Traveling through time to cultivate immortality: a life and death test

"Miss, do you see a person floating over there?"

On the deck of a ship on the Tongtian River, a group of guards were watching the sunset with the young lady. A maidservant looked around and suddenly pointed at a floating corpse not far away and said loudly.

Upon hearing this, the guards immediately spread out and guarded around the young lady, just in case. They were all well-trained fighters, with their temples bulging high, and they were all acquired masters.

"Captain Wang, save him." the lady ordered.

"Here." Two guards immediately jumped into the water and fished the body out.

The young man, about twelve or thirteen years old, with a delicate face and delicate features, was shirtless. His left hand was tightly grasping a broken flute, while his right hand was empty. His face was pale and his lips were purple, and he had obviously choked on water and passed out.

Captain Wang immediately bent down and pressed the boy's abdomen. After about ten times, the boy spit out the water in his lungs and slowly woke up. Wasn't this Liu Xing who escaped from the sinkhole?

He sensed his surroundings briefly and found that it was a ship sailing in the middle of the river. He had been rescued and his whole body was sore and weak.

"You boy, you are so unreasonable. Why don't you thank our young lady for saving your life?" The little girl next to her yelled.

Liu Xing looked up and saw a little girl of about his age across from him, staring at him curiously with big, grape-like eyes. What a pretty girl! Liu Xing secretly praised her.

"Thank you, Miss, for saving my life. I will never forget it." Liu Xing said weakly. He struggled to get up but finally gave up.

"You're welcome." The little girl said crisply, her voice very pleasant.

The guards checked him when they rescued him. They found that he had no internal strength, no weapons, and was naked, so they couldn't hide anything, so they relaxed.

"Xiao Zi, help him to the room to rest and prepare some food to send over." The lady arranged.

"Okay~" Seeing Liu Xing wet and naked, the little girl was a little reluctant, but considering that he was grateful to the young lady, she decided to help him.

Liu Xing was helped to the bed and a large bowl of meat porridge was brought to him. Liu Xing was indeed hungry, so he drank it in one gulp and felt that he had regained some strength.

"Thank you, Miss Xiao Zi." Liu Xing thanked her gratefully.

"You're welcome. Have a good rest. I'll ask Doctor Wang to check on you." Xiao Zi jumped out.

What a lively and lovely little girl, so endearing! This young lady and servant are kind and graceful, and they look like ladies from a noble family. I wonder where they're going.

When Liu Xing recalled his experience in the underground river, he felt a wave of fear.

The underground river was incredibly long, with no room to emerge for air, so he had no choice but to rush forward. On the second night, his spiritual senses detected a long monster approaching him. Upon closer inspection, he discovered a python three meters long, as thick as an adult's thigh. He was terrified. With no way to retreat, he could only accelerate forward, but was eventually overtaken. He employed plum blossom steps and sword techniques in the water to avoid being entangled. The resistance of the water significantly hampered his swordplay and agility. Even more terrifying, the python was covered in thick scales, making it impossible for his dagger to penetrate. He lacked internal energy and wasn't strong enough.

After over an hour of pursuit, Liu Xing was exhausted and his oxygen consumption was high, affecting his breath-holding time. The python, unable to capture him, grew even more ferocious. Each time it tried to wrap itself around him, he nimbly dodged. The ferocious python finally bared its fangs and opened its mouth to bite Liu Xing, intending to rip his head off. A stench of fishy odor filled his face. Liu Xing had been waiting for this opportunity. If he couldn't penetrate the outside, he'd break through inside. He swiftly turned and, from an incredible angle, plunged his dagger into the python's mouth, pinning its tongue against its jaws and piercing deeply. The python hissed in pain. It bit down, threatening to sever Liu Xing's hand. Liu Xing discarded the dagger and quickly retreated, using the Plum Blossom Step to quickly swim away. The python, severely wounded, gradually weakened its pursuit and eventually gave up.

On the fourth day, Liu Xing felt his strength was running out. He could already see the underground river about to flow into the surface river, and he breathed a sigh of relief. Ultimately, he couldn't hold on until the end, choking on water and passing out.

At this moment, Doctor Wang came in with a medicine box on his back, interrupting Liu Xing's thoughts. The doctor felt his pulse, opened Liu Xing's eyelids and looked at him, and asked him to open his mouth and stick out his tongue. He nodded and said:

"It's just a case of choking on water. It's nothing serious. You'll be fine after two days of rest." After saying that, he packed up his medicine box and prepared to leave.

At this time, Miss Xiao Zi came in holding a set of clothes.

"Hey, this suit is for you. It's not proper to be naked."

"My name is Liu Xing. Thank you, Miss Xiao Zi, for taking care of me. I'll rest for a night and regain my strength. I'll go and thank you in person tomorrow."

"You still have some conscience." Xiao Zi said seriously and ran out with Doctor Wang.

There was no conversation that night. Liu Xing closed his eyes and meditated. After practicing Qigong for a week, his body recovered to normal.

Finally escaping, Liu Xing felt as if he were in another world. Over six years had passed since he'd traveled through time, yet he'd yet to achieve anything significant, and had already faced numerous near-death experiences. He had come to terms with reality: this world was one where the strong reigned supreme, with no laws protecting the weak. Only by mastering peerless martial arts and building a formidable power could he protect himself. Intrigue and vendettas were a constant presence, and he silently reminded himself to remain cautious and careful in his future journeys, refraining from pretense and striving for self-preservation to save his life.

Where to go next? This was a soul-searching question. Now that he possessed the Ice Water Art, he didn't necessarily need to go to the Sword Sect, which was too far away. He needed to find a reliable organization to join. On the one hand, he could display his talents and build his own power. On the other hand, he needed a quiet environment to cultivate the art to the peak of the sixth level, so as to complete his merit.

As for revenge for Plum Blossom Villa, he wasn't yet capable of it. His adoptive father had treated him well, sacrificing himself to save his descendants—a truly admirable feat. Once he'd achieved a breakthrough and gained sufficient strength, he could return to destroy Sirius Fort and the Black Wind Twins. He actually missed Liu Yue. This adoptive sister had cared so deeply for him, the most cherished trace of affection Liu Xing had received since entering this world. Liu Yue was fifteen now. Did she escape? Where was she now? How was she doing?

After thinking all this over, Liu Xing settled down and decided to thank the young lady tomorrow. After finding out where this place was, he left the ship and went to find a place to settle down.