From the Ming Dynasty, we will conquer the world

Chapter 37: The dual realm of skin and flesh, combined refining, empty fairy bag!

Ever since Xu Xing successfully broke through the barrier alone, those "lay disciples" who had managed to survive fled in all directions, making this once extremely glorious ancient temple now deserted.

Some people wanted to take advantage of the chaos to plunder the Sutra Library and Medicine Master Hall, but they ran into Lu Zhu, who was worried about Xu Xing and chased him all the way up the mountain.

As Lu Zhu walked along, he saw corpses everywhere and blood all over the martial arts field, and he couldn't help but be deeply shocked by Xu Xing's methods.

Although this old friend has been silent since returning home, his methods are still so fierce, even sharper than before. I don't know whether it is a good thing or a bad thing.

Although Lu Zhu was extremely disgusted with the current filthy and foul scene in Southern Shaolin, he even had the idea of ​​eliminating the evil.

But when Lu Zhu really saw the scene of the monks lying dead with their livers and intestines scattered all over the ground and the bloody scene, he couldn't help but feel compassion.

Therefore, those "lay disciples" who wanted to take advantage of the situation only had one leg broken by him.

It was not until Lu Zhu went up the mountain that the affairs of Southern Shaolin finally came to an end.

Afterwards, Lu Zhu notified Li Shizhen and Xiyu and asked them to move Qi Jiguang, who had not yet woken up, to the Pharmacist Hall and use the medicinal materials accumulated by Southern Shaolin over the years to treat the tiger.

Xu Xing, who was also seriously injured, smiled and refused Li Shizhen's treatment.

After leaving a sigh, "If I cure it too quickly, I would be letting down this good opponent," he took the two large boxes of medicinal materials he had just looted from the Pharmacist Hall, walked into the Sutra Library, and stayed inside.

In these two large boxes, in addition to Shaolin secret medicines such as Tiger Bone Jasper Paste, Vajra Butter, and Leopard Fetus Tendon Pills, there are also old medicine pills from various schools.

Xu Xing knew at a glance that these were the medicinal herbs prepared by the Wheel-Turning King for his practice of "Scale Body", but they happened to be a good bargain for him.

After fighting with two great masters, Zhu Po Long and Zhuan Lun Wang, Xu Xing has realized that the greatest advantage of his "Skin Refining Extreme" in this field is his unique attack method of evaporating sweat to form air waves, as well as his extraordinary perception.

But if we put these two items aside and just talk about pure physical strength, Xu Xing is far inferior to either of them.

This is why, in the battle a few days ago, although he was able to gain the upper hand against Zhu Polong, it was difficult for him to deliver a fatal blow to him.

Xu Xing originally planned to push the four major refining methods of skin, flesh, tendons and bones to the ultimate level after they were fully developed to see what kind of path this would lead to.

However, ever since he fought with Zhu Polong outside Taizhou City and witnessed his "strong tendons and ribs", Xu Xing began to think about how to apply this "combined training" idea to his own martial arts system.

If I practice these two "extreme realms" together, how strong will my physical strength be?
Even Xu Xing was extremely curious about the answer to this question.

Now that he has achieved the ultimate state of skin refining, the next step is naturally to reversely push forward to the ultimate state of flesh refining.

In fact, tendons, flesh, and skin are originally one. To refine the skin is also to refine the flesh, and to refine the flesh is also to refine the tendons. Therefore, among the four major refining methods, refining the flesh is the most vague, and the techniques of refining flesh in various schools and factions vary greatly.

Therefore, even though Xu Xing had the stone mirror in his hand, he had not deduced a feasible path before coming to Southern Shaolin.

However, after Xu Xingquan entered the void, his mental strength was much higher than before.

Every day, he was able to materialize the mirror image with his mind power five times, and the speed of practicing boxing by controlling the mirror image with consciousness also became faster.

Adding the two together, Xu Xing's efficiency in deducing martial arts has now more than doubled compared to before.

It only took him two days to try out all ten or so secret methods of flesh-refining recorded in the Sutra Library, and he came to a conclusion.

——If you want to refine your flesh to a level that no one has ever achieved before, the secret is not in the skin, flesh, tendons, or even in the internal organs, but in the blood.

After vaguely seeing this road, Xu Xing began to swallow various medicines and started to experiment on his severely injured body.

