Chapter Sixty-Six: Tempering the Body, Refining the Spirit, Reading, and Meeting the Enchantress Again

The night was boundless and serene, scattered with stars like shuttlecocks thrown across the sky. The darkness was deep as ink, and the moonlight was thin and chill.

Within the small courtyard, tranquility had returned. The Ninth Prince, Zhao Xianyou, so otherworldly he seemed a banished immortal, had already departed. Anle sat quietly on a small wooden chair, his features thoughtful, pondering the true reason behind the prince's visit. Did he truly come merely for a cup of wine?

Just as Qin Qianqiu had once tried to recruit him, Anle had assumed the prince sought him for his talents as a strategist. Yet, unexpectedly, the prince appeared interested only in sharing a drink and enjoying the mountain scenery. Perhaps, at the Martial Hero Stone, when the Green Mountain Sword Intent erupted, the prince had sensed it and thus came to see for himself. Finding the mountain unsuitable, he neither pressed nor forced, nor did he attempt to take anything by strength.

Anle rather admired the prince’s unrestrained elegance. Despite his ethereal bearing, which made him seem unapproachable, a cup of yellow wine had loosened the mood, and their conversation had been genuinely pleasant.

In this world, it was always better to make a friend than an enemy.

Rising, Anle tidied the aftermath of the gathering, moved the potted flowers to the corner, and in the courtyard, with a touch of his sword finger to the Ink Pool at his waist, the sword leapt out and was set into the old locust tree. Now, two sword notches marked its trunk—one belonging to Ink Pool, the other to Green Mountain—serving as resting places for the blades during his practice of the Five Beasts.

He was careful not to damage the tree, wary of killing it with too many wounds.

Standing at the center of the courtyard, Anle drew a deep breath; with a thought, a luminous panel appeared before his eyes.

...

Name: Anle

Essence of Years: 0 strands

Fruits of the Dao of Time: Talent of the Ages (0/2 strands of Flowing Gold Essence, 25/100 strands), Innate Swordsman (3/100 strands), Collapsing Sword Force (5/10 strands), Selfless, Fearless Heart, Demon-Tempered Jade

Techniques Mastered: Swordfall Chart (14 strands), Breathing and Qi Guide (1 strand)

Skills Acquired: Ancient Demon Five Beasts Classic (21 strands), Zhao Ancestor’s Long Fist (fragment) (1 strand)

...

His eyes shone as he glanced at the skills column; the original Five Beasts Body Refinement had been replaced by the Ancient Demon Five Beasts Classic, though the strands of Essence invested remained unchanged. This allowed Anle to accept the new method seamlessly.

Standing still in the courtyard, Anle closed his eyes, feeling his blood and energy begin to surge and churn beneath his skin.

The Demon-Tempered Jade at his waist suddenly released an intense demonic aura, which coiled about his body. As the demon energy tempered his physique, he began to practice the Demon Five Beasts.

The instant his eyes opened, the entire courtyard seemed to tremble faintly. Practicing the Tiger Form, the image of an ancient, ferocious demon tiger appeared before him. Each movement—strike, pounce, charge, crash—grew ever more savage.

Under the demon energy’s refinement, his blood flow accelerated, roaring like a river. His skin, meridians, and spiritual bones all endured tremendous tempering, waves of heat vaguely emanating from his body, filling the chill of the spring night.

Vital energy surged, forming the phantom of a vast demon tiger, its fangs like paired daggers, capable of shredding all things. Its roar seemed to cast down the stars themselves.

His spiritual bones crackled, fingers curling slightly; when he struck, the very air seemed shattered, blood and energy gathering into the tiger's shadow, carrying a force that shook the soul.

Upon his body, blood and energy wove into faintly shimmering script, empowering the ancient demon tiger apparition.

The Demon-Tempered Jade quivered violently as demonic energy was ceaselessly siphoned away, the patterns etched upon it vanishing one by one. This round of Five Beasts practice consumed more demon energy than all his previous attempts combined.

With the support of his Fruit of the Dao—Talent of the Ages—Anle felt his understanding of the Ancient Demon Five Beasts deepen, the script upon his flesh growing clearer.

As he practiced, his heart and vessels grew robust; power surged forth, his blood and energy continually cleansed, spiritual marrow seeping from his bones to merge into his energy, gathering in his dantian.

His dantian was like a blazing furnace, blood and energy boiling, thickening with each cycle. If he persevered, the thickening blood would condense into a core—the sign that he had reached the third stage of body refinement: the Inner Core.

At this thought, Anle’s fighting spirit soared. Bathed in starlight and moonbeams, he practiced tirelessly.

Within the forge of his heart, his dantian blazed, blood and energy churning.

...

On Qingbo Street, at the Ancestral Temple, the doors opened.

Zhao Huangting stood with a bamboo staff. Opposite him, dressed in splendid robes, hair loose and unbound, was Zhao Xianyou. Perhaps, having resolved some inner turmoil, Zhao Xianyou spoke at length to Zhao Huangting, then, with a clasp of his hands, drifted away like an immortal returning to the mortal realm, vanishing into the night.

Zhao Huangting withdrew his gaze, a faintly bemused expression on his face. He had not expected Zhao Xianyou to end up in Anle’s company, drinking the old yellow wine that was originally meant for him.

