445: Chapter 445: Sharpness in the Dark Night

Inside the post house, the commotion from the vortex of Spiritual Qi grew increasingly intense, to the point where even the stray cats and dogs nearby gathered outside the courtyard walls, howling and meowing toward the direction of the vortex.

"Meow..."

"Woof, woof, woof!"

"Awoo~"

Elder Xing Tiexin, who was fully focused on acting as a Protector, darkened his face and cursed in a low voice, "These beasts, what are they making such a fuss for!"

He had no choice but to divert a sliver of his attention, waving his sleeve to release a gust of wind that gently pushed the cats and dogs away. He dared not use too much force for fear of injuring them, which would cause the scent of blood to disturb Ye Tian, leaving him feeling somewhat flustered.

"Shoo, shoo, shoo! Go away! Don't cause trouble here!"

Elder Xing Tiexin kept his eyes on Ye Tian's room while shooing away the cats and dogs; the scene was somewhat comical.

Elder Qinglan watched from the side, feeling both helpless and amused.

Seeing that Ye Tian's Body Tempering seemed to have reached a critical moment, Shui Qingdie felt anxious. Suddenly remembering something, she turned and ran toward the post house's small kitchen.

She remembered there were some ordinary nourishing medicinal herbs there. Although they couldn't compare to a Spirit Pill, brewing them into a soup for Junior Brother Ye to drink when he came out would at least help replenish his Origin Qi.

She deftly started a fire and threw ginseng, astragalus, angelica, goji berries, and other ingredients into the pot all at once.

Remembering that Ye Tian had lost quite a bit of blood and needed to replenish it, she added a large handful of red dates and longans. Thinking it wasn't enough, she crushed a few of the Qi-replenishing Medicinal Pills she carried on her and tossed them in as well.

Looking at the bubbling, rich-smelling medicinal soup, Shui Qingdie wiped the sweat from her forehead and revealed a satisfied smile:

"Once Junior Brother Ye comes out and drinks this bowl of All-Encompassing Nourishing Soup, he will definitely recover quickly!"

Inside the room, Ye Tian was completely unaware of the commotion outside.

He had reached the most critical moment.

Under the repeated washing of the Five Elements Spiritual Qi, his internal organs were reshaped, becoming even tougher.

The Chaos True Essence within his body, which had been somewhat unstable, gradually stabilized under the influence of the Five Elements balance.

"Now is the time! Five Elements Return to Origin!"

Ye Tian roared inwardly, circulating the Chaos Derivation Art with all his might.

"Hum..."

A resounding boom echoed inside his body.

The violent Five Elements Spiritual Qi finally stopped colliding at this moment, slowly merging into the Chaos True Essence and being refined.

His internal organs simultaneously emitted a precious light, forming a slowly rotating phantom of a five-colored halo behind Ye Tian!

At the same time, his aura surged, a jade-like luster faintly flowed across his skin, and a sense of immense power filled his limbs and bones.

Five Elements Precious Body, Minor Achievement!

The vortex of Spiritual Qi outside suddenly contracted, transforming into a beam of Spiritual Qi that slammed into the top of Ye Tian's head!

His cultivation at the Fourth Stage Peak of the Sea Transformation Realm was instantly pushed to its limit!

But just at this final step, Ye Tian forcibly halted the momentum of the Breakthrough.

He felt that his newly achieved Five Elements Precious Body still needed to be stabilized; breaking through now would inevitably lead to an unstable Realm!

He forcibly suppressed and sealed the boiling True Essence deep within his Dantian.

The radiance was contained, and the phenomenon dissipated.

Ye Tian slowly opened his eyes and exhaled a long breath of turbid air.

Body Tempering was a success.

Although his cultivation was still at the Fourth Stage Peak of the Sea Transformation Realm, the quality of his True Essence, the strength of his Physical Body, and especially the mending of his Five Elements Foundation had all given his strength a qualitative leap.

He was confident that if he were to face Li Xuanxiao again, he would never be so passive again.

He was only a hair's breadth away from the Fifth Stage of the Sea Transformation Realm and could break through at any time!

However, just as Ye Tian's mind relaxed for a split second...

"Sshhh!"

In the corner of the room, a pitch-black sharp thorn suddenly appeared out of thin air, stabbing straight at Ye Tian's heart with lightning speed!

It was Yin Wujiang!

Ye Tian's hair stood on end; the life-and-death crisis caused his body to react before his consciousness could.

His newly achieved Five Elements Precious Body operated spontaneously, and he shifted horizontally to the left!

"Pfft!"

The black sharp thorn still grazed Ye Tian's lower right abdomen, and Death Qi instantly invaded.

Intense pain and a chilling, erosive sensation washed over him, but compared to the pain during Body Tempering, this was nothing.

What shocked Ye Tian even more was the opponent's stealth technique, which had actually bypassed the perception of the two Elders outside the door!

"Who?!"

From outside the door came Elder Xing Tiexin's angry shout and Elder Qinglan's sharp reprimand, and both of them instantly burst through the door!

Almost simultaneously, the window on the other side of the room shattered silently, and a white sword light swept in, striking directly at the source of the shadowy sharp thorn!

It was Li Xuanxiao!

