45: Chapter 45 Yin and Yang in Harmony, Arrival at Liquan

That night, a bonfire was lit in the dark forest, dispelling the surrounding shadows, the bright flames flickering across their faces.

Chen Zhuyun was circulating the Crimson Sun Limitless Dao, the fiery Crimson Sun Limitless True Qi coursing through his opened Meridians, completing a grand circulation.

Ruan Zhirou sat with her legs hugged to her chest, a few strands of dark hair falling by her ears, staring blankly into the bonfire, lost in thought.

Her heart was in some turmoil.

"My aunt said that I carry the Luck of the Dao of Fate, and that I am a natural seed for cultivating the Dao of Fate." Ruan Zhirou recalled the scene of when she first met Ruan Yurong.

"Zhirou, the Dao of Fate is the Dao of Luck. Those with insufficient Luck cannot Cultivate it; forcing it will only lead to death by the backlash of Luck."

"But you are different. You were born with the Luck of the Dao of Fate, making you the perfect candidate to Cultivate it."

"However, success and failure both hinge on Luck. You have a Peach Blossom Fate and need to find someone with a formidable destiny to suppress it—preferably someone with great Luck—so as to counteract the negative effects brought by the Luck of the Dao of Fate."

Ruan Zhirou shifted her gaze to Chen Zhuyun, her eyes lighting up slightly: "The Martial Dao is also one of the myriad paths. Perhaps he can break through the shackles of the Martial Dao Xiantian Realm, create a brand-new Realm, and gather all the Martial Luck of the world upon himself."

"But, are we truly a match? I am ten years his senior; will he mind, or despise my age?"

"Pah, pah, what am I thinking? He is only a nineteen-year-old man, not even of age yet."

Ruan Zhirou's small face turned red; she did not know much about matters between men and women.

Having traveled far and wide with Ruan Yurong since she was young, and having to find time to learn knowledge related to midwifery, she simply had no time to ponder such things.

In other words, she was still very pure, just an older girl who had not experienced the ways of the world.

In fact, besides her Peach Blossom Fate, Ruan Zhirou's Physique was also quite special; it was the rare Cold Yin Physique.

This Physique was extremely suitable for following the Taiyin Dao, but Cultivation Techniques for the Taiyin Dao were extremely rare.

With the destruction of the ancient Guanghan Palace, Cultivators of the Taiyin Dao had almost gone extinct, making them hard to find in the world.

Chen Zhuyun, however, was a Martial Dao Cultivator with vigorous and masculine Qi and blood. Furthermore, he cultivated the Crimson Sun Limitless Dao, a Yang-extreme Cultivation Technique, making him a body of Ultimate Yang.

With Yin and Yang in harmony, the two would naturally be attracted to each other; it could be said that it was fated, but whether they could succeed would depend on themselves.

"Hoo."

Chen Zhuyun exhaled a breath of turbid air and slowly opened his eyes. The boiling Qi and blood within him calmed down, and the damage to his Meridians caused by the previous boost from the Luck Spell had also recovered.

Crackle, pop!

He stretched, and a sound like popping beans emanated from his body, sounding deafening in the vast and desolate mountain forest.

They were not the only ones spending the night in this forest; if one were to look down from high above, they would see bonfires lighting up the woods, dispelling the darkness and bringing light and warmth.

Immortal Cultivators were also human; even though they could see at night, it was still more comfortable to light a fire to illuminate the darkness.

Chen Zhuyun stood up and began to practice his punches, completely forgetting that there was a beauty by the bonfire.

The Crimson Sun Limitless Dao he learned did not contain Martial Skills; it was entirely interpretations of the Yang-extreme path and cultivation methods, leading directly to the peak of the Xiantian Realm.

It even contained insights from many Martial Dao sages regarding what lay beyond the Xiantian Realm.

Some Martial Dao sages believed that since the Crimson Sun Limitless Dao was a Yang-extreme Cultivation Technique, one should push this path to the extreme, using Yang-attribute Pure Yang spiritual objects to break the shackles, just as Immortal Cultivators used Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi objects to forge their immortal foundation.

Other Martial Dao sages believed that the Crimson Sun Limitless Dao was too extreme, so they joined forces to create the Divine Moon Primordial Record, using the Dao of Yin and Yang generating each other and the cycle of all things to break through the Xiantian Realm and reach a higher Realm.