“Still, it’s just as well,” Zhao Huangting murmured, his long brows fluttering in the night breeze. “If one remains aloof for too long, one becomes cold and unfeeling. To make a friend or two and partake of worldly joys is to hold fast to one’s heart.”

Suddenly remembering something, he looked toward the direction in which Zhao Xianyou had departed and sighed deeply.

“Immortals in the mortal realm—such pitiful souls.”

He turned his eyes back to the temple alley, squinting thoughtfully.

“My, my. That Martial Hero Stone visit proved fruitful indeed—can this still be called the Five Beasts Body Refinement? They’ve replaced the mundane beasts with ancient, peerless monsters... These martial men of the temple truly know how to play; even thousand-year-old demons would weep at the sight!”

“This Ancient Demon Five Beasts method—if brought to the Demon Clan’s Kunpeng Mountain—would surely be acclaimed as a top-tier body refinement art.”

Stroking his beard, Zhao Huangting raised his hand. Sword energy, swift as starlight, wove above the small courtyard, painting with sword qi as though with ink, suppressing the commotion of Anle’s Demon Five Beasts practice entirely.

Thus, no powerful experts would be drawn by the disturbance to disturb his peace.

...

The wind coolly teases the blossoms, smoke curls around the willows, spring’s end hastened in secret over a thousand miles.

The spring rains, as fickle as a maiden’s heart, had persisted for three days, only to be replaced by three days of clear skies.

Six days passed in a flash.

Anle remained in his courtyard, immersed in practice of the Ancient Demon Five Beasts Classic. This was, in truth, his first true seclusion—thanks to Lady Hua granting him leave, he was free from his painting duties at the Lin Residence.

Thus, these days, he stayed in the small courtyard, using the demonic energy within the Demon-Tempered Jade to refine his body, striving to break through to the Inner Core stage of body refinement.

His days were fully scheduled: rising at dawn to practice the Five Beasts—rain or shine, even the spring drizzle did not deter him, as he trained in the rain. At dusk, he would share old yellow wine with the temple elder and, occasionally, with Zhao Xianyou, who would drop by for a drink. After quietly siphoning a wisp of Essence from his companions, he would then sit and meditate upon the Swordfall Chart, tempering his mind. Sometimes, he painted to soothe his spirit; at other times, he pondered the subtleties of sword energy.

When night fell, he would light a candle, sit by the window, and read for two hours by spring rain or moonlight—poring over the “Book of Rites,” “Spring and Autumn Annals,” and other required texts, preparing for the upcoming imperial examination.

Body refinement, mind cultivation, and study—each day, he reflected thrice upon himself.

Although he had only recently reached the second stage of body refinement—tempering his spiritual bones—at the Martial Hero Stone, the Green Mountain Sword Intent and the energy of the stone itself had cleansed his body, mending his previously flawed foundation.

With the amplification of his innate talent through the Fruit of the Dao, his progress was swift.

His dantian, like a blazing furnace, refined blood and the essence of his flesh, thickening into a gruel, already showing signs of condensation. The breakthrough to forming the inner core was but a step away.

It could be said that Anle might advance to the third stage of body refinement at any moment.

Another day of spring rain arrived.

The morning wind was sharp and cold. Anle stepped into the center of the courtyard, his blood surging as he practiced the Ancient Demon Five Beasts, the script upon his skin faintly visible.

However, this morning he did not practice long. Soon, he withdrew his energy, donned fresh white robes, and retrieved Green Mountain and Ink Pool from the old locust tree.

Opening his oil-paper umbrella, Anle left the courtyard—not because he wished to end his seclusion, but because the spring examination was imminent. As a scholar who had come to Lin’an for the imperial exam, he needed to go to the examination hall to register and collect his examination token. Without it, he would not be allowed to enter the examination grounds and would forfeit his chance to participate.

There was another reason. During his days of seclusion, aside from the occasional visit from Zhao Xianyou, from whom he had drawn eight strands of Essence, he had gained nothing further. None of the strands drawn from Zhao Xianyou were of the Flowing Gold variety, leading Anle to wonder whether his luck was simply bad, or whether the prince was too ethereal to possess any.

He had also tried to draw Essence from the old man at the temple, but failed each time—the elder’s cultivation was unfathomably deep.

Thus, after collecting his examination token today, Anle planned to visit the Lin Residence, where he could replenish his Essence while painting.

Leaving the small courtyard, he walked through the temple alley, treading on the damp blue stones. Rain dripped from the heavens, tapping crisply on his umbrella like jade falling onto a platter.

Suddenly, Anle halted. The Demon-Tempered Jade at his waist quivered slightly, and he sensed something. Lifting the edge of his umbrella, he gazed ahead.

At the alley’s entrance stood a woman, her shapely figure barely concealed by coarse clothing. She, too, carried an oil-paper umbrella, and walked slowly into the alley.

The Demon-Tempered Jade at Anle’s waist, long since drained, began greedily siphoning demonic energy from the woman.

Anle paused in surprise—it was the squirrel demoness who had once sold him the courtyard.

The woman also noticed the white-robed youth approaching from within the alley. Lifting her umbrella, she looked at him.

From Anle’s body emanated ancient demon shadows...

And at the sight, the woman’s ample legs began to tremble uncontrollably.