Twin Dimension Yin-Yang Mirror: Attaining immortality through the martial path
Chapter 92 - 89: Watching a tiger fight from the mountain, plotting for an official position (Seeking subscriptions, seeking Monthly Pass)

Chapter 92: Chapter 89: Watching a tiger fight from the mountain, plotting for an official position (Seeking subscriptions, seeking Monthly Pass)

Next, the Lin Residence began to consolidate its power.

Even the Precious Pharmacy was only open for half a day, closing its doors early.

Not to mention the herbalists and guardian house servants, who did not wander the streets unless necessary.

Moreover, some of the hands who were out of town did not return to the city but instead settled in the villages far and wide.

Zhou Ping’an himself, however, acted as if nothing had happened, spending his days swallowing Vigor Blood Pills and Life Essence Pills.

He was diligently transforming his own Qi-Blood.

Or "crossing blades" with Lin Huaiyu to hone his Wave Subduing Blade Force.

In his free time, he told stories to Xiao Jiu’er, and occasionally he would go out to the streets to buy the little one toys and sugar figures.

After several days of cultivation, Zhou Ping’an found that his Blood Origin Power had indeed become more substantial.

Deep within his marrow, there were minute changes occurring day by day...

If the emergence of the first drop of new blood was taken as a sign of his initial breakthrough into the "Blood Renewal" stage,

the new blood in his body had now quietly transformed into a thin stream.

Although he did not understand why this new blood did not merge with the old as it meandered through his veins,

he could clearly sense a powerful force gradually forming and growing within him.

When circulating Wave Stacking Jin and Submerged Wave Jin, he also felt especially adept, with a significant increase in attack power.

This was, after all, an imperceptible process of change.

Zhou Ping’an was not overly anxious.

’Third Miss said that after a while, when Qingyang City’s lockdown is lifted, we will be able to send a large number of people to harvest Sunflame Flowers and Yin Spirit Herbs to refine Yin Yang Harmonization Pills.’

’The function of this pill to replenish Yuan Qi is very strong, but most importantly, with this pill in hand, one can consume Vigor Blood Pills and Life Essence Pills in large quantities without worrying about the conflicts that may arise from using these pills to increase cultivation.’

This in itself was telling.

The Nine Refinements of Mortal Martial Arts could be accomplished rapidly at each stage.

It only depended on finding the method and having sufficient resources.

Thinking of this, Zhou Ping’an felt not joy but a hint of concern in his heart.

Thus, it was very possible that in this world, monstrous talents with astonishing cultivation levels would emerge in just a few short years.

Although his own cultivation progressed extremely fast,

and he possessed the heaven-defying Karmic Fire Red Lotus Visualization Method, the time he had spent cultivating was still too short, making it difficult to easily close the gap.

...

The Red Lotus Sect followers were indeed very patient.

Not until the third night.

Late You Hour.

The sky was dark...

Stars and moon were without light.

Zhou Ping’an was sitting on a couch with his external breath cut off and his Internal Breath surging.

He heard a loud "boom" coming from afar.

His face lit up with joy.

He hurriedly ended his cultivation, stood up, dashed out the door, and ascended to the roof.

He saw that in the southwest direction, flames reached for the sky and the sounds of shouting and killing could be faintly heard.

Every now and then, a "boom" would thunder, followed by the sound of collapsing buildings.

Zhou Ping’an had extremely sensitive ears.

Although he was a good two or three miles away, he could hear clearly the frustrated roars of Tian Shouyi.

"Is this the Red Lotus Army entering the city?" he wondered.

Lin Huaiyu had also gotten up at some point and run to the rooftop, looking towards the southwest "scenery" with a hint of sorrow in her eyes.

Although her relationship with Tian Shouyi, and even with the City Guards, had cooled to an icy point, there was no bloodshed to the level of rivers of blood...

Deep down, she still hoped that the city could maintain relative peace.

No matter how poorly managed, leaving the people in poverty and destitution,

there was still order to protect most of them.

