Chapter 74: Blood Forging Eighth Layer, Achieved
The Sweeping Monk recognized Lu Changfeng at a glance.
Lu Changfeng looked at the Sweeping Monk with suspicion.
After glancing at the Sweeping Monk’s interface, he finally recognized the man. He was one of the two from the Demon Sect who had stopped him that night.
But they must have been wearing wigs or something that day; their appearance was a far cry from the bald monk he saw today.
"It’s you!" Lu Changfeng gave him a slight nod.
It was these two who had revealed his identity to the Saint Demon Sect, which led to Xuansha showing up at his door later.
The Sweeping Monk excitedly put down his broom. "I didn’t expect Donor Lu to remember this humble monk. My Buddhist name is Zhiyuan. The one with me that day was my brother, Zhishen."
Zhiyuan proactively announced his Buddhist name, hoping to make a good impression on the Saint Master.
Lu Changfeng nodded, indicating that he had taken note.
"I’m here to see Xuansha. Is he in the temple?" Lu Changfeng asked.
"The Demon Sect... ahem, the abbot has gone out. He’ll be back later," Zhiyuan said.
"However, the abbot instructed that if Donor Lu came, I was just to give you something."
"Please wait here for a moment, Donor Lu. I’ll go get it." Zhiyuan started walking toward the temple interior.
Lu Changfeng watched as Zhiyuan entered the temple.
’Xuansha isn’t even in the temple.’
’Does he know what I’m here for?’
Just as Lu Changfeng was wondering, Zhiyuan returned, holding a small medicine bottle in his hands.
"Donor Lu, these are the Buddha Heart Pills the abbot has been refining for you these past few days."
Lu Changfeng took the bottle, opened it, and looked inside. As expected, they were Buddha Heart Pills. There were six in total.
In just a few short days, Xuansha of the Dark Buddha Demon Sect had managed to refine more Buddha Heart Pills, which were comparable to Divine Pills.
"The ingredients for these Buddha Heart Pills must be very precious. Abbot Xuansha has gone to great trouble," Lu Changfeng said.
Zhiyuan smiled faintly. "Everything is for Donor Lu."
Upon hearing this, Lu Changfeng cupped his fists. "In that case, I’ll take my leave."
"Remember to give my regards to the abbot."
Zhiyuan put his palms together. "Understood. Take care, Donor Lu."
Lu Changfeng turned and left.
These six Buddha Heart Pills should be enough for Lu Changfeng to break through the bottleneck of the Blood Forging Seventh Layer.
Replicating the Bloodline Talent in three days with the cultivation of the Blood Forging Eighth Layer should also be much safer.
Lu Changfeng was in a hurry to return and enter seclusion to break through to the next level of his cultivation.
At the Killing Temple, not long after Lu Changfeng departed, Xuansha appeared in a flash, his face pale.
"Abbot, what happened to you?" Zhiyuan dropped his broom and strode over to support Xuansha.
"I was ambushed by the Chief of the Changyuan Escort Agency."
Zhiyuan helped Xuansha inside to treat his injuries.
It turned out he had gone out today to hunt a Bone Refining Martial Sect expert to refine Buddha Heart Pills for Lu Changfeng.
Unfortunately, with members of the escort agencies being killed one after another recently, the agencies had become vigilant.
The Chief of the Changyuan Escort Agency had joined forces with the chiefs of the other three great escort agencies to ambush Xuansha.
The four of them attacked together, defeating and injuring Xuansha.
But Xuansha proved worthy of his place in the Dark Buddha Demon Sect; his strength was extraordinary.
Even with the chiefs of the Four Great Escort Agencies of Jiangnan joining forces, they were only able to injure Xuansha, not capture or kill him.
"Go bring Zhisha here."
After sitting cross-legged inside the room, Xuansha spoke immediately.
Zhiyuan nodded and left. A short while later, a slender young man with sharp features and a fierce disposition walked in, holding a string of Buddhist Beads.
"Sect Master, you called for me." The young man’s tone was still icy, even as he looked at the injured Xuansha.
But Xuansha knew this wasn’t because the young man didn’t respect him. It was because the young man was incapable of expressing any emotion other than fanaticism.
Zhisha was Xuansha’s most prized disciple. Not yet forty, he had already completed the First Level of the Bone Refining Realm, Jade Bone, and was advancing toward the Second Layer, Iron Bone.