When the martial arts realm reaches the level of "the way of utmost sincerity", although it can feed back to the physical body and give rise to all kinds of incredible changes, this kind of "giving birth" also requires material as a foundation.

Just like the "scale cocoon" and "bone tumor" of the Chakravartin, they are not produced out of thin air, but need to be refined with special potions, and specific medicines must be taken internally before they can be cultivated.

If Xu Xing wanted to achieve his envisioned flesh refining skills, he naturally needed a lot of medicines as a foundation. Fortunately, after the battle in Southern Shaolin, although he was seriously injured, he also obtained enough medicinal materials for his practice.

Moreover, when one reaches the realm of "Ultimate Emptiness", which is a level higher than "Ultimate Sincerity", this "catalytic" effect will be even stronger, and often only a little bit of medicine will be enough to trigger a series of chain reactions.

However, since the mirror image can only represent the human body and it is difficult to imitate the changes of medicine, Xu Xing was extremely cautious when he officially started practicing and did not rush into anything.

Just like that, five days passed quickly.

In the Medicine Buddha Hall, in a secluded Zen room, there are copper incense burners placed in the four corners of the room, and the smoke of incense rises and fills the whole room.

A vague outline can be seen leaning on the bed, with mist rolling like waves. The figure is like a quiet reef hit by turbulent water, lying still, with various bottles and jars scattered around.

This man had a sallow complexion and smelled of medicine. Although he was tall, his muscles were extremely thin. His body was supported by a thick and broad skeleton, like a skinny sick tiger sitting in a cave. He was very imposing.

He was naturally the "Qi Hu" who once dominated the southeast and forced the pirates not to go ashore for six years, Qi Jiguang, the general of Taizhou.

The door opened gently, and Lu Zhu walked into the Zen room with a plate in his hand. He put the plate on the table, looked at Li Shizhen's bloodshot eyes, sighed, and advised:

"Doctor Li, let's eat first."

Although Xu Xing can rely solely on medicinal herbs to absorb nutrients, Lu Zhu and the others still need to eat normally.

Fortunately, although the monks were either dead, disabled, or escaped, the ordinary pyrotechnics and servants still chose to stay on the mountain so that everyone could have a vegetarian meal.

Lu Zhu put down the plate, came to Qi Jiguang, looked at Qi Hu's frowning brows, and couldn't help asking:
"Doctor Li, has your condition improved recently?"

Li Shizhen took the last needle from Qi Jiguang and shook his head:

"The wounds on his body are easy to treat. Even if General Qi only has one breath left, I am confident that I can snatch his life back from the hands of the devil, but..."

He sighed:
"General Qi's injury is not in his body, but in his mind. No medicine can cure such an injury..."

Turning to look at Lu Zhu, Li Shizhen smiled bitterly and said:
"I have failed Grandmaster Xu. He risked his life to get through Southern Shaolin Temple and found so many medicinal herbs for me. But Li... Alas!"

As his emotions reached a peak, Li Shizhen's eyes actually turned red. He clenched his fists tightly, pressed his lips into a straight line, and felt a surge of guilt as he beat his chest back and forth.

You know, when Li Shizhen was in the Imperial Hospital, he dared to speak out against the emperor's superstition of alchemy, which shows how upright he is. People like him are most unwilling to owe favors to others and betray their trust.

Now that Xu Xing had risked his life to get these herbs for him, he was unable to cure Qi Jiguang as promised. Naturally, he was extremely anxious and felt extremely guilty.

Lu Zhu also sighed:

"Life and death are impermanent, all due to fate. However, since you are in pain, why don't you let Brother Xu take a look?"

When Xu Xing was mentioned, Li Shizhen became a little angry. He clenched his right fist, waved it in the air, and said with gritted teeth:
"Just in terms of injuries, his condition is much more serious than General Qi's, yet he still wants to practice boxing despite the injury. How can these warriors not value their lives? Alas!"

Although these were words of complaint, at the end of his speech, Li Shizhen couldn't help but reveal some admiration in his eyes.

When it comes to being crazy about martial arts, Xu Xingshi is the first person Li Shizhen has ever seen in his life. His pure sincerity and enthusiasm were so pure that Li Shizhen could only think of one sentence to describe it.

——If I hear the truth in the morning, I can die in the evening.