These were the two schools of thought with the most insight into what lay beyond the Xiantian Realm, but even now, the Martial Dao remained stuck at the Xiantian Realm, unable to break the shackles and rival the Foundation Establishment Realm of the Immortal Dao.

Among the myriad living beings in the world, ninety-nine percent could not step onto the path of the Immortal Dao, and most chose to live an ordinary life.

But there were also those who were unwilling to be ordinary; they spent all their efforts, racking their brains, just to create a brand-new path of transcendence in hopes of rivaling the Immortal Dao.

No matter the era, there were always those who dared to pioneer and those who dared to sacrifice, carving out a new path for all living beings.

Just as Chen Zhuyun was getting into the rhythm of his punches, a black shadow suddenly darted out from the dark forest, and he instinctively raised his fist and struck out.

It was like a giant fireball exploding; the intense radiance illuminated the area. The black shadow's head was blasted apart, and it fell straight to the ground, kicked its legs, and died.

Chen Zhuyun exited his practice state, strode forward, and picked up the black shadow he had killed with one punch.

Under the light of the fire, he saw clearly what it was.

It was about the size of a chicken, with colorful feathers and a long tail, carrying Spiritual Qi; it was a wild Spirit Chicken.

"Dinner is settled." Chen Zhuyun felt a surge of joy.

Martial Artists in the Xiantian Realm had a much higher reliance on meat than Immortal Cultivators, because the former's Innate True Qi was born from within their own bodies.

Moreover, Martial Artists absorbed Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi from the outside world much less efficiently than Immortal Cultivators; after a great battle, Immortal Cultivators only needed to find a place with rich spiritual energy to recover quickly.

Martial Artists could not do that; it was best for them to consume some spiritual creatures, which not only allowed for quick recovery but also tempered their Physique and refined their True Qi.

Ruan Zhirou looked at the wild Spirit Chicken in Chen Zhuyun's hand, her eyes rolling, and she spoke softly, with a hint of gentle sweetness: "Brother Zhuyun, I am hungry."

Hearing this, Chen Zhuyun's tiger-like body shook, and the Qi and blood that had just calmed down surged again, rushing straight to his crown.

"I will make a beggar's chicken for Miss Zhirou."

The Crimson Sun Limitless Dao operated automatically, circulating his Qi and blood, and suppressing the agitated blood energy. Chen Zhuyun let out a sigh of relief.

He did not know why, but when facing Miss Zhirou, the Qi and blood in his body were extremely prone to agitation, bordering on Qi Deviation.

"I heard Master Huang say that there is a Cultivation Technique in the Martial Dao called the Ice Heart Formula, which is the strongest technique for calming the mind. After I finish this task and go back, I will try practicing it." Chen Zhuyun thought to himself.

An hour later, the aroma of meat filled the forest, pungent and mouth-watering.

Chen Zhuyun broke off a plump wild Spirit Chicken leg and handed it over.

A pair of slender, fair hands took it, red lips parted, and she took a gentle bite; juices splattered, and the rich fragrance exploded in her mouth.

"Brother Zhuyun has such good skills." Ruan Zhirou gave a thumbs up, offering unreserved praise.

Chen Zhuyun blushed, touched his head, and then began to eat the meat in large mouthfuls, completely disregarding his image.

Opposite him, Ruan Zhirou looked at his appearance and burst into laughter.

...

A few days later, Chen Zhuyun and Ruan Zhirou finally walked out of this branch of the Tianli Mountain Range, not encountering any more Robber Cultivators along the way.

However, every night when they rested, all kinds of spiritual creatures would appear, such as spirit rabbits and spirit deer, all of which became food for the two.

Ruan Zhirou had a small appetite and basically only ate a little, while the rest all went into Chen Zhuyun's stomach.

Under the nourishment of these spiritual creatures, his Qi and blood grew stronger, and even his Crimson Sun Limitless True Qi became much more condensed.

As they traveled, signs of human habitation appeared ahead; it was a village of Mortals living nearby.

Unlike Liming Town, these Mortal villages were guarded by Immortal Cultivators, though their cultivation levels were not high.

Judging by their appearance, they were likely guarding against Yao Beasts in the mountain forest.

Seeing the Mortal village also meant that Chen Zhuyun and Ruan Zhirou had entered the territory of Liquan Town.