"Zhisha, I am injured and temporarily unable to procure the medicinal primers."
"We cannot delay things on the Saint Master’s side. He must grow stronger as quickly as possible. Therefore, from now on, I’ll have to trouble you to go out and capture the medicinal primers to refine the Buddha Heart Pills."
Xuansha said simply.
Zhisha nodded. "I understand. I’ll get on it right away."
"Good." Xuansha nodded. "Be careful. Don’t reveal your identity. There are already some rumors spreading in Jiangzhou Prefecture City."
"Most importantly, even if your identity is exposed, do not let it implicate the Saint Master."
Zhisha nodded, gripped his Buddhist Beads, and strode out of the room.
Xuansha watched him leave. Only after Zhisha was out of sight did he spit out a mouthful of black blood.
"I underestimated those escort agency chiefs." Xuansha wiped the black blood from the corner of his mouth, took out some Pills, and closed his eyes to begin healing.
Facing the siege of four people, along with various poisons and Hidden Weapons, Xuansha had indeed suffered serious injuries...
...
「Three days later.」
In the backyard of the Changle Martial Arts Hall, inside Lu Changfeng’s private Cultivation Chamber.
Lu Changfeng’s complexion was rosy as he meticulously practiced with a massive, eight-hundred-jin pig iron saber.
Last night, with the help of the Buddha Heart Pills, Lu Changfeng had successfully broken through to the Blood Forging Eighth Layer.
After using the remaining two Buddha Heart Pills to consolidate his cultivation, his strength had increased by a large margin.
At this moment, just standing there, Lu Changfeng exuded the aura of a fierce beast, more ferocious than even a tiger.
After practicing the Seventh Layer of the Fengtian Saber Technique one more time, Lu Changfeng finally reined in his aura. Otherwise, any ordinary person who saw him would likely be so intimidated by his presence that they wouldn’t dare to move.
’Blood Forging Eighth Layer, done!’
’The effectiveness of the Buddha Heart Pills has dropped by more than half!’
’The next level, the Blood Forging Ninth Layer, is the most difficult one. How long will it take to break through that bottleneck?’
Lu Changfeng glanced at his interface. The replication screen had been updated.
Name: Lu Changfeng
Root Bone: Upper A x2, Middle A x3
Talent: Supreme Talent [Longevity Sword Dao (Lifespan +2.9 years, Combat Power +0.6%)], High-Grade Talent [Flying Swallow], High-Grade Talent [Fist Martial Arts], High-Grade Talent [Saber Extremity], Low-Grade Palm Technique Talent.
Realm: Blood Forging Eighth Layer
Blood Forging Technique: [Le Mountain Angry Vajra] Perfection. [Fengtian Forging Body Saber Skill] Seventh Layer. [Storm Body Forging Sword Skill] Perfection.
Martial Arts: [Blood Burst Step] Perfection, [Antelope Leaping Skill] Perfection, [Falling Leaves Saber Technique] Perfection. [Long-Armed Great Ape Fist] Great Success, [Blood-Drinking Frenzy Saber] Great Success
Martial Arts Insights: Storm Sword Intent (Intermediate Sword Intent) (Sword attack power +200%), Falling Leaves Saber Intent (Basic Saber Intent) (Saber attack power +55%)
Replication Interval: 0 days.
Aside from the increase in his Realm.
In the past few days, Lu Changfeng had also mastered a Blood Forging Realm Swordsmanship and fed it to his [Longevity Sword Dao] to be Devoured, increasing his Lifespan by a few months and his Combat Power by 0.1%.
The increase wasn’t huge, but it was progress nonetheless.
Especially regarding his Lifespan. For others, every day lived was a day closer to death. For Lu Changfeng, every day lived was another day added to his life.
He could live for as long as there were more Swordsmanship techniques to learn.
Xuansha was a good subordinate. By some unknown means, he had collected over a hundred different Swordsmanship manuals in a short time and had a Dark Buddha Demon Sect disciple named Zhisha deliver them.
It was enough to keep Lu Changfeng busy cultivating for several years.
"Alright, time to head to the Taizhen Martial Arts Hall and replicate that Bloodline Talent." Lu Changfeng took Teng Xiaofan with him, and the two rode in a carriage to the Taizhen Martial Arts Hall.