53: Qinghe Tremor

Chen Linsheng returned fully loaded. Relying on his superb stealth and anti-Tracking skills, he quickly descended the mountain without any danger along the way.

After entering the city, he found a hidden spot, washed off his Disguise, and restored his original appearance. He then properly hid his harvest at the bottom of his medicine basket before unhurriedly returning to the courtyard in the west of the city.

Just as he entered the courtyard gate, he smelled a rich aroma of meat mixed with the scent of spices.

He saw Su Wan and Aunt Zhang busy in the courtyard. The large wooden basin in front of them was filled with seasoned meat stuffing, and several strings of shiny, freshly filled sausages hung nearby.

"A Sheng is back." Su Wan looked up and saw him, smiling sweetly as she wiped her hands on her apron. "Was everything smooth in the mountains?"

"Everything went smoothly." Chen Linsheng nodded. His eyes swept over the scene in the courtyard, and a hint of warmth rose in his heart; this was the comforting atmosphere of home.

But he had more important things to do at the moment, so he called out directly, "Da Niu, come and help me boil a large pot of water, be quick."

Big Ox Zhang responded and ran out of the side room, nimbly ducking into the kitchen.

Chen Linsheng said to Su Wan again, "Wan'er, I need to go into secluded cultivation for a few days. Just leave the meals at the door of the cultivation room. Do not come in to disturb me unless I call for you."

Seeing his solemn expression, a trace of worry flashed in Su Wan's eyes, but she still nodded submissively, "Alright, be careful."

Chen Linsheng gave her a reassuring look and then stepped into his dedicated cultivation room.

Inside, Big Ox Zhang had already quickly scrubbed the huge bathtub clean and began placing a charcoal brazier under it.

Chen Linsheng personally poured a large pot of fresh water into the tub. Then, following the "Muscle Tempering Bath Formula" memorized in his mind, he carefully took out one petal of the earth core fire lotus, three pieces of ice crystal orchid, and three drops of green snake vine juice, and threw them into the water one by one.

Finally, he poured in the entire pouch of precious earth vein cold spring water.

The spiritual intuition brought by his Herb Gathering skill made him feel that adding the earth vein cold spring water would increase the medicinal effect!

"Light the fire, just keep the water temperature at a slight boil."

Chen Linsheng instructed.

Big Ox Zhang did as he was told, lighting the charcoal in the brazier under the tub and carefully controlling the intensity of the fire.

As the water temperature rose, the medicinal liquid in the tub began to undergo a wonderful change.

The crimson fire lotus petals gradually melted, staining the clear water amber. The cold air of the ice crystal orchid and the scorching heat of the fire lotus intertwined, rising in a dense mist. Within the mist, it was sometimes scorching hot and sometimes icy cold. The green snake vine juice moved through it, as if imbuing the medicinal liquid with spirituality.

When the medicinal liquid had completely fused, presenting a magnificent dark red color that seemed to flow with starlight, Chen Linsheng shed his clothes, took a deep breath, and stepped into the bathtub.

"Chiii—"

The moment his body submerged into the medicinal liquid, extreme cold and scorching heat, like two violent torrents, attacked simultaneously!

It was as if countless tiny ice snakes and fire snakes were scrambling to drill frantically into the depths of his muscles along the pores of his body!

This power was incomparably overbearing, far exceeding an ordinary medicinal bath!

However, Chen Linsheng possessed the [Hunyuan True Body]. His blood and Qi formed their own furnace. Although the three-foot Hunyuan Domain around him was not intentionally expanded, it had already begun to operate spontaneously.

The ice and fire power that invaded his body was instantly enveloped, suppressed, and refined by his vast and majestic blood and Qi before it could wreak havoc!

The gentle medicinal power accumulated from [Herb Gathering Perfection] also played a role at this moment. Like the most loyal guard, it smoothed over the minor damage caused by the impact of the medicinal power and guided the essence to penetrate the muscle tissue.

The slight "water-controlling power" brought by [Mastery of Water Nature] even allowed him to vaguely perceive and guide the flow of energy in the medicinal liquid in the tub, making its distribution more even.

