67: Iron Body Perfected!

The captain of the guards dared not look up, cold sweat soaking his inner shirt.

He really wanted to say that Lin Feng of the Fierce Wind Martial Arts Hall didn't run away because he was scared by the Spirit Beast.

He was scared away by you.

So many experts died, and Old Qian died too.

Plus, the Spirit Beast he had sunk was right there for the taking.

If it couldn't be completed now, wouldn't the City Lord skin him alive?

He knew the City Lord wasn't asking him, but was talking to himself.

The River-Shaking Thunder was a lethal weapon used by the City Lord's Mansion to clear out large water beasts.

Each one cost a fortune and was enough to kill all biological life within a radius of several miles.

But even so, facing that mysterious Spirit Turtle, it failed to leave even a single mark.

The captain of the guards was horrified.

Just what kind of terrifying existence was that?

The City Lord slowly paced, walking to the edge of the pavilion and overlooking the lake.

The calm lake water reflected his slightly weary face.

He wasn't distressed about those dead Late-stage Condensing Yuan Realm Martial Artists, nor was he distressed about those River-Shaking Thunders built at great expense.

What he was distressed about was that mid-tier Spirit Turtle!

That Spirit Turtle was the key to his Breakthrough to the Early Stage of the Spirit Transformation Realm, or even peeking into a higher Realm.

"Where is Lin Feng?"

The City Lord's voice rang out again, carrying a bone-chilling coldness.

The captain of the guards replied tremblingly, "In response to the City Lord, after the battle at the Qiu River, Lin Feng abandoned the hall and fled, his whereabouts unknown."

"We have issued the highest wanted order and are searching the whole city, but we have yet to find his whereabouts."

The City Lord sneered.

"Useless!"

A Peak of the Meridian Unblocking Realm martial arts hall master was actually scared out of his wits and abandoned his hall to flee.

The City Lord's gaze turned toward the distance.

Jinling City had already been locked down for a day.

The atmosphere in the city was also becoming increasingly tense.

The rumors among the people were becoming even more rampant.

This kind of lockdown couldn't last too long.

"City Lord!"

Just then, a personal guard ran over and reported with a bow.

"Chief Steward Zhang Long requests an audience!"

The City Lord's eyes shifted slightly.

Zhang Long?

He knew Zhang Long had been investigating clues regarding the Qiujiang Massacre recently.

"Let him in."

The City Lord's tone was calm.

A moment later, Zhang Long entered the lakeside pavilion cautiously, his body hunched.

He saw the City Lord's gloomy expression and felt a chill in his heart, but he quickly regained his composure.

"Your subordinate Zhang Long pays respects to the City Lord!"

He bowed respectfully, a hint of hard-to-detect excitement in his voice.

"Your subordinate has found a clue regarding the Qiujiang Massacre!"

The City Lord's cold eyes instantly locked onto him.

"Oh?"

A single word, yet it carried the weight of a thousand catties.

Zhang Long felt an invisible pressure rush toward him.

He braced himself and reported Duan Tianba's accusation and his own investigation in detail.

"...This person is named Li Qing, of unknown origin, with strange martial arts. He once fought Duan Tianba of the Jingtao Martial Arts School and severely injured him."

"More importantly, even under the lockdown of the Qiu River, he frequently salvaged large, Demonic Qi-tainted Strange Fish from the river!"

"Your subordinate suspects that this Li Qing must have countless ties to that beast at the bottom of the river!"

After Zhang Long finished speaking, he held his breath, waiting for the City Lord's decision.

The City Lord closed his eyes and fell into deep thought.

Li Qing.

An obscure young man.

Of unknown origin, yet able to defeat the Late Stage of Meridian Connecting Realm Duan Tianba, and even salvage Demonic Qi Strange Fish from the locked-down Qiu River.

This was indeed a bit suspicious.

More importantly, he had no background!

No background?

Then isn't he a Genius?

The City Lord slowly opened his eyes, the corners of his mouth curling into a meaningful arc.

"Very good."

"In that case, I will personally go and meet this Li Qing!"

Hearing this, Zhang Long was overjoyed.

He knew his gamble had succeeded.

Li Qing's fate was already sealed... Iron Bone Martial Arts School.

Li Qing was practicing spear techniques in the courtyard, sweat soaking his clothes.

Xiao Chen watched from the side, becoming more and more alarmed as he watched.

Although Li Qing's spear technique was newly learned, his strength was terrifyingly great.

Every thrust of the spear carried a dull boom.

Both being in the Middle Stage of the Body Refining Realm.

He estimated he could only last one round against Li Qing!

"Big Brother Li, take a break."

Xiao Chen stepped forward and handed over a towel.

"Big Brother, your talent is extraordinary; ordinary Martial Skills are no longer worthy of you."

