The True Lord has arrived

Chapter 136 Immortal Elixir Replenishes Vital Energy, Purple Qi Arrives Above the Jade Emperor's Peak
The dragon's roar lingered, and Ao Xuantao transformed into a dragon body, catching Zhou Yan. He then rode the water and cloud energy, circling down to the earth. Shen Cangming had already rushed over. He planted his Mo Dao (a type of long-handled sword) in the ground and dismounted.

The black beast was covered in blood, but the strange appearance of the mythical beast, the Beast of the Mountains and Seas, had been concealed.

Accompanied by a deep dragon's roar and the dissipation of clouds, the Jinghe Dragon Lord, a hundred feet tall with scales shimmering with pale gold, transformed into an old man. He sat on the ground, supporting the exhausted Zhou Yan. Seeing Shen Cangming anxiously approaching, Ao Xuantao comforted him:

"Master Shen, there's no need to worry, the Prefect is fine."

"But this great battle was too costly..."

Shen Cangming looked at Zhou Yan and, sensing that Zhou Yan's life force was not affected, breathed a sigh of relief. Seeing that Zhou Yan was covered in dust and in a mess, he thought for a moment that during the fight, too many rubble broke off and turned into powder, which sprinkled all over him.

His temples were covered in white ash.

Shen Cangming stretched out his finger to wipe the stone powder off Zhou Yan's hair.

But no matter how hard you scrub, it won't get clean.

Finally, he realized that the young Taoist's temples were already white.

This symptom is commonly seen in cases of excessive mental exertion and deficiency of both qi and blood.

Zhou Yan looked at his hair and his lips twitched. Everyone said that a great battle consumes a lot of energy, but he didn't know it would be so mentally taxing. In this life-or-death battle, Li Longji certainly paid a huge price, but Zhou Yan didn't come away empty-handed either.

Excessive depletion of vital energy leads to graying hair and deficiency of both qi and blood.

However, it's not exactly a loss!

Zhou Yan grabbed Shen Cangming's arm, a smug and satisfied smile on his face. He held something in his left hand and placed it in Shen Cangming's palm, saying, "Uncle Shen, take this!"

Shen Cangming asked, "What?"

Zhou Yan released his hand, and a ball of light dispersed, its light changing. Shen Cangming suddenly felt a stinging sensation in his left eye, and tears streamed down his face. It was like being in darkness for too long and then suddenly seeing light, which was incredibly dazzling.

He was momentarily dazed, then opened his eyes.

Two eyes.

Shen Cangming froze, instinctively reaching out to wipe away the tears that had flowed from the corners of his eyes due to the sunlight. He felt the 'archery memories' returning to his mind. Zhou Yan, however, paused, then said, "Arm..."

Shen Cangming severed his own arm, which was now shrouded in a ball of light. It should have been completely lifeless, but Qingmingfang wanted Shen Cangming's arm and archery skills, seemingly intending to bestow these two things upon his subordinates to create powerful monsters.

Before that, they preserved the life of Shen Cangming's arm.

But no one expected that Zhou Yan would go to such lengths, directly using the Mount Tai Dao Fruit to lock onto the Qingming Fangzhu, and suddenly appearing with the Mount Tai Fujun's ability to control the earth veins, raising his hand to unleash a Drought Demon Fire.

Avenge every wrong, and never rest until death.

Before Qingming Fangzhu could attach the arm to his subordinate's arm, Zhou Yan forcibly snatched it back. If it had been any later, the arm would probably have become demonized.

Ao Xuantao, being from the Jinghe River aquatic tribe, had seen a lot of the world. He used the Water Cloud Technique to protect Shen Cangming's arm and said, "Don't worry, Lord Shen, the life force in your arm has not been cut off. You were even a fifth-rank military officer before."

"With strong Qi and blood, their physical vitality is inherently stronger than that of ordinary people."

"If we can find a renowned physician among the cultivators, there is still a possibility of continuing the lineage. For example, the legendary physician Miaoying Zhenren, the Medicine King Sun Simiao, had such abilities. Although the Medicine King has passed away, his disciples are still alive."

"If we find the successor of the Medicine King, perhaps we can achieve that as well."

Zhou Yan finally breathed a sigh of relief and calmed down.

As his mind relaxed, a sudden wave of intense fatigue washed over him.

