Chapter 42: Gathering Spirit Stone

  Hao Cheng Xiao, the demonic doctor who takes lives, has a nature that is dormant within him, which is to be addicted to killing. In his past, he took pleasure in taking lives and made it his goal to challenge the limits of life and death.

  If one were to say, who in this world has the most enemies? Hao Cheng Xiao dares to say he's first, and no one dares to say second. The only difference between him and others is that many of other people's enemies are still alive, but all of his enemies are dead.

  "As long as he's still alive, it has nothing to do with me. The only one who got my true transmission is him, if he gets killed, I'll wipe out the entire family of his opponent, if not dead, then they should experience cruel slaughter."

  His cold words came out of Hao Cheng Xiao's mouth, and the temperature around him dropped several degrees as he spoke.

  "Ah, you old devil, you're really stubborn to the end. Alright, I'll go back and drink some wine, you just keep on cultivating!"

  "Wait!"

  Hao Cheng took out a black iron ball the size of a ping-pong ball and controlled it to fly into Yao Tianxiao's hand, then said faintly: "This thing, you give it to him, tell him that unless he encounters a life-or-death critical moment, don't use it lightly."

  Dú Láng Dān

  Yao Tianxiao's eyes flashed with a hint of unusual color, and he chuckled hoarsely as he shook his head, turning to walk out of the courtyard.

  The next morning.

  As the strong wine fragrance wafted through every corner of Old Wang's tavern, Zhang Yi and Tong Hu walked out of the quiet room, both with a faint smile on their faces. Apparently, this whole night's cultivation had restored them quite well.

  "Zhang Yi, come with me."

  In the courtyard, Yao Tianxiao was sipping fine wine and smoking a cigarette, half-reclining in that rocking chair. Only when he saw Zhang Yi and Tong Hu come out of the quiet room did he slowly get up.

  Zhang Yi nodded at Tong Hu and indicated for him to wait, then followed behind Yao Tianxiao in the direction of the private room.

  "Senior Yao, what instructions do you have?"

  After taking his seat, Zhang Yi asked respectfully.

  Yao Tianxiao took out two things and handed them to Zhang Yi, saying: "This is a map of the black market. If you're not familiar with the black market, it's impossible to get in without a map; this is also a poisonous wolf pill, Old Demon asked me to give it to you, this thing is extremely toxic. It's also your best trump card for survival when you encounter danger in the future; remember, unless absolutely necessary, you must not use it, and you can't use it in crowded places."

  Zhang Yi took over the two things and curiously asked: "Yao senior, what effect does this poisonous wolf pill have?"

  Yao Tianxiao said solemnly, "A violent collision will cause it to explode. In an instant, the surrounding area of several tens of meters will be shrouded in a poisonous gas that will corrode anyone within its range. Even if they are ancient warriors who have reached the realm of external qi emission, they will surely die upon contact. If they cannot find an antidote within a short period of time, even those who have reached the realm of external qi emission may not survive for long."

  "Is it that fierce?"

  Zhang Yi's eyes widened in an instant, and his gaze flowed with an unbelievable expression.

  A moment later, Zhang Yi seemed to realize something and asked, "Senior Yao, what is this Poison Wolf Dan? Is it a trump card for survival? It's a means of mutual destruction, right? Unless you throw it far away, otherwise, in close combat with the enemy, when forced to use this, the toxic gas will also envelop yourself instantly."

  Yao Tianxiao said with a smile: "This is also its special place. If the person who uses Du Lang Dan wears it on their body for three days, after three days, when using Du Lang Dan again, they will not be affected by the toxic gas after its explosion."

  "Is it really that amazing?"

  "Alright, take these two things and leave Shibatown!" Yao Tian Xiao nodded with a smile.

  "Zhang Yi nodded and said: 'Yes, let's leave now.'"

  "Zhang Yi, although the old demon is bloodthirsty, he has lived until now. Guard your heart, and kill when necessary." Yao Tianxiao said in a low voice as he gazed at Zhang Yi's back.

  Zhang Yi's footsteps paused for a moment, and then he strode out of the room with large steps.

  Defend your heart, kill when you should.

  Zhang Yi deeply engraved this sentence in his heart. He knew that Yao Tianxiao wouldn't harm him, he just wanted to make himself live a little longer.

  On the old bridge outside Shibadong Town, there were few pedestrians passing by. Zhang Yi and Tong Hu had bought some daily necessities in the town and changed their clothes before coming here.

  An old figure stood in front of the two people.

  "Hao senior!"

  Two people came to the old man's side, Zhang Yi respectfully called out.

  Hao Cheng slowly turned around, his gaze swept over Tong Hu's body and landed on Zhang Yi's face. His right hand slightly raised, two milky white stones floated in front of Zhang Yi:

  "Take these two Soul Gathering Stones, and when your true energy is greatly depleted in the future, hold them in your hand to cultivate."

  Spirit Stone?

  Zhang Yi was shocked in his heart.

  He had previously heard Tóng Hǔ's explanation about the Jù Líng Shí, and knew that this Jù Líng Shí contained a vast amount of spiritual energy. When ancient warriors cultivated with it in hand, they could continuously absorb the spiritual energy within, increasing their own strength; at the same time, during cultivation, the speed of absorbing external heavenly and earthly spiritual energy would also be greatly increased.

  Baby!