Thinking of this, Li Shizhen shook his head again, and the anger that had just risen up disappeared without a trace. He picked up the bowl and waved at Lu Zhu:

"It's been five days. You should go to the Sutra Library. Alternating between tension and relaxation is the key to health preservation. If he goes to extremes in everything, something bad is bound to happen. He can't keep going for long..."

Lu Zhu also nodded in agreement.

When they traveled together in the north in the past, he had vaguely felt that his old friend was like a longbow that was always aiming. Once it hit something, it would immediately pull the bow taut and point it at the next prey. His goal was clear, he had no hesitation, and he never rested.

Lu Zhu also asked Xu why he behaved like that.

Until now, Lu Zhu still remembers that Xu Xing was actually stunned for a moment at that time, as if he had never realized this problem.

After a while, the steel-like man smiled and said:
"Xiao Lu, it's not easy to be born. If you are lucky enough to come back to this world, how can you not cherish it?"

Lu Zhu had been with him for a long time and had learned some joking manners from him, so he wanted to ask him, "Are you really a reincarnated monster?"
However, this sentence was never spoken, because when Xu Xing spoke, he had already looked away, looking at the setting sun in the distance, and slowly recited a sentence.

"The world is changing, time is pressing, ten thousand years is too long, we must seize the day." Although Xu Xing spoke slowly, there was a burning determination running through his words, which moved Lu Zhu.

At that time, the two men, who had just been through a brutal fight, were lying side by side on a large rock.

In front of them was the famous Hukou Waterfall.

The sun sets in the west and the setting sun shines obliquely.

The sea of ​​clouds is stacked up layer by layer, like golden and red halos piled up on the sky. The Huangjin River rolls down to the earth from it, and the rocks roll on the cliffs, stirring up thunders in thousands of valleys. It is vast and majestic, winding for thousands of miles.

Reciting this poem, Xu Xing, who was obviously exhausted, became interested again. He struggled to get up, faced the long river and the setting sun, and started to fight.

He performed this set of punches without any rules, just casually and freely, his figure rose and fell, as if he wanted to blend into the brilliant water and sky.

Lu Zhu still remembers that scene to this day.

While reminiscing about the past, he left the Zen room and came to the door of the Sutra Repository. Before he walked in, he smelled an extremely strong smell of medicine coming out and rushing into Lu Zhu's nose.

Lu Zhu was a genius from Northern Shaolin. With a twitch of his nose, he recognized several of the smells as coming from Shaolin's secret medicine.

Although he could not recognize the way out of the remaining mixed smells, he could still feel the powerful medicinal power from the smell that escaped.

"Ok?"

Lu Zhu's face changed and he immediately raised his hand to push the door. He was anxious and exerted great strength in his hands. With one push, the door suddenly opened. A strong wind blew up, blowing the scriptures on the ground into the air.

However, among the papers, there were two boxes placed horizontally and diagonally, with nothing inside. Lu Zhu knew very well that the quantity of various tonics inside was enough to make more than ten great boxers practice madly for ten days.

——But now, Xu Xing actually ate them all? !
Lu Zhu raised his head and saw Xu Xing sitting in the gap between the bookshelves with his upper body naked. There was nothing unusual about him. His eyes were closed and his expression was peaceful, as if he was sleeping.

But it was clear that his breathing had stopped and his heart had stopped beating.

Seeing this scene, Lu Zhu opened his eyes wide in disbelief and almost couldn't bear the calm state of mind that he had cultivated for many years.

Before he could open his mouth, he saw Xu Xing raise his eyelids. His eyes were as bright as glass flames. He didn't look tired at all, but instead looked warm and intoxicated.

"Brother Xu, you just did..."

Xu Xing stood up, stretched slowly, and said with emotion:

"Ah, I almost died accidentally. I had so many hallucinations and strange things. It's been a long time since I felt this way."

Lu Zhu even saw a hint of regret on Xu Xing's face.

——Brother Xu, do you really want to experience the process from birth to death? !

Although Lu Zhu knew that Xu Xing was obsessed with boxing, he was still shocked when he saw him throwing his life and death lightly. He couldn't help but smile bitterly:

"Brother Xu, I haven't seen you for many years. Are you..."

After pausing for several times, Lu Zhu finally couldn't help but say the word.

"It's getting more and more crazy."

Xu Xing just took it as a compliment to himself and laughed:
"If you are not crazy, you can't live."