Zhou Yan was utterly exhausted from his fight. He first slew the rhinoceros demon, then carried the insect eggs and fought his way out of the cave beneath the Reclining Buddha Temple, killing the abbot and Pei Xuanbao, and then fighting off the insect plague.

Finally, he even harnessed the power of the Lord of Mount Tai and fought a fierce battle against six of the world's top beings.

After finishing the fight, he even traveled thousands of miles to give the Azure Netherworld Master a huge challenge.

It can almost be described as the ultimate in combat experience.

Previously, the good spirits were purely supported by the powerful life force of the God of Agriculture's ears of grain. Now, in order to quell the disasters on earth and thwart the conspiracy of the great monsters like the Weaver Girl, the God of Agriculture's ears of grain have been exhausted.

The fatigue that had been suppressed by the immense life force recovery surged up instantly.

As soon as Zhou Yan felt relieved, he fainted.

Shen Cangming held Zhou Yan in his arms, his expression a mixture of grief and complexity. Just then, a commotion was heard, and they all looked over to see Li Longji, Gao Lishi, and Chen Xuanli.

Ordinary people might not have the ability to see or hear the battle and conversation between the Lord of Mount Tai and those other beings, but these three were different. They witnessed almost everything Zhou Yan did and saw him exhausted.

Shen Cangming was all too familiar with the government and the imperial court.

Wang Zhongsi's tragedy instilled in him an instinctive and extreme distrust of imperial power.

Raised as adopted sons by the emperor, even the most loyal generals and commanders could be abandoned without hesitation, let alone them? Under such circumstances, they could only trust each other and the weapons in their hands.

Shen Cangming gripped the Mo Dao, his eyes icy cold.

Chen Xuanli was still a hundred paces away when he suddenly felt a terrifying killing intent lock onto him. He stopped in his tracks, his pupils contracted, and he saw Shen Cangming over there. Although he only had one arm, his eyes were fully open, and his aura was even stronger than before.

Chen Xuanli saw the arm shrouded in moisture next to Shen Cangming.

"A severed arm regenerated..."

"Oops."

"This person is a veteran of the border army, with an extremely strong killing aura. Both his combat experience and his martial arts skills have been honed to the extreme of ordinary people. He was born into humble circumstances and relied on his experience in death battles to gradually achieve the fifth rank."

Chen Xuanli knew that his fifth-rank official position was different from Shen Cangming's fifth-rank position.

Having consumed countless rare and precious herbs, Chen Xuanli possessed superior magical power and physique compared to Shen Cangming. However, in this confrontation, Chen Xuanli felt a sense of unease, even though he was the commander of the Imperial Guards.

However, in a one-on-one battle, only Shen Cangming would likely survive.

The veteran border troops, who had served for twenty-six years, had fought almost every major war the empire had against foreign tribes. As fellow military strategists, they understood all too well how terrifying this was.

"His only weakness is that he lacks highly nourishing foods."

"If Sun Simiao were alive and his arm were reattached, and with that first-grade immortal pill from the sage, not only would his cultivation level be restored to the fifth grade, but he could even take another step forward and reach the fourth-grade grandmaster level, which was the level of Wang Zhongsi back then."

"That is somewhat..." Chen Xuanli looked at Shen Cangming, who was pointing his Mo Dao at him without hesitation. He sensed the terrifying killing intent and determination emanating from the latter for some reason. As a fellow warrior, Chen Xuanli felt that even if Shen Cangming died here, he would not give way.

Li Longji would be killed by being struck by lightning.

The word came to Chen Xuanli's mind.

Some people have made a mistake by raising tigers...

Li Longji didn't care at all. He coughed a few times, looked at Zhou Yan, whose temples were gray, and said in a low voice, "Even if he put the battlefield in the sky just now, many people still saw it vaguely."

"Plus, there are demons and monsters around, it's not safe here."

"Let's find a place to treat this kid's injuries first."

Do you know of any places nearby where I can get medical treatment?

The monk Kongkong said, "I know, I know! When this humble monk and General Gao Shi arrived, we met a young Taoist priest. It was that young Taoist priest who healed my injuries, which allowed me to get here in time."

Shen Cangming looked at the monk and asked, "Where is he?"

The monk Kongkong said, "This humble monk told him that Wugong Town is facing a calamity, and the people are probably suffering from insect infestation. Now that we are in Wugong Town, this mess can be left to this humble monk and General Chen to handle."

