Fantasy: Immortality Begins with Absorbing Demons

Chapter 230 Martial Arts Tournament

"Please rest assured, everyone. Huang Shanjun is a long-time friend of mine. I, the magistrate, will certainly investigate this matter thoroughly. You may all leave now..."

At this moment, Wang Youfang's tone suddenly softened, and he spoke gently.

"yes…...."

Although Huang Wei was still unwilling to leave, facing one of the strongest people in Anyan City, several elders of the Huang family tugged at Huang Wei's sleeve, and the rest of the Huang family could only go back and wait for news.

Immediately, Wang Youfang once again directed the yamen runners to move the body forward.

"Strange, why is it so light?"

"Yes, that's strange..." The two yamen runners carrying the stretcher were just about to exert force at the same time when they suddenly used too much force and stumbled.

Although Huang Shanjun's physique was not particularly robust, he was still tall and thin. Moreover, as a martial arts master, his muscle and bone density would usually be far greater than that of an ordinary person, and his body weight would be much heavier than that of an average person.

The two bailiffs, who were used to carrying stretchers, were prepared for this situation, so they immediately tried to lift it up, only to find that Huang Shanjun's body was surprisingly light.

"Light?" Wang Feiyi was taken aback upon hearing this and prepared to step forward to check.

Noticing Wang Feiyi's gaze, Wang Youfang immediately ordered, "Take the body back to the county government office first!"

"Yes!"

The two constables set off immediately.

"?"

"I'll handle this matter. You go back and attend to your official duties..." Facing the questioning look in his son's eyes, Wang Youfang waved his hand and said calmly. "Yes, Father..."

Despite having many questions in his mind, Wang Feiyi had no choice but to bow and step back since his own father had spoken.

After all, his father was a man of his word; since he had said so, he could only let him do as he pleased…

And the Huang family…..

Before leaving, Wang Feiyi glanced at the Huang family members who had come down the mountain with him.

The whole family was crying and sobbing, and not a single one of them was able to step forward and take charge.

The Huang family may be finished...

He sighed, then walked past the Huang family members and quickened his pace.

No one noticed as everyone left.

After the two constables lifted Huang Shanjun's body, in the soil full of black grass, ashes, and sand, there was a tree branch that looked like carbonized.

But if you pick it up and hold it in your hand, you will find that it is not a fallen leaf or a withered branch at all, but a thin, long worm that has been burned into black charcoal!

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Upon returning to the county government office, Wang Youfang ordered the yamen runners to place Huang Shanjun's body in an empty house. He then dismissed his attendants and instructed them to guard the main gate.

Wang Youfang, holding a morgue knife, personally cut open Huang Shanjun's chest.

“This…” Wang Youfang’s pupils contracted sharply, as if he had witnessed a shocking scene.

"hiss…...."

Meanwhile, in the seemingly empty room except for Wang Youfang, a gasp escaped someone's lips. "Old Li, what do you think...?"

But Wang Youfang seemed to have known about this all along, and was not surprised at all. He didn't turn his head, but focused on Huang Shanjun's corpse and responded calmly.

"This kind of injury..."

Someone emerged from the shadows of the room, their expression grave.

This man had a lean face, sharp eyes, and an extraordinary demeanor. He was none other than Li Chengfeng, the chief elder of the Crimson Flame Sect's External Affairs Hall.

“Only that lord’s ‘bloodthirsty worms’ could achieve this level of power…” Wang Youfang’s face was ashen, his expression equally solemn as he looked at Huang Shanjun’s internal organs, which had shriveled and withered from the loss of blood.

"I heard that when Huang Shanjun's body was found, it was being roasted by flames. Could it be...?" Li Chengfeng, who clearly had his own sources of information, asked.

He believed that the fire might have dried out the water and blood from Huang Shanjun's body. "Old Li, come and look here..." Wang Youfang shook his head and used tweezers to pick up the blood vessels in the internal organs.

"The blood vessels here are intact, but all the blood inside has been drained, which is clearly not due to a fire, and moreover..."

He pointed to Huang Shanjun's head: "Look at Huang Shanjun's expression."

"Expression?!" Li Chengfeng was stunned for a moment. He saw that Huang Shanjun's confused and unwilling emotions before his death were still on his face, as if he died with his eyes open.

It seems quite normal for people to show such an expression before they die. Li Chengfeng had seen it many times, and he was puzzled, so he looked at Wang Youfang.

"Some time ago, I discovered that Huang Shanjun was secretly contacting the Black Wind Mountain Stronghold, and under the guise of the Extraordinary Affairs Bureau, he secretly transported a batch of goods to the prefectural city for them..."

So I sent people to the prefectural city, and after much effort, I finally found out that the Huang family had smuggled a large quantity of contraband armor out of the city…

"But not long ago, this batch of goods mysteriously disappeared again!" Wang Youfang recounted slowly.