He turned and ran back to the inner hall. A moment later, he walked out solemnly, holding a handwritten booklet.

"This is the Advanced Chapter of the Iron Body Art, the ultimate technique of my Iron Bone Martial Arts School."

This was the Secret Manual that had been snatched away by the Jingtao Martial Arts School back then.

Fearing he would forget it, he had handwritten a copy.

Xiao Chen handed the booklet to Li Qing.

"My father said back then that if this Cultivation Technique is practiced to Major Achievement, the Physical Body can rival a Vicious Beast and be invulnerable to blades and spears."

"Unfortunately, this technique has extremely high requirements for the physique. My Aptitude is dull, and I haven't been able to grasp it until now."

Li Qing took the booklet.

Iron Body Art.

He flipped open the pages; the content was much more profound than the basic chapter.

This wasn't just simple tempering of skin and flesh, but also required the force to penetrate into the bones and membranes, forging an iron body from the inside out.

Li Qing put away the wooden spear, took the Secret Manual to the old tree in the corner of the courtyard, and began to study it.

His mind was immersed in it, and he gradually discovered some wonderful things.

The Qi circulation method of this Iron Body Art, though crude, had core principles that were surprisingly similar to the Earth Spirit Turtle Clone's Mysterious Armor talent.

The Mysterious Armor talent involves mobilizing spiritual energy and Bloodline to form a defense on the body's surface.

The Iron Body Art, on the other hand, involves mobilizing Internal Energy and Qi and blood to temper the Physical Body itself.

Li Qing suddenly saw the light.

He had the feedback from the Earth Spirit Turtle Clone, and his Physical Body strength far exceeded that of ordinary people.

He also had the experience of the Mysterious Armor talent as a reference.

Cultivating this Iron Body Art was a natural progression for him.

Li Qing began to mobilize the Qi and blood in his body according to the method in the Secret Manual.

Boom!

The Qi and blood in his body were already as vigorous as a furnace fire. Now, guided by the Cultivation Technique, they began to circulate at high speed in specific Meridians.

A burning sensation rose from his lower abdomen and quickly spread throughout his body.

His skin began to turn red, and his body temperature rose sharply.

Li Qing guided this heat flow, repeatedly washing over his skin, membranes, muscles, and bones.

He could clearly feel his body undergoing some kind of transformation.

Time passed.

From the moment the sun rose.

Li Qing remained sitting cross-legged under the old tree, motionless.

Xiao Chen didn't dare to disturb him and just watched from a distance.

He saw the color of the skin on Li Qing's body constantly changing.

From crimson, it slowly turned to bluish-purple, and finally, it even took on a faint layer of iron-gray.

Afternoon.

Li Qing was still Cultivating.

The fluctuations of Qi and blood around him grew stronger and stronger, and the iron-gray color on his skin became deeper and deeper.

Late afternoon.

Li Qing suddenly opened his eyes.

He stood up and stretched his muscles and bones.

Crackle!

The bones throughout his body made a series of crisp sounds like popping beans.

He clenched his fists and felt that his strength had increased quite a bit again.

More importantly, he felt his skin had become incredibly tough.

Li Qing walked over to the stone lock used for training in the courtyard, extended a finger, and made a forceful swipe on it.

Screech!

On the hard bluestone, he actually carved a deep white mark.

Yet his finger was completely unharmed.

"This..."

Xiao Chen, who had been watching from the side, saw this scene, and his mouth hung open wide enough to fit an egg.

He stepped forward quickly and touched Li Qing's arm.

Where he touched, it was cold and hard, as if he were touching a piece of forged fine iron.

"Iron Body Art... First stage Major Achievement?!"

Xiao Chen's voice was trembling.

He knew all too well what this meant.

The Iron Body Art had three stages in total.

First stage Major Achievement, Refining Skin into Iron, invulnerable to blades and spears!

Second stage Major Achievement, Refining Bones into Steel, possessing infinite strength!

Third stage Major Achievement, Refining Organs into Gold, immune to all poisons!

Back then, his father, despite his extraordinary talent, had to Cultivate hard for three full years before barely reaching the first stage Major Achievement.

Yet Li Qing only took one day!

What kind of monster is this?

Xiao Chen looked at Li Qing, the shock in his heart having reached its peak.

"Big Brother!"

Xiao Chen was so excited he was incoherent. "You are truly a Divine Being! There is hope for the revival of my Iron Bone Martial Arts School!"

Now when he called him Big Brother, he did so with complete conviction, without the slightest reluctance.

Li Qing was also very satisfied with his progress.

With the Iron Body Art's Major Achievement, combined with his own body's strength and the feedback of the Mysterious Armor talent from his Clone.

His current defensive power was likely something even a Meridian Opening Realm Martial Artist would find difficult to break through easily.

Just then.

Li Qing's movements suddenly paused for a moment.