If the Red Lotus Army were to enter the city...

She didn’t even need to see the scene.

The news she heard from time to time had already informed everyone.

Do not believe in sharing wealth and glory or recreating the universe.

A wolf will always be a wolf.

And a wolf needs to feed.

In their eyes, a flock of sheep will never become companions.

Compared to the Imperial Court,

it is merely the difference between a group of satiated wolves and a group of starving wolves.

Where Karmic Fire burns, chaos ensues, leaving behind ruins, and bones litter the ground.

That is all there is to it.

This is the consistent behavior of the Red Lotus Sect.

Wherever they go, they coerce, looting and attacking villages and cities.

Those who follow them may be filled with all sorts of zeal at first, but in time, they come to understand...

What they bring is not some ideal world, but pure devastation.

"No, it’s just the City Guards who are on the move... causing a great commotion are just a few powerful experts."

Zhou Ping’an strained his senses to their limits, squinting into the distance.

He identified the sources.

Among them, a malignant intent, tinged with a hint of weakness, fighting while retreating, seemed to be heading towards the County Yamen.

That aura, of course, was Tian Shouyi’s.

He might have been injured.

His White Tiger’s Deathly Aura and Seven Kills Spear Technique brazenly betrayed his identity.

By his side, there was also a cold aura.

But that aura was somewhat strange.

It rose fiercely into the sky, its vital energy flaring, yet it carried a whiff of the silence of death.

It did not seem human.

"Is it the Yin Soul Sword? Could it be an internal conflict with Xiao Changhe?" Lin Huaiyu frowned slightly. Without waiting for Zhou Ping’an to answer, she refuted her own guess.

"It’s not that old Taoist from the Lishan Sword Sect, this kind of aura seems like it comes from someone of the Heaven Corpse Sect practicing the Nine Nether Divine Skill."

"So this is what the ’Nine Nether Divine Skill’ looks like."

The Heaven Corpse Sect belonged to an evil sect with cultivation techniques that could turn practitioners into zombie-like beings, impervious to blades and spears, with unpredictable moves.

However, this sect seldom made public appearances.

If disciples of the righteous sects caught sight of them, they would call their friends and swarm them, beating them to a point where even their mothers wouldn’t recognize them.

Because these martial artists who practiced the Nine Nether Divine Skill really did suck blood.

Human blood.

Such anti-human creatures, if it were Zhou Ping’an, he naturally couldn’t tolerate them either.

But if it was the Red Lotus Sect, then there would be no problem at all.

After all, this sect was one of the three main paths of the Demonic Sect and was not a proper sect to begin with.

Mingling together, cooperating with each other was very normal.

Moreover, the most likely scenario was an inclusive approach, taking in those evil experts who had no place in the world under their wing.

Thinking back to the hidden secrets of Red Lotus he had overheard in a small alley the other day, and after making some inquiries, Zhou Ping’an learned that there had been mummified corpses in that courtyard, surely the handiwork of a master from the Heaven Corpse Sect.

"As for the identities of the others, they are completely unrecognizable, most likely hiding their specialized cultivation techniques..."

Lin Huaiyu made her judgment once again.

Upon learning that it was not the Red Lotus Army entering the city, she felt somewhat relieved.

After watching carefully for a while, she identified the presence of Xiao Changhe, the wielder of the Yin Soul Sword.

Given how he exerted himself in his attacks, he evidently wasn’t going all out.

Instead, it was the direction of the County Yamen.

Suddenly, a dazzling golden radiance appeared.

That golden light almost outshone the burning flames.

Along with the appearance of the golden light, faint Buddhist chanting could also be heard.

Then, Zhou Ping’an "regrettably" found that the four or five auras besieging Tian Shouyi and Xiao Changhe suddenly turned and fled.

Even more, the two heard a piercing, mournful scream, as if a ghost were wailing.

"Who is this Buddhist master who has come? And he cultivates the Golden Body Method; it seems like he has reached the stage of Gather Force Condensing Pill."