"Black Wind Mountain Stronghold?! Didn't that lord promise us..." Li Chengfeng's expression changed, as if he had thought of something and finally realized what was going on.

"Old Wang, did Huang Shanjun use the pretext of training troops to actually search for the lost goods? As a result, Blood Butcher from Black Wind Mountain came knocking on his door. Unable to explain, the two got into a fight, and Huang Shanjun was killed by Blood Butcher!"

“That’s what I think too…” Wang Youfang nodded. “Xue Tu is only thinking about revenge. He’s practically a bloodthirsty madman. And with his two brothers being killed not long ago, his mind is even more chaotic now.”

"I suspect that when Blood Butcher arrived at the transaction location with Huang Shanjun, he was immediately suspicious upon finding a large group of soldiers around. Coupled with Huang Shanjun losing the goods, it's quite normal for the two to have a falling out and resort to violence. And given Blood Butcher's relationship with that lord, it's also quite normal for him to occasionally possess 'bloodthirsty worms'..."

“Sigh, the people of Black Wind Mountain Stronghold are unreliable and not worth relying on. Agreeing to cooperate with them in the first place was just a perfunctory gesture…” Li Chengfeng nodded in approval.

"So, Lao Wang, what should we do next?" he continued to ask.

"Let's wait and see. Maintain order within the 'Grain God Cult' and avoid causing too much disturbance. Develop discreetly in the less-visited markets of Chang Le and Chang Ning wards..."

As for me....

With Huang Shanjun dead, the Huang family has lost the protection of martial arts masters. They are a large and powerful family, and I need to find a way to take over their former power and resources!

Let's split up, Lao Li. After a while, we'll definitely achieve our goal!

"Hahaha, that makes sense!!!" Li Chengfeng and Wang Youfang exchanged a glance and burst into laughter at the same time.

Everything is understood without words...

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"So, after opening the meridians and entering the realm of internal strength, one needs to consume the flesh of demonic beasts to increase qi and blood, accumulate internal strength, and thus quickly perfect one's internal strength to proceed to the next stage of cultivation..."

In the inner room of the Bai family courtyard, Han Yi stared at the notes in his hand, lost in thought.

He originally hoped to find a secret technique scroll among the pile of things left by Bai Yuechou, one that could increase explosive power, for his own cultivation.

Sadly, although the collection of books was quite large, it contained no secret techniques or tricks. There were only a few sentences about Bai Yuechou's conjectures and developments regarding secret techniques.

Anyan City is just too small...

Even the most skilled cook cannot cook without rice. Without a powerful force or sufficient resources to support him, Bai Yuechou only cultivated a fragmented version of the "Bai Family Sword Technique." Bai Sanren was merely a Blood Refining Martial Artist. Therefore, no matter how gifted he was, he could hardly imagine and create a completely new secret technique out of thin air.

Perhaps Bai Yuechou also had this idea at the time, which is why he had the thought of leaving Anyan City and going to a wider world to develop.

But every cloud has a silver lining. Although there were no records of secret techniques or tricks, Bai Yuechou's notes contained a lot of information about common knowledge about cultivation after becoming a martial arts master.

"The human body has twelve regular meridians and eight extraordinary meridians. The 'meridian opening period' mainly refers to using force to open up these meridians and break through the limits of the human body..."

"No wonder..." Han Yi's previous doubts were thus answered.

According to Bai Yuechou, the Eight Extraordinary Meridians are a general term, which are divided into the Governing Vessel, Conception Vessel, Penetrating Vessel, Belt Vessel, Yang Wei Vessel, Yin Wei Vessel, Yin Qiao Vessel, and Yang Qiao Vessel.

The Ren meridian is the sea of ​​Yin meridians, governing all Yin meridians in the body and regulating the six Yin channels. When this meridian is open, the energy circulates throughout the body's Yin meridians, and the Yin energy flows continuously. During this circulation, it can transform heat toxins, regulate cold energy, and absorb the cold energy of heaven and earth for one's own use.

The Governing Vessel (Du Mai) is the sea of ​​Yang meridians, opposite the Conception Vessel (Ren Mai). It governs all the Yang meridians and regulates the six Yang channels. Those who have opened this meridian have their strength flowing through all the Yang meridians of the body. When this flow is active, the Yang energy is abundant and continuous, dispelling cold and toxins, dispersing Yang energy throughout the world, and they are not afraid of wind and snow.

When discussing the Ren and Du meridians, one must mention the concepts of Yin and Yang.

According to Bai Yuechou, all martial arts possess yin and yang attributes. Therefore, the power cultivated from different martial arts also carries its own characteristics, some leaning towards yin and cold, others towards yang and strong, and still others towards a balance of yin and yang. This is why the phenomenon of complementary and conflicting forces exists.

