards, continuing the battle.
With one less limb however, it was futile. A few moments later it joined its defeated buddies on the ground.
I rushed towards the first monkey I'd defeated. The monkey was almost unrecognisable as its entire arm, chest, and neck were swollen like balloons that could burst at any moment.
I'd not yet attempted to heal the damage from my own technique yet. I hadn't needed to. Of course I hadn't wanted to heal the bandits I'd killed with it, so that meant this monkey would be the first time.
It wasn't that different from healing any other affliction. I injected blood essence and it quelled the raging energy within. But there was a problem.
I wasn't just fighting against some infection or flesh wound, I was attempting to battle against my own energy. The monkey yelled in pain as the two differing techniques clashed within its body.
At first the tumours started to swell and grow and I worried that I had made things worse, but a few moments later the clashes subsided and its body slowly returned to normal. However, there was something strange.
When it was fully healed, my blood essence returned to me, but it had not grown whatsoever. Unlike when I healed other patients, there were no gains to be had here.
That made sense. While my qi oath had been potent and the rewards equally powerful, it would've been ridiculous if I could create a self-fulfilling cycle that propelled me through the cultivation realms. Inflicting heinous wounds such as this and then healing them.
I assumed it didn't stop me from progressing when I healed physical wounds I'd afflicted because that was still a greater challenge. I had to use strength that wasn't part of the oath to crush the beasts and so I was still rewarded for healing them.
Satisfied with learning some more about my mysterious techniques, I turned to the other two monkeys. If I was being honest, I was a little worried about healing them.
My body was already full of blood essence. It felt as though even a little more would push me over some kind of limit; one that I didn't necessarily want to pass. However, I decided to heal them anyway.
Until now I still hadn't gained much insight as to how I would progress my cultivation further than the Body Tempering Realm. This was the only hint I had and so I would continue to explore it, even if that held potentially painful consequences.
When I healed the first monkey, nothing happened except the strange feeling of being full grew even more intense. It weighed down on me with every step, something within my body but not physically present.
Despite that feeling I didn't hesitate as I began to heal the third and final spirit monkey. My blood entered its body as normal and I watched as it went to work, setting broken bones and knitting torn muscles back together.
It finished in record time, my healing technique growing more effective the higher my cultivation grew. When the blood essence surged back into me, I prepared to keep a tight hold on it, prepared for the uncomfortable swelling.
However, I soon realised something was seriously wrong. I continued to swell as the blood essence flowed into my body, but I soon felt a familiar feeling. One that I hadn't expected to feel until I'd grasped insight into the workings of qi.
****
Wang Ren exhaled, flicking his arm to remove the blood of the spirit monkey from his glaive. That had been one of the most challenging fights he'd had to date.
A three-star awakened beast, a spirit beast that could typically fight on even ground against four-star Qi Gathering cultivators. He was still only a two-star Qi Gatherer but he'd managed to bring it down through a combination of intelligence and the technique his master had handed down to him.
Upon reaching two-star one of the inner Elders of the sect had taken notice of his talents and offered to take him as a disciple. Of course he'd accepted. Elder Bang was renowned for his prowess with the glaive and also his eccentric nature.
A few other disciples had warned him against becoming a disciple of the reclusive elder, but Wang Ren came from a common background. Without the benefit of connections or the heritage of a clan he had to claim every scrap he could.
That was how he'd worked his way through the outer sect and he wouldn't stop now. Despite being one of the most talented disciples in his generation he refused to sit back and allow his progress to stagnate.
He would rather be an ant that dared to ascend to the summit of a mountain than remain a frog trapped in a well, simply because he was afraid of an Elder being a little strange. Besides, he realised the rumours were mostly nonsense after a few weeks of training under his new master.
Most of them, anyway.
Elder Bang had provided him with just one technique to date. It was the first in a series of techniques that formed a self created glaive art—Shattering Earth Carving Heavens Glaive.
It was a mighty and imposing technique, as one would expect from the name. Elder Bang was one of the top elders in the sect, a three-star Foundation Building expert. He had created this glaive art upon breaking through to the Foundation Building Realm, right after winning a vicious battle against the Fang Demon Cult and a nine-star awakened beast at the same time.
To receive his legacy was a great honour, one that Wang Ren didn't intend to waste. Even with just the first technique of the art, Heavy Earth Slash, he was able to rebuke the limits of heaven and cross stars to fight against beasts and other foes with greater cultivation than his own.