He had actually been monitoring in secret as well; his intervention at this moment, for unknown reasons.

A cold snort came from the shadows, and the black sharp thorn suddenly retracted into the darkness.

Facing the enraged attacks of Elder Xing Tiexin and Elder Qinglan, as well as Li Xuanxiao's sharp sword light, he dared not take them head-on.

The shadows quickly faded, and it looked like he was about to escape.

"You want to leave?!"

Elder Xing Tiexin was furious and threw a punch, the fist aura sealing off the space.

Elder Qinglan pointed her sword finger, and cyan sword threads wove into a net, descending to cover the area.

Li Xuanxiao's sword light was even more devious.

However, the shadow was extremely strange; under the siege of the three experts, it actually forced its way out through a gap.

Leaving a black humanoid imprint on the wall of the room, its aura quickly faded into the distance, leaving only a hoarse, vicious threat echoing in the room:

"Ye Tian! On tomorrow's arena, I will definitely take your mark! Wash your neck and wait for me!"

The voice quickly dissipated.

Elder Xing Tiexin and Elder Qinglan looked livid. They had actually let someone sneak under their very noses to launch an ambush, and then let them escape!

To them, this was a grave dereliction of duty and a humiliation.

Li Xuanxiao silently sheathed his sword, glanced at Ye Tian, whose ribs were bleeding, said nothing, flashed his figure, and also left through the window.

"Junior Brother Ye! How are you?"

Shui Qingdie only then rushed in, carrying a steaming bowl of "All-Encompassing Nourishing Soup" that smelled heavily of medicine, even somewhat pungently.

Seeing the wound on Ye Tian's ribs and the mess in the room, her pretty face turned pale, and she almost dropped the soup bowl.

"I'm fine, just a superficial wound."

Ye Tian shook his head and used his internal energy to force out the Death Qi from his ribs, and the wound quickly stopped bleeding.

He looked in the direction where Yin Wujiang had disappeared, his eyes sharp.

The opponent really couldn't hold back and struck ahead of time, and this stealth technique was truly impossible to guard against.

"Yin Wujiang! This old man will definitely not let you off!" Elder Xing Tiexin's anger had not subsided.

"We still need to be careful; the opponent might return."

Elder Qinglan was calmer: "The phenomenon of Ye Tian's Body Tempering caused too much of a stir and has likely attracted countless attention. We must increase our vigilance."

At this moment, Yu Miaoqing walked in, supporting the still-weak Ghost Girl.

The Ghost Girl looked at the faint lingering Death Qi in the room, sensed it, and said weakly: "It is Yin Wujiang, without a doubt. His Death Qi... Young Master Ye, the power of supreme Yang and righteousness can restrain him, but it requires sufficient cultivation to drive it."

The Ghost Girl added the critical information she hadn't finished earlier: "If your True Essence can evolve into a state of supreme Yang and rigidity, you might be able to give it a try. But with your current cultivation, I'm afraid you are still lacking."

Ye Tian nodded silently.

He had just completed his Body Tempering, the Five Elements within his body were initially balanced, and his Chaos True Essence indeed had many more changes.

But to evolve the power of supreme Yang and rigidity sufficient to restrain Yin Wujiang, and to drive it to sufficient intensity, it indeed required deeper cultivation support.

"Elder, I will definitely participate in tomorrow's battle." Ye Tian looked at the two Elders, his tone resolute.

Elder Qinglan and Xing Tiexin exchanged a look and finally sighed: "Since you have decided, we will not stop you. But remember, if the situation is impossible, prioritize saving your life. The Sect does not lack empty fame; the future is more important!"

"This Disciple understands."

Everyone dispersed, leaving only Shui Qingdie, who insisted on helping Ye Tian re-bandage his wound and also insisted that he drink that bowl of "All-Encompassing Nourishing Soup."

Ye Tian couldn't refuse and had to take it and drink a mouthful.

As soon as the soup entered his mouth, Ye Tian's eyes widened instantly!

A strange taste, mixed with the power of ginseng, astragalus, angelica, goji berries, red dates, longans, and Medicinal Pills, entered his stomach.

The medicinal potency was so fierce that even he, who had just completed his Five Elements Body Tempering and had vigorous Qi and blood, felt his whole body burning hot, his Qi and blood churning, and his nose felt hot; two streams of warm liquid flowed down...

"Junior Brother Ye! Why are you having a nosebleed?!" Shui Qingdie exclaimed, scrambling to find a handkerchief.

Ye Tian covered his nose, looking at the black, potent medicinal soup in the bowl, unable to laugh or cry: "Senior Sister Shui... this soup of yours... is a bit too nourishing..."

"Ah? I... I just wanted to help you replenish..."

Shui Qingdie's face flushed red, and seeing Ye Tian's disheveled appearance with his nose bleeding profusely, she felt both heartache and embarrassment.

After finally stopping the nosebleed and sending away the blushing Shui Qingdie, Ye Tian sat alone in the room.

The wound on his ribs was no longer a major issue, and the Qi and blood that had been churning due to that bowl of "All-Encompassing Nourishing Soup" had gradually calmed down, actually leaving him feeling even more energetic.

He wiped the blood from his face and changed into a clean set of green robes.

Then he sat cross-legged again and threw himself into Cultivation.