Lin Huaiyu exclaimed in astonishment.

The fact that Qingyang City harbored such a master was indeed beyond her expectations.

Moreover, she somehow felt that this aura seemed somewhat familiar, fearing it might be the "King of Light’s Golden Body Technique."

If it was indeed from the King of Light’s Temple, then the matter would become quite complicated.

Thinking of Gao Jin, the leader of the Black Mountain Bandits who died at their hands, Lin Huaiyu suddenly turned her head to find Zhou Ping’an looking her way.

Clearly, both of them had a not-so-pleasant premonition arise in their minds at the same time.

"We can only hope that there are no entanglements between the two."

All Zhou Ping’an could say was this.

The flames in the southwest slowly extinguished, and Tian Shouyi had turned from danger to safety, possibly injured, but likely not fatally.

In contrast, those "Red Lotus Sect" masters who had launched the surprise attack seemed to have suffered significant damage.

Judging from the wailing, one must have been grievously injured to emit such a sound without dying outright.

And just how badly injured was that Heaven Corpse Sect master?

The two just quietly watched.

And didn’t join the excitement...

They might have had the intention to do so originally, but after that golden light appeared, all such thoughts were temporarily dismissed.

"Is that Pill Qi?"

Thinking back to the imposing golden radiance that flew in three different directions earlier, Zhou Ping’an couldn’t help scratching his head.

He himself was still engaged in close-quarters combat, at most creating a shockwave by slashing through the air.

But the opponent had already started to play with long-range attacks.

Although it wasn’t very far, it was a different mode of attack nonetheless, with too great an advantage.

"Yes, after Gather Force Solidifying Pill, it is the seventh threshold of the nine levels of Mortal Martial Arts, also called the Qi Transformation stage.

This Qi is Pill Qi, and also Internal Breath; in Jianghu, it is commonly referred to as True Qi, distinguishing it from the breath inhaled and exhaled when we refine our Refined Energy.

The biggest difference between the True Qi used by those who cultivate Blood Pills and solidify their Qi, and the force exerted by martial artists who refine their Refined Energy, is that True Qi can leave the body."

With that explanation, it became clear.

"However, considering that this master suspected to be from the King of Light’s Temple, when he acted, the True Qi only separated from the body by about half a foot; obviously, he had just made a breakthrough and was not overwhelmingly strong," Lin Huaiyu added, her eyes shining with a hint of eager excitement.

Alright.

Whenever it came to fighting, she became a whole other person.

"That’s good."

Zhou Ping’an quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

Having someone to fight was good.

The most feared was the emergence of an invincible master in Qingyang City.

And it was unclear whether they were friend or foe.

The feeling of losing control made one very uncomfortable.

"There’s no need to worry too much; we’re very likely not going to face that person directly. That golden light came from the direction of the back courtyard of the County Yamen, so it must be related to County Magistrate Lord Li..."

With that reasoning, things fell into place.

Even if the County Magistrate and the County Captain did not get along very well.

Usually, they may scheme against each other.

If such a large commotion akin to attacking the city arose, and the County Magistrate remained indifferent, his authority would be greatly diminished.

Moreover, the act of killing an official, in Qingyang City, couldn’t be allowed to set a precedent.

So this was probably why the Buddhist master only took action when the situation could no longer be controlled in the end.

"That’s true..."

Lin Huaiyu immediately understood Zhou Ping’an’s meaning.

She smiled and said, "The Red Lotus Sect’s secret agents have suffered such a big loss; they must certainly ask for reinforcements soon, so it shouldn’t be long before someone comes looking for you, the ’Dharma Protector Deity General’."

"I can hardly wait."

Watching from the sidelines as others fight was good.

But what if you personally took action, wouldn’t that add to the sense of engagement?

Since the Red Lotus Sect was capable of laying so many agents within the city...

Were they also capable of infiltrating the Official Government to grant him an official position?

If so, then the entire game would come vividly to life.

...

It’s another Chapter of ten thousand words, asking for Monthly Passes.