Chapter 45: Zhenwu Peach Gathering |
As soon as the thought arose, Ning Qi’s curiosity could no longer be contained.
“Tiansheng, come here.”
Ning Qi said with a kindly smile.
White Ape couldn’t help but tremble; he found his master’s gaze a little terrifying.
“Don’t worry, this is a good thing for you. If I can figure out what’s going on inside your body, maybe I can help you awaken your bloodline in the future.”
Hearing this.
White Ape’s eyes lit up.
Speaking of which, White Ape had grown a bit larger now, even overtaking Ning Qi—perhaps he was in a growth spurt. It was hard to say how tall he’d be once fully developed.
Ning Qi grinned and placed a hand on White Ape’s shoulder. He had originally planned to start from the head, but thinking it might be dangerous, he decided it would be safer to begin with the body.
With that.
A soft stream of internal energy gently flowed from Ning Qi’s palm—he was channeling the ‘Water-soft’ attribute. White Ape instinctively let out a yelp but soon realized that aside from a slight ticklish feeling in his shoulder, it actually felt quite soft and soothing.
But Ning Qi began to frown.
He had discovered something.
Once his internal energy entered White Ape’s body, he could initially sense it, but it was quickly consumed at an alarming rate—so fast that he couldn’t send it any deeper. He could barely sense the skin and muscle of the shoulder.
“Could it be… my internal energy still isn’t solid enough?”
Ning Qi withdrew his hand, speculating in his mind.
Internal energy was a mystical force born from one’s own body. Perhaps it would face resistance when entering someone else’s body.
“Looks like I’ll need to make my internal energy stronger first.”
He wasn’t disappointed.
White Ape, on the other hand, felt a bit let down after getting his hopes up.
“You little monkey, now you're disappointed? Train well. Try to reach Perfect Viscera Refinement soon so you can learn the Ventriloquism Art.”
Looking at the sulking White Ape scribbling away, Ning Qi scolded him with a smile.
He had long since developed the Ventriloquism Art for White Ape.
But it required strong internal organs to use.
White Ape’s eyes showed hope. He respectfully bowed, then resumed his training. Even though Ventriloquism wasn’t actual speech, it would still allow communication.
And he wasn’t too far from reaching that point.
...
Ye Qinghe’s Peach Blossom Wine failed again, just as expected.
But she felt she had made great progress this time—at least the wine didn’t taste sour and foul, just flavorless.
Fortunately, they had the wine brewed by White Ape to fall back on.
This time, she was open about it.
“This was made with joint effort between me and Little White Ape!”
All the True Disciples chuckled secretly.
On the surface, they still praised her.
Daoist Longshan hadn’t come out of seclusion yet. This was a life-or-death retreat—he wouldn’t emerge without reaching the Heaven-Man Realm. No one knew how long it would take.
Maybe a year, maybe two.
But everyone believed that with Master Longshan’s talent, he’d surely succeed within two years. If not for being affected by the previous incident with Qin Yun, he might have already broken through.
Everyone had gathered together at Ning Qi’s Seeking Dao Courtyard.
Drinking the Peach Blossom Wine ‘jointly’ brewed by Ye Qinghe and Little White Ape, eating fresh peaches—everyone was enjoying themselves.
The matter with Qin Yun only made them cherish their bonds as fellow disciples even more.
“Little Nine, I feel like the peaches outside your courtyard taste better than anywhere else. Even better than last year.”
Second Senior Brother Xiong Shi was being completely honest.
“Qinghe, I think next time when you brew, wait until the peaches are ripe. Maybe it’ll add something different.”
Ye Qinghe refused to back down. She crossed her arms and glanced sideways at Xiong Shi:
“Second Senior Brother, are you saying my wine doesn’t taste good?”
Xiong Shi quickly begged for mercy, and everyone burst into laughter.
“But honestly, Little Junior Brother’s peaches are delicious.”