  Zhang Yi took the two Ling Stones and connected them in his hand, joyfully saying: "Thank you, Senior Hao."

  Hao Cheng said expressionlessly: "Your actions before you left last time were very dissatisfying to me. No matter what you're doing in the black market this time, or what plans you have, if I see you again next time and don't see a satisfactory killing intent on you, watch how I'll deal with you."

  Killing intent?

  Zhang Yi had no mental burden, went to the black market, he and Tong Hu were about to go to the Western Wilderness, believing that they would definitely encounter danger inside, and also cultivate murderous aura.

  "Ha ha, Hao Shixiong, it seems we are now sworn enemies."

  Hao Cheng's face showed a hint of a smile, and his figure suddenly disappeared in front of the two.

  "Whoa... so fast!"

  Tong Hu's eyeballs almost popped out as he scanned his surroundings, but Hao Cheng Xiao's figure was nowhere to be seen again.

  Zhang Yi smiled and said: "Hao is a master of ancient martial arts, although I don't know what level his cultivation has reached, but he's definitely much stronger than us!"

  Tong Hu swallowed his saliva, shocked and said: "I dare say that even the strong ones who have reached the realm of True Qi external release may not necessarily have such speed. Xiao Yi, how did you get to know this senior?"

  Zhang Yi said: "Hao and Yao are both old friends of my master."

  Tong Hu's expression changed suddenly, and as the shock faded away, a strange color appeared in his eyes. He asked, "Xiao Yi, have you ever killed anyone before?"

  "No!"

  Zhang Yi said straightforwardly.

  Tong Hu sighed and said, "So, Senior Hao deliberately dug a pit for you to jump into, but unexpectedly, you actually jumped in foolishly. Do you know how the murderous aura that ancient warriors exude is cultivated?"

  Zhang Yi looked puzzled and asked: "How did you cultivate this?"

  Tong Hu said solemnly, "After experiencing multiple cruel killings, my hands are stained with fresh blood. I have to slaughter ten people to gain a hint of killing aura. What I mean is slaughter. If I don't treat the enemy cruelly, I would need to kill dozens of people before there's even a hint of killing aura on me."

  "Cough...cough..."

  Zhang Yi's face suddenly turned purple, and he couldn't catch his breath for a moment, almost being suffocated to death.

  Myself...

  What did I just say?

  Is it settled with just one word?

  What the hell!

  How could I have fallen into Hao Chengxiao's trap so stupidly?

  Jingnan City

  Zhongshan Mausoleum, nestled between mountains and water, a small blind alley, Chu Qianying held a document, quietly watching, her eyes flowing with a few worried expressions.

  She had been in Jingnan City for several months, but she hadn't found any news of Zhang Yi. Just when she was about to give up, a big event happened in Jingnan City, and she inadvertently learned the truth. After a thorough investigation, she finally knew that Zhang Yi was indeed in Jingnan City and had even encountered danger.

  "There is still no news about him now, where exactly is he?"

  Chu Qianying stuffed the documents into her travel bag, a hesitant look flickering in her eyes.

  She received a message from her master a few days ago, asking her to go to the black market and gather information about the legendary "Golden Cicada" of the ancient martial world.

  "Now, with so many people in the capital looking for Zhang Yi and not finding him, it's not very useful to stay here. I'll go to the black market first and ask about Jin Xianglian's whereabouts. Maybe by the time I get back to the capital, I'll have news of Zhang Yi."

  Chu Qiuying, who had been hesitating for several days, finally made a decision.

  Jiangshan Huayuan Villa District

  Nian Hong sat quietly on the sofa, looking at Jiang Hongyan sitting opposite her, and said calmly: "Hongyan, Xiao Yi is in a dangerous situation, but he still remembers to care about your safety, letting you leave here temporarily. This shows that you are very important to him. The people Xiao Yi cares about are also the people I care about, so come with me! Let's move to a different place."

  "Where are you going, Aunt Niang?" asked Jiang Hongyan.

  Nianhong said, "I have several properties in Jingnan City. Let's go to the Tianhao Villa area in the city center. Recently, I've brought over many people from abroad, and it's not very convenient for us to continue staying here."

  Jiang Hongyan hesitated for a moment and nodded silently.

  She can now be certain that Nian Hong is genuinely concerned about Zhang Yi, deeply worried about him, so in her heart, she made a secret decision:

  "Aunt Ni, there's something I've been keeping from you."

  Nianhong raised an eyebrow and asked, "What's going on?"

  Jiang Hongyan said: "Zhang Yi's last phone call to me was to ask us to wait for him in Jingnan City. If he didn't come back for a long time, I should take Yinyin and my mother to Mingguang City Shibatou Town to find two seniors, the specific address is known by Yinyin."

  Does Ting know?

  Nihong's body shook violently, and her figure vanished instantly from where she stood.

  On the second floor, Yin was holding a brush and painting on a piece of paper. She sensed someone approaching and immediately looked up with a smile: "Grandma, you've come to find me for something?"

  Nianhong picked up Yin-yin and asked, "Yin-yin darling, tell grandma, those two seniors in Mingguang City's Shibeizhen, who are they? What is their specific address?"

  Yingying giggled and said: "Grandma also knows Mr. Yao and Mr. Hao? They are at the clinic and the wine shop!"

  Nianhong's heart moved slightly, and she asked: "Yinyin darling, would you like Grandma to take you there to find them?"