I picked up skill fragments in the demon world.

Chapter 837 Asking for Secret Techniques
The elixir refined by Empress Biyun was not complicated. It was just an elixir that could nourish vital energy and increase magic power. With Empress Biyun's level of cultivation, she succeeded in refining the elixir in just half a month. Then, an endless supply of elixirs were produced. Zhang Chen, who was standing by, had his eyelids twitching and felt like he had screwed up.

He didn't have to think about refining the medicine anymore. From the moment Empress Biyun started refining the medicine, his hopes had been shattered.

"What should I do? If I keep delaying like this, I won't get any benefits!" Zhang Chen muttered to himself.

But after a long time, Zhang Chen really thought of a good idea, which is: regardless of the distraction technique, he should attack the peach tree first!
As for how to get the peaches? Zhang Chen had only one word: delay.

I can wait until the next time I eat the peaches. Then I can use the excuse that 'eating spiritual roots of heaven and earth can speed up my cultivation' to ask Queen Mother Queen Mother to let me eat more peaches. Wouldn't I make a fortune then?

Of course, before that, I must create a strong contrast. What kind of contrast? If I don't eat the peaches, my progress in cultivation is equivalent to that of a turtle, but if I eat the peaches, my progress is like a rocket. When the comparison comes out, Queen Mother of the West will definitely make a choice.

"As you progress in your practice, it becomes more and more difficult to make progress. It seems normal that you can't advance by one level in a year, right?" Zhang Chen muttered to himself.

It's a pity that he is now trapped in the Medicine Hall and cannot find out the location of the Peach Garden, otherwise he might be able to make more attempts.

"But there is a prerequisite for this, that is, I have to endure the pain of being whipped by the Queen Mother of the West!"

Just as Zhang Chen was thinking about this, Empress Biyun placed the refined pill in front of him and said, "Take the pill!"

Zhang Chen took a look at the pill, picked it up, put it in his mouth and swallowed it, then continued to meditate and practice.

A month later, Lady Biyun refined another batch of elixirs and came to Zhang Chen, asking, "How is your practice going?"

Hearing Lady Biyun's question, Zhang Chen smiled bitterly and said, "Don't mention it. The pain in my body has been disturbing me. Although there are pills that can increase my cultivation, the pain is too severe. I can't concentrate on my cultivation at all."

"Not even a single layer has been broken through?" Empress Biyun's expression changed when she heard that.

Zhang Chen smiled bitterly, "I don't want to, but there is really no way. Sister has seen that I have been practicing hard here without any slacking off, but my talent is so limited... I was able to break through the eighteenth level in a hundred years before because of the elixir refined by the Queen Mother of the West. But now the elixir refined by sister is not as good as the Queen Mother of the West, and my cultivation progress is really not improving."

Empress Biyun was a little overwhelmed when she heard this. After a long while, she said, "Don't worry. Only one month has passed in the hundred years. You should practice well and leave the medicine making to me."

After saying this, Empress Biyun went back to making medicine, concentrating on studying the art of making medicine.

Lady Biyun left, leaving Zhang Chen sitting there in silence, silently deducing the method of splitting the soul. As for cultivation? What the hell!

Zhang Chen wanted to eat peaches! He wanted to eat lots and lots of peaches!

Ten years passed in the blink of an eye, and Zhang Chen's cultivation had not improved at all. Empress Biyun was so anxious that she scratched her head and ears. After taking a look at Zhang Chen who was practicing hard, she sat back in front of the alchemy furnace and began to ponder the art of alchemy.

Zhang Chen's progress in cultivation is slow, and Empress Biyun is helpless. She can see that Zhang Chen is really practicing very seriously, and has been sitting cross-legged in cultivation, but there is no breakthrough at all. Isn't that infuriating?
Time passed quickly, and another hundred years passed. Under Zhang Chen's intentional control, his cultivation level improved by three levels and reached the twenty-first level.

He consumed a vast amount of various elixirs and pills, but his progress in cultivation was as slow as a snail.

Empress Biyun looked at Zhang Chen with a pale face: "In a hundred years, you have only gained three levels of cultivation. What should we do?"

Zhang Chen stood up at this time, his face was also pale, and his body was shaking with fear: "But I have tried my best. The following training is very difficult, each level is more difficult than the previous one."

Lady Biyun didn't say anything, and didn't know what to say. She could only sigh helplessly: "Let's go and meet the Queen Mother of the West. I will try my best to plead for you."

On the altar
Queen Mother Xi looked at Zhang Chen, then at Lady Biyun beside her, her eyes full of coldness: "You told me that you have only advanced to the third level in a hundred years?"

Queen Biyun was too frightened to speak. She stood aside with a face full of fear, her body trembling. Zhang Chen also knelt on the ground with a pale face: "Queen, this formula is easy to get started, but it becomes slower and slower to practice later. In addition, I have to offset the pain in my body, so I can't concentrate on practicing. Please have mercy on me, Queen."

Upon hearing this, Empress Biyun also knelt on the ground and kowtowed before saying, "Your Majesty, I have been watching him for a hundred years. Jia Shiba is indeed working hard on his cultivation without any delay. Please calm down, Your Majesty."

“Calm down? How can I calm down? A hundred years, plus so many resources, a pig should have cultivated to the fifty levels, but he has only improved to the third level. How can I calm down?” The Queen Mother of the West’s voice was so cold that layers of snowflakes froze in the void.

