Qi Wu Realm Completed, Father and Son Meet
Gu Yue Ningbing's teeth itched as she listened, an overwhelming urge rising within her to bite someone.
She was a peerless goddess, pursued by countless suitors.
Yet now she had encountered this shameless little man. She was willing to give up everything just to ask for his help—only for him to make such an outrageous demand.
Alas, she truly needed his assistance… and worse, she had already been inadvertently blood-bound to him.
"Fine!" she snorted coldly. "This condition doesn't matter. I can agree to it."
Gu Yue Ningbing pretended to be indifferent.
She absolutely could not allow this cunning little man to realize that she had no other choice. Otherwise, he would only grow more arrogant—and who knew what shameless ideas he might come up with next?
Zhang Lingxiao nodded calmly before shifting his gaze toward Gu Yue Ningbing's soul form.
Gu Yue Ningbing extended her jade-like hands and formed a series of seals. Instantly, Zhang Lingxiao felt a strange connection form between them.
He had no doubts. This sensation could not be wrong—it was a curse deeply embedded within the bloodline itself.
Zhang Lingxiao could clearly sense that if this mysterious woman ever harbored murderous intent toward him, her soul would instantly collapse and perish.
Without sparing her another glance, Zhang Lingxiao eagerly began circulating the Devouring Heaven Demon Art, devouring the Blood Qi within Zhang Yuntao's corpse.
Normally, the Devouring Heaven Demon Art circulated automatically, greedily devouring Blood Qi from the surroundings. However, Zhang Lingxiao had long suppressed this function, forcing the technique to activate only when he consciously circulated it.
This allowed him to avoid being mistaken for a demonic cultivator in crowded areas, sparing himself from unnecessary trouble.
Zhang Yuntao's original cultivation had been at the Lingwu Realm Fifth Heaven.
After consuming a mysterious medicinal pill, his realm had forcefully risen to the Lingwu Realm Ninth Heaven Peak, reaching temporary perfection.
Although cultivation achieved through pills would inevitably dissipate over time, as long as Zhang Lingxiao digested it in time, it was no different from devouring a true Lingwu Realm Peak expert.
To be precise, the Blood Qi remaining within Zhang Yuntao's corpse had already fallen to the Lingwu Realm Eighth Heaven, having dropped two levels—but it was still immensely abundant.
Silently, Zhang Lingxiao circulated the Devouring Heaven Demon Art.
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
As surging Spiritual Qi coursed through his meridians, rapidly refining the Blood Qi, Zhang Lingxiao broke through in one breath—reaching the Qi Wu Realm Ninth Heaven Peak.
He was now only one step away from the Lingwu Realm.
However, breaking through from Qi Wu to Lingwu was not simply a matter of accumulating Spiritual Qi. The Qi circulating within the body had to be compressed into liquid form, transforming into Spiritual Power—a denser, purer energy.
Only Martial Artists who reached the Lingwu Realm could release Spiritual Power externally, greatly amplifying their combat strength.
This process was exceedingly complex. Countless Martial Artists failed to control Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi well enough to liquefy it, leaving them trapped at the Qi Wu Realm Perfection for their entire lives, unable to advance further.
"There's still Blood Qi left undigested… what a waste."
Zhang Lingxiao sighed softly.
Suddenly, his eyes lit up.
"Right! I can use it to strengthen my physical body!"
In the Martial Dao, absorbing Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi was not solely for cultivation—it also tempered the flesh.
A Martial Artist's strength was inseparable from the strength of their physical body.
And Zhang Lingxiao's Devouring Heaven Demon Art could refine not only Spiritual Qi, but also use residual Blood Qi to temper the body itself.
Without hesitation, Zhang Lingxiao poured all remaining Blood Qi into strengthening his physical body.
As torrents of Blood Qi surged through him, his skin turned a deep crimson, like a crab fresh from boiling water.
Crack!
Every bone in his body rang out in unison.
His physical body had reached an utterly terrifying level, far surpassing Martial Artists of the same realm.