Under the superposition of multiple Divine Effects, this incomparably overbearing muscle-tempering bath was not a painful torture for him, but instead became excellent nourishment!

He felt all his muscle fibers greedily absorbing the medicinal power. Under the extreme tempering of ice and fire, they became compact, tough, and full of power at an unprecedented speed.

[Python Dragon Strength] spontaneously circulated among his muscles, quickly transforming this newborn power into more condensed "Python Strength."

He closed his eyes, completely immersed in this efficient cultivation, forgetting both himself and the world.

Time passed quietly.

Chen Linsheng was in secluded cultivation at home, losing track of day and night.

But within Qinghe County, a sudden change in the mountains set off a massive wave!

On the afternoon of the day he descended the mountain, shocking news spread through the entire county like wildfire:

Qian Fugui, the Second Manager of Hundred Herbs Hall, Gang Leader Wang of the Hunter Gang, several experts from the Medicine Gang, and Zhang Yuchen, the son of the Black Mountain Gang leader, were all trapped in the mountains, their lives unknown!

At first, it was just hearsay, but as time passed, the search parties sent by several factions either found nothing or brought back sporadic bad news. Panic began to spread.

Hundred Herbs Hall closed its doors to guests, the atmosphere solemn.

The Hunter Gang was leaderless, and undercurrents were surging within.

The Medicine Gang fell into complete silence, as if it had never existed.

The most intense reaction came from the Black Mountain Gang!

Gang Leader Zhang Zhifeng, a man who called the shots in the underworld of Qinghe County, changed color in anger upon hearing the news. That night, he gathered all the elites of the gang. For a time, the Black Mountain Gang headquarters was brightly lit, shadows moved, and a murderous aura filled the air.

The next morning, Zhang Zhifeng personally led a team to meet with the Great Manager of Hundred Herbs Hall, who had rushed over upon hearing the news.

The two powerful forces merged and marched into the deep mountains again in a grand manner, vowing to find the whereabouts of the missing people and uncover the truth.

They went deep into the valley and soon found the flat ground where the fierce battle had taken place, and further away, the cold corpse of Gang Leader Wang of the Hunter Gang.

When Li Xunya, the Chief Constable of the Patrol Office who accompanied them and was famous in Qinghe for his experience and Tracking skills, carefully examined Gang Leader Wang's body, his face instantly turned extremely ugly.

Pointing at the clearly visible White Lotus mark on Gang Leader Wang's chest that shimmered with an eerie light, he said to Zhang Zhifeng and the Great Manager of Hundred Herbs Hall in a dry and heavy voice:

"Gang Leader Zhang, Great Manager... Gang Leader Wang was killed by a single palm strike. The person who struck had extremely high cultivation, at least at the Peak of the Flesh Refining Realm! And this palm... if I'm not mistaken, it's the unique skill of the White Lotus Sect—[Vacuum Salvation Palm]!"

As soon as the words "White Lotus Sect" were spoken, it was like a sudden thunderclap. Everyone present, including Zhang Zhifeng, who was worried about his beloved son, and the deep-scheming Great Manager, turned pale instantly!

That was an evil cult that the imperial court had strictly ordered to be wiped out!

They had actually appeared in Qinghe County and even acted in the mountains, killing so many important people!

The news seemed to have grown wings and quickly spread back to the county town.

The County Magistrate's Office was shaken!

Upon hearing the report, County Commandant Wang was so shocked that he jumped straight out of his chair.

The White Lotus Sect appearing in his jurisdiction was a matter of immense proportions! If not handled properly, his official hat and even his life could be at risk!

He no longer dared to be negligent and immediately called all the troops under his command to blockade the four gates. He launched a carpet search within the county town. All those with unknown identities or suspicious behavior were strictly interrogated or even directly detained. For a time, the entire Qinghe County was filled with tension and fear.

And all this turmoil was temporarily isolated outside that small cultivation room.

Chen Linsheng knew nothing of the massive waves outside. He was immersed in the rapid increase of his power. The color of the medicinal liquid in the tub had gradually faded... Three days and three nights passed quietly.