The Ren and Du meridians are the two most important meridians among the eight extraordinary meridians. According to Bai Yuechou's records, only martial artists who have achieved great mastery of the three levels of strength can attempt to open up the Ren and Du meridians during their final breakthrough stage.

Because in order to open up the Ren and Du meridians, it is necessary to open up the other meridians first; otherwise, the meridians will run in reverse, the Yin and Yang will be out of balance, and one will go into qi deviation. At best, one will be plagued by a hundred diseases; at worst, one will explode and die.

Therefore, besides the Ren and Du meridians, the Chong and Dai meridians are also quite important.

The Chong Meridian, also known as the "Sea of ​​Blood," is responsible for regulating the flow of Qi and blood in the twelve regular meridians and the eight extraordinary meridians. It contains the Qi and blood of the twelve regular meridians. When this meridian is open, the twelve regular meridians will be open and circulate continuously, resulting in an inexhaustible source of Qi and strength. This allows for flexible movements and a continuous flow of power from the Sea of ​​Blood throughout the body.

The belt meridian constrains the longitudinal meridians, preventing yin and yang imbalances, acting like a safety lock for the eight extraordinary meridians.

Next are the Yangwei and Yinwei meridians, which are responsible for maintaining the Yang and Yin meridians in the body. If the Ren and Du meridians are generators, then these two meridians are overhead power lines, ensuring that the Yin and Yang energies are directed into the main meridians.

As for the Yin Qiao and Yang Qiao meridians, they govern energy and the movement of the lower limbs. By opening these two meridians, one can maintain abundant energy and walk with great speed even without sleep. Many body techniques and leg exercises primarily focus on cultivating these two meridians.

The human body has eight extraordinary meridians and twelve regular meridians, and there are many meridians. Different martial arts techniques also involve different meridians.

Therefore, this is why martial arts masters need to practice multiple martial arts techniques and use different kinds of forces to complement each other in order to open up the meridians throughout the body and temper the flesh and blood.

"Above the Martial Master level is the Grandmaster... I've heard that someone once practiced seven or eight martial arts simultaneously, reaching a level where they could fight a Grandmaster, but soon died from a clash of energies..."

As for why it was limited to three martial arts styles and three complementary and fusion forces, although Bai Yuechou didn't directly explain the reason, the implication was clear...

A clash of forces! With Bai Yuechou's written prompts, Han Yi easily understood and began to imagine freely.

Two-force martial artists are relatively easy to deal with. As long as the characteristics of the two forces are slightly complementary and do not clash, they can be easily accommodated.

But at the level of a Three-Force Martial Master, with three types of force coexisting within the body, balance is already precarious, like walking a tightrope on a cliff. If one were to rashly attempt to learn another martial art…

and…...

Han Yi continued reading.

"A first-level martial artist can be considered a beginner in internal energy cultivation, with only one or two meridians open. They can only generate energy from specific points connected to these meridians. A third-level martial artist, however, has mastered internal energy cultivation, with only the Ren and Du meridians remaining unopened. Their energy permeates their entire body, making them impervious to ordinary weapons. Energy can erupt from any part of their body, and it is inexhaustible and incredibly powerful..."

'My internal strength has been fully developed, making me a martial artist with open meridians. However, the highest level of the "Bai Family Sword Technique" is only the realm of internal strength. It can only break through the Yang and Yin Wei meridians and cover vital points with internal strength. There is no further path...'

"But we martial artists... naturally aspire to go further... We can cultivate internal energy techniques with minimal conflict, then generate complementary energy. This energy can be used to break through acupoints and meridians, temper the internal organs, transform tendons and marrow, and strengthen the body. Once the energy is fully cultivated, it covers the entire body, fusing and complementing each other, becoming one with nature, transforming the energy into true qi. Ultimately, one can reach the realm of a grandmaster!"

This method is called, "Mixed Martial Arts!"

"Therefore, the most important task after becoming a martial arts master is to open up the meridians, make the strength complete, then integrate and complement each other, and finally return to the innate state to generate true qi!"

Upon seeing this, Han Yi's eyes lit up.

Previously, although he had occasionally heard of the Grandmaster realm, he only knew that Grandmasters had all sorts of incredible abilities such as flying and picking flowers, and sword energy that could penetrate the body, but this was the first time he had heard of a specific description of how they were achieved.

Actually, by this point, he had come to understand why it was necessary to limit the cultivation of a maximum of three types of internal energy.

The cultivation of a martial artist who has mastered the Meridian Opening technique requires balancing the conflicts between different forces, considering the ease with which these forces can be integrated and transformed into true qi, and also determining whether the techniques can be refined throughout the entire body's meridians...

The three forces are the perfect balance point!