Yet he still felt that if he tried to challenge Sun Deng, he would lose. It would not be an easy loss and he could certainly put up a fight against the other man, but he would lose without a doubt.
Despite knowing that, he would still do his best to claim at least one or two petals of the Ten Ascensions Lily. Surely Sun Deng was not so tyrannical as to claim the entire flower for himself?
Returning to the group, Wang Ren saw that they had all gathered. Sun Deng nodded towards him and he returned a nod of his own out of politeness.
As the two strongest members of their group, they shared a certain understanding. Sun Deng raised an arm to silence the conversations.
"Beyond the forest lies the heart of the Jagged Sword Mountains. The Jagged Sword Peak itself, where the verdant spirit pond lies. That pond is a natural treasure in and of itself, with a single mouthful said to provide inspiration to those in the Qi Gathering Realm," he explained, even though they all knew this already.
"Our goal is not the pond, but the flower that will blossom in the centre. From this point on we may encounter other groups and more dangerous awakened beasts that you may not be able to handle alone. Stick together and with me and we will emerge triumphant. I promise to share the petals of the flower with those who contribute to our success!" he exclaimed, the rest of the disciples shouting once in affirmation.
Wang Ren wasn't so inclined to believe him, but he wouldn't dare act out of turn. He wasn't so arrogant as to believe he could reach the verdant spirit pond alone. So he followed after the group as they left the forest behind.
As he stepped out from under the canopy, he suddenly felt a faint release of energy from behind, far in the distance. Not qi or spiritual energy, but something less and yet more.
He frowned, but there was no time to investigate or worry about it for now. He would simply continue doing as he needed and trying to honour himself and his master. He looked at his glaive, the weapon also of the king grade, the same as his master's art.
The edge was sharp and the shaft heavy, yet plain. No decoration was needed to kill your foes. Only determination and strength.
A coward could never reach the heavens, even if a saint grade technique fell from the heavens like a meat pie and landed in their lap. His path was clear and he would not falter, even if he had to challenge Sun Deng and risk death.
****
I realised the moment my skin began to tear, blood pouring from the endless lacerations across my body, that something had gone seriously wrong. I had no time to consider what though, because all my focus was required to stop myself from collapsing under the pressure as my body ripped itself apart.
This made no sense. Nine-star was supposed to be the limit of the Body Tempering Realm, yet I was making another breakthrough despite reaching the peak.
Compared to the previous breakthroughs I'd experienced and even the ones I could remember from before I took over this body… it was far beyond them.
Somehow I felt that this wasn't a breakthrough to the next realm. I had yet to grasp the mysteries of qi and I still hadn't really figured out how to turn my shattered spirit roots into a working dantian.
So I was doing something completely unprecedented. Another wave of agony struck as my internal organs turned to mush. I noticed that my lungs retained their shape more than the rest, clearly a result of the refining through my physique.
That was all I could notice. My mind became occupied with just one single thing—surviving this ordeal.
Failing to breakthrough from one star to the next in most realms meant losing your progress and having to cultivate from the beginning of that small stage once more. Here, I knew that failure meant death.
I wasn't sure why I knew that, but I did. So I pushed away all outside thoughts, my consciousness the only thing present in the misshapen pile of flesh that was currently my body.
After a while, I inhaled.
Then, I exhaled and with that breath came a green healing mist. My bones were the first to reforge themselves, my skeleton now flexible and sturdy like the trunk of an ancient tree.
Around those unshakeable bones, my muscles and tendons regrew, knitting themselves together. My muscles were now like bundles of iron cables, nigh unbreakable and capable of unleashing devastatingly powerful and lightning fast strikes. My tendons were like the sinews of a dragon, nothing able to snap them.
My organs reforged themselves anew, cleansed of impurities. Finally, my skin stretched across my body, smooth and unblemished like the finest jade and yet impossible to pierce for any below the Qi Gathering Realm.
As I fully awakened, I understood I had achieved the impossible. I had broken through to ten-star Body Tempering.
It was a stage no one before me had ever reached, because it shouldn't have existed. Then again, the world was vast and unknowable so perhaps I wasn't the first. However, I had never heard of it in any of the sect's records or through any of Zhao Dan's memories.
I smiled, my level of strength far beyond any other Body Tempering practitioner. Perhaps I could even match a cultivator at one-star Qi Gathering, but it would be a tough battle.
Before I could test my new strength however, there was something far more important to attend to.