Everyone nodded in unison.
After tasting them last year, they couldn’t get enough.
Ning Qi said with a smile:
“If all of you Senior Brothers and Sisters think they taste good, how about we gather here every year when the peaches ripen?”
He had improved his cultivation method again.
Maybe in a few years, the peach trees would start to show some mystical traits.
Everyone’s eyes lit up:
“Little Nine, that’s a great idea—but won’t it interrupt your cultivation?”
Ning Qi smiled and shook his head.
He was starting to feel that in seeking immortality, one must also cherish those in the present.
Luo Wentian immediately made the decision:
“Alright then. From now on, no matter what’s going on, we must gather in Little Junior Brother’s courtyard every year at this time. Let’s call it... the Zhenwu Peach Gathering!”
Everyone got excited.
Maybe, years from now, this would become a legendary event.
Ye Qinghe quickly said:
“Little Junior Brother provides the peaches, I’ll provide the Peach Blossom Wine—a perfect match!”
Everyone burst into laughter.
In their hearts, they were all thinking about what to bring next time to make things more lively.
Watching his excited Senior Brothers and Sisters chatting away, Ning Qi smiled peacefully.
After the laughter faded.
The Seeking Dao Courtyard returned to silence.
Ning Qi didn’t feel out of place.
He resumed his cultivation.
...
Time passed slowly.
In the blink of an eye, autumn had arrived.
Daoist Longshan still showed no signs of emerging from seclusion.
Ning Qi, on the other hand, made another breakthrough.
He successfully connected his internal energy with his physical body and entered the sixth false-death state.
Half a month later, he awoke from the false-death state. His eyes were radiant and his aura powerful.
“Seventh Fold Realm. My internal energy can now extend over thirty zhang outside my body—it’s pretty terrifying. It even has a trace of True Qi Force. If I catch someone off guard, they’ll suffer.”
Ning Qi felt very strong now.
With his internal energy growing stronger, he began studying killing techniques. If he added the Sword Intent and Fist Intent he had previously understood onto his internal energy, it would unleash great power. Especially since Ning Qi’s internal energy could stack effects—it was terrifying.
For example, there was one move: Triple Coldflame Sword.
It not only contained both ice and fire attributes, but also included shock, spin, and slash effects.
If he used that move, Fifth Senior Brother’s protective Qi definitely wouldn’t withstand it.
Ning Qi tried once again to send his internal energy into White Ape’s body but still failed.
But this failure only confirmed one thing for Ning Qi: his internal energy still wasn’t strong enough.
“One more breakthrough to reach the Eighth Fold Realm, and it should work.”
Ning Qi figured he’d hit the Eighth Fold Realm around age seven, which shouldn’t be a problem.
As he pondered.
Luo Wentian’s joyful voice called from outside the courtyard:
“Little Nine, you’re out of seclusion?”
Luo Wentian had come by before, but White Ape told him Ning Qi was in seclusion, so he didn’t disturb him. Now that he came again, he found Ning Qi had already emerged.
Ning Qi smiled and said:
“Just came out today. Haven’t had the chance to inform you, Senior Brother.”
Luo Wentian waved his hand and said:
“No worries. I was just passing by. If you need anything, just let your Senior Brother know.”
Ning Qi nodded.
He didn’t doubt that one bit. In fact, he had never gone down the mountain to acquire martial resources. Unlike rogue cultivators with no backing who risk their lives for a single breakthrough pill, he considered himself very lucky.
He had avoided conflict while still weak.
“Senior Brother, how are things in the sect lately?”
“Pretty good. Nothing major—just that Master still hasn’t come out.”
Luo Wentian’s expression was a little worried. He trusted his master, but this retreat had already lasted nearly half a year.
“Master will definitely be fine.”
The two chatted.
A moment later, Jiang Baishan’s voice rang out from the distance:
“Senior Brother! People from the Purple River Sword Sect are here again!”