Then the golden whip appeared in his hand: "Jia Shiba's practice is not good, the punishment is thirty whips! Biyun's supervision is not good, the punishment is fifteen whips!"

"Your Majesty, this has nothing to do with Biyun. It was my stupidity that implicated Biyun. Please punish me alone." When Zhang Chen heard that Biyun was also going to be punished, he couldn't help but feel moved and quickly stood up to plead for mercy.

Queen Biyun is responsible for supervising me. If I am also implicated and punished, how can I have a good life? I am afraid I will be in big trouble! If Queen Biyun makes things difficult for me, I will be in trouble.

"Do you want to plead for Biyun?" Queen Mother of the West smiled coldly.

"Everyone has his own actions and responsibilities. If I make a mistake, I will never implicate others." Zhang Chen said quickly.

Upon hearing this, Queen Mother Xi smiled coldly and said, "It is impossible to exempt Biyun from the fifteen lashes, unless you take them for her."

Zhang Chen bowed his head without hesitation and said, "I am willing to bear these fifteen lashes for Biyun."

He took fifteen lashes for Biyun so as to reduce a lot of torture. If Empress Biyun whipped him a few times when supervising him, he would be even more unlucky. Even if Empress Biyun only whipped him once a year in a hundred years, it would be enough for him to bear.

"Okay! Then you will suffer for Queen Biyun!" Queen Mother Xi's voice was full of indifference.

"My lady, I don't need others to take on my own business." Lady Biyun stepped forward and said respectfully to the Queen Mother of the West, "He has already delayed his cultivation by enduring thirty lashes. If he is given fifteen more, I'm afraid the delay will be even greater. If this cycle continues, won't it be a vicious cycle?"

"Hmph, I know exactly what you are talking about. But a country has its own laws and a family has its own rules, and the laws set by me must not be violated." The Queen Mother of the West was ready to use the whip in her hand.

Zhang Chen closed his eyes and said, "I am willing to accept the punishment."

"You are a man of affection and righteousness. In that case, I will grant your wish." The whip in the hand of the Queen Mother of the West left a trail of afterimages in the air. The next moment, a scream was heard from Queen Biyun. Soon, she was crawling on the ground and curled up into a ball. Her whole body was covered in blood and it was unknown whether she was alive or dead.

“Since you are a person of affection and righteousness, let Queen Biyun take the punishment for you. If you don’t want Queen Biyun to be punished, then you must practice well. Otherwise... in a hundred years, Biyun will bear another hundred whippings for you!” Queen Mother of the West said in an icy voice.

Zhang Chen was stunned when he heard the words. Then he saw Queen Mother of the West wave her hand, and Zhang Chen fell from the void and fell under the altar, while Queen Biyun huddled on the ground, a bloody mess, unable to move.

"Take me back!" Empress Biyun's voice was weak, and she was almost out of breath.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Chen hurried forward, carefully held Empress Biyun in his arms, and then walked towards the medicine hall.

Zhang Chen held Empress Biyun horizontally, moving very carefully, fearing that any accidental bumps would increase Empress Biyun's pain.

Arriving at the main hall, Empress Biyun was placed on the ground by Zhang Chen. Her bloody and sunken features gave Zhang Chen a ferocious smile: "Don't be afraid, I'm fine! Crush the elixir and apply it on me."

"I'm sorry, I hurt you." Zhang Chen said in a daze.

He knew how it felt to be whipped, so he also knew how much pain Empress Biyun was in.

Queen Biyun grinned when she heard this and said, "I don't blame you. You have done your best. No one can refute the order of Queen Mother Xi. You just need to work hard on your cultivation and don't slack off."

After saying this, Empress Biyun closed her eyes and she didn't even have the strength to speak.

Zhang Chen hurriedly stepped forward and carefully lifted up the torn clothes for Empress Biyun. Looking at Empress Biyun's body, it was bloody and mangled as if her skin had been peeled off. Zhang Chen carefully crushed the medicine and applied it to Empress Biyun. Empress Biyun's body trembled but she didn't make any sound.

It took a long time for Empress Biyun to be smeared with herbs. Zhang Chen let out a long sigh, and sighed lightly as if a heavy burden had been lifted off his shoulders. Then he stood up and pondered in the palace for a long time. He then stepped out of the hall as if he had made up his mind and walked towards the altar.

Soon Zhang Chen arrived at the altar. Looking at the majestic altar, he climbed all the way up and stood outside the Xiantian formation and bowed respectfully: "I wish to see the Queen Mother of the West."

"Why did you come back instead of practicing?" Queen Mother of the West opened her eyes and looked at Zhang Chen with a cold look on her face, as if waiting for Zhang Chen to say something foolish.

"I came here to ask the Queen Mother to grant me a secret method to split my soul into two. This way, my two souls can practice in turn, day and night without interruption. The doubled practice time may speed up my practice. As long as I don't rest, I will definitely be able to meet the Queen Mother's requirements." Zhang Chen said respectfully.

This was also a test for the Queen Mother of the West, and it was a necessary test. He felt that with his physique that could withstand heaven's punishment, the Queen Mother of the West would never kill him. Since the other party would not kill him, what was there for him to be afraid of?

Moreover, he also needs to judge how much trouble he will get into in the future by the Queen Mother's reaction and the degree of her indulgence towards him.

(End of this chapter)