As he spoke, Lu Zhu clearly saw Xu Xing's flesh moving slowly with his breathing, presenting a flowing texture, his skin as flawless as white jade, glowing slightly.

The light was rosy with a hint of white, and filled with an indescribable vitality, as if a thin layer of tough air armor had risen beneath the skin.

Lu Zhu sniffed and smelled an extremely fresh scent, just like the grass and trees growing in the empty mountains after the rain, all things flourishing, overflowing with vitality and vigor.

Xu Xing took just one step forward, and Lu Zhu heard a surging sound like the sound of the tide hitting the shore. After taking two more steps, the sound turned into the sound of clear spring water washing over stones, mixed with the clanging sound of metal colliding.

Looking at Xu Xing who was right in front of him, Lu Zhu couldn't help but ask even though he knew it was impossible:
"Brother Xu, have you cultivated the physique of a human immortal?!"

Xu Xing really shook his head, "It's not the body of a human immortal." After a moment of silence, he said, "Well, it can be considered a half-immortal body."

Oh, I was like, how could it be so...

Before Lu Zhu could finish his thought, he heard the second half of Xu Xing's words.

——A semi-immortal body?
The statements made by people in the underworld are often exaggerated. For example, "punching Guanxi" and "kicking Beihai" may not be enough to suppress a county town or overturn a pond, and people will never take such titles seriously.

This is especially true for a title like "half-immortal", which is often used to describe charlatans.

But what Xu Xing meant was - only half of my body has entered the immortal gate, so I cannot be called an immortal.

This calm and serious attitude of argumentation is more shocking than vague and exaggerated statements.

After understanding the meaning, Lu Zhu didn't want to say anything.

He didn't say anything, but Xu Xing suddenly became interested.

Although Xu Xing is not a person who likes to show off, but when it comes to martial arts, he seems to become a different person and can talk about it for three days and three nights without stopping.

Seeing that Lu Zhu didn't say anything, Xu Xing carefully analyzed with him his own skin refining realm, flesh refining realm, and the combined refining method he learned from Zhu Polong.

Although Lu Zhu studied Buddhism, he was a warrior after all. How could he resist such temptation? After listening for a while, he could not help but open his mouth and start discussing with Xu Xing.

Both of them are extraordinary boxing masters, becoming increasingly powerful. Their speaking speeds and hearing abilities are beyond ordinary people, so they communicate very quickly. Xu Xing talked incessantly for most of the time, while Lu Zhu occasionally asked a few questions and then kept concentrating on thinking.

“The double extreme state of skin and flesh is when the blood and qi become a pill, and the skin and flesh condense into a piece of transparent paper.

After the combined refining, the skin has the weight of the flesh, and the flesh has the elasticity of the skin, and they are indistinguishable from each other, wrapping up the tendons and internal organs of the whole body, just like compressing the essence of the human body into a ball of mud, which can be of any size desired.

Blood and Qi can continue to accumulate in the flesh, and if it is brewed to the limit, it can even burst out with power that exceeds the limits of the muscles and bones."

At this point, Xu Xing paused and said with a sense of accomplishment:

“After reaching this stage, my skin and flesh should be similar to those of the legendary human immortals, except that I lack the tendons and bones that serve as the backbone to support the skin and flesh.

Therefore, I call this state the Empty Immortal Bag.

Hey, even though it has the word "immortal" in it, it's just an empty, stinking shell, it's not enough, it's not enough..."

Xu Xing raised his head and looked into the distance with a faint voice.

Lu Zhu sighed:

"No matter what, there is a word 'immortal' after all."

He looked at Xu Xing's face and said sincerely:
"Congratulations, Brother Xu. You have finally seen a glimmer of hope after years of wishing for it."

Xu Xing lowered his head and looked at his hands. Recalling everything he had experienced over the years, he was quite moved and could only sigh:
"Yes, we finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. There is hope for the future."

After a moment of emotion, Xu Xing immediately calmed down, looked first at Qi Jiguang's meditation room, then at the back mountain, and said:
"Qi Jiguang was injured by Zhu Laolong's fist. It's normal that Doctor Li couldn't cure him. After all, he's not a master yet."

"what do you mean……"

Lu Zhu raised his eyebrows, Xu Xing nodded, and said lightly:

"I have a solution."

(End of this chapter)