"My physical strength now should be comparable to a Lingwu Realm Early Stage Martial Artist."
Zhang Lingxiao clenched his fist and, without using any Spiritual Qi, punched toward a nearby towering tree.
Boom!
The massive tree exploded instantly, its shattered trunk scattering across the ground.
"Not bad. Very strong indeed."
"With my current physical body, if I had faced Zhang Yuntao head-on earlier, I wouldn't have needed a sneak attack."
Zhang Lingxiao smiled smugly, then cast a sly glance toward the mysterious woman floating beside him.
"What?" Gu Yue Ningbing asked warily.
An inexplicable sense of foreboding rose in her heart.
"Teach me a fist or palm technique," Zhang Lingxiao said, grinning shamelessly.
"Alright. What grade do you want?" Gu Yue Ningbing replied bluntly.
Zhang Lingxiao wasn't surprised.
The faster he grew stronger, the sooner he could help her reconstruct her physical body—it was mutually beneficial.
"What grade? Obviously, the higher the better."
"Su Qing taught me a movement technique and a sword technique, but their grades are too low. They'll be obsolete sooner or later."
"I want a cultivation technique that grows with me—something I can cultivate long-term. Do you have one?" Zhang Lingxiao asked seriously.
Gu Yue Ningbing nodded.
She did.
Most truly powerful cultivation techniques were exactly like that—unlocking greater potential as one's realm increased.
For a boy of such humble origins to think this far ahead… his mindset was surprisingly sharp.
"I'll teach you a fist technique."
Gu Yue Ningbing raised her illusory jade hand—its skin like congealed fat, exquisitely lifelike—and gently tapped Zhang Lingxiao's forehead.
Zhang Lingxiao froze.
He felt nothing at all.
In the next instant, a profound and ancient fist art appeared in his mind.
Primordial Sky-Shattering Fist!
"The name is this domineering… yet it's only a Yellow Rank Low Grade technique?"
Zhang Lingxiao was stunned.
"Isn't this the lowest grade? It's not even as good as the Phantom Step Su Qing gave me!"
"That's because this is exactly the kind of technique you asked for," Gu Yue Ningbing said calmly.
"The upper limit of this martial skill is extremely high. You must reach the Lingwu Realm and liquefy your Spiritual Qi before you can cultivate it."
"At the Lingwu Realm, you may only cultivate the first four layers. Each layer you master raises its grade by one rank."
"There are twelve layers in total—enough to reach Earth Martial Realm Perfection. In truth, it is equivalent to a Heaven Rank Low Grade martial skill."
"Of course," she added playfully, "if you fail to break through to the Xuanwu Realm in the future, then it will remain the Yellow Rank technique you believe it to be."
With that, her delicate brows twitched, and she retreated back into the silver ring on Zhang Lingxiao's finger.
At that moment, steady footsteps echoed from the forest.
Zhang Lingxiao looked up—and his pupils shrank.
The approaching figure was none other than his father.
Zhang Yunfeng!
Father wasn't dead?
Of course. Zhang Yuntao hadn't even been able to defeat him—how could he have killed his father?
"Father! You're alright!"
Zhang Lingxiao rushed forward, joy flooding his face.
The heavy gloom that had weighed on his heart for two days vanished instantly.
But Zhang Yunfeng frowned.
Without a word, he drew the longsword from his waist and thrust it toward Zhang Lingxiao.
"Father—what are you doing?!"
Zhang Lingxiao's expression changed drastically.
Though confused, his body reacted instinctively.
He drew his Tianji Sword.
Clang!
The blades collided—
—and Zhang Lingxiao's sword was sent flying.
His eyes widened in disbelief.
How was this possible?!
His father's sword was nothing more than an ordinary weapon!
Yet it had overwhelmed his Profound Rank Spiritual Sword!
Before Zhang Lingxiao could recover from the shock, Zhang Yunfeng's blade pierced straight toward his chest—
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