Shen Cangming fell silent for a moment, looking at Zhou Yan, whose foundation had been severely damaged.

He exhaled, held his knife protectively, and spoke succinctly:

"Walk."

Li Longji had Chen Xuanli find a carriage and put Zhou Yan inside. Ao Xuantao drove the carriage himself. Li Longji stretched his limbs and sat cross-legged in the carriage. Gao Lishi was next to him, and Shen Cangming, who had recovered a lot of strength, was opposite him.

The atmosphere was slightly tense. Gao Lishi came in from outside the carriage, took out a pill and a pot of water, and said, "Sage, please take this Nine-Turn Purple Extreme Pill..."

This elixir has nine layers of elixir patterns, a pure purple color, and faintly exudes a powerful elixir energy.

It is a treasure of Longhu Mountain. Back then, Emperor Li Longji bestowed the title of Celestial Master upon Longhu Mountain. This generation of Celestial Masters of Longhu Mountain presented it to us. Its effects are different from the medicine Shen Cangming had taken before. It can quickly restore one's vitality.

Li Longji picked up the elixir with nine layers of purple patterns, but suddenly smiled and sighed.

He stuffed the pill into Zhou Yan's mouth.

Gao Lishi said anxiously, "Your Majesty, there's only one pill left!"

Li Longji kicked him and said, "Sit down."

"But, a sage!"

Gao Lishi didn't listen this time, and almost wanted to pry the pill out of Zhou Yan's mouth, but Shen Cangming stopped him. Li Longji laughed and scolded, "Alright, alright, I've lived long enough. What's the use of taking this pill?"

"At this critical juncture, let's not waste any more time."

Gao Lishi shouted, "How can this be a waste?!"

Li Longji did not answer. After a moment of silence, the long-lived emperor leisurely said, "The human body is like a container. External elixirs can only fill it with something to maintain vitality and life force."

"A good pill can replenish enough vital energy in one go."

"Ordinary pills replenish slowly and also cause toxicity."

"This thing is definitely a good medicine."

"But if this container breaks, no matter how much water you pour in, it will all flow out. You can only keep pouring water in to maintain the appearance of a perfect container, while in reality, it all flows away. Isn't that a waste?"

Gao Lishi looked at Shen Cangming. The pill that Shen Cangming had taken was a miraculous medicine that could restore one's foundation and perfect one's own root. Li Longji said, "Don't look at him. I have suffered too much this time. It's not just a crack, but I've been shattered into dust."

"Even with so many years of glorious reign, there are only a few more years left."

"They'll die within a year or two, or at most three to five years."

Gao Lishi said nothing more, but there was sorrow in his eyes.

Looking at Zhou Yan, whose breathing had become much more stable after taking the pill, Li Longji couldn't help but pat the latter on the head and jokingly scold, "You stinky Taoist, you're reckless in your fight. Do you really think the position of Lord of Mount Tai is so unlucky?"

"If we keep playing like this, one day we might really die."

"At that time, you won't be in charge anymore. If you die, your soul will be swept up and assimilated by the legend of the Lord of Mount Tai that has lasted for thousands of years, and you will truly become the Lord of Mount Tai instead of Zhou Yan."

"At that time, you, Zhou Yan, will become one aspect of the legend of the Lord of Mount Tai. How can you be who you are?"

Li Longji's expression was solemn, unusually earnest and serious:
"Kid, you better hold on."

........................

Zhou Yan fell into a deep sleep. This colossal lie had given him immense power, and indeed, it had resolved the disaster at the Reclining Buddha Temple in a satisfying and exhilarating way. However, Zhou Yan had also suffered enormous losses.

The most painful thing is the loss of the ears of grain, the god of agriculture.

The Xuan Guan of the Fengsui lineage is inherently weak in magic. If they do not stand on the ground, their recovery ability will be greatly reduced. With the God of Agriculture's ears of grain, they can quickly recover their magic power and make up for the lack of total magic power.

Without this treasure, Zhou Yan found it difficult to use many of his spells.

But it felt so good!

As Zhou Yan pondered, while he was drifting off to sleep, his soul wandered, seemingly leaving his physical body and disappearing into an unknown place. He then saw a cave dwelling with two closed doors, which looked extremely heavy.

But as Zhou Yan approached, the two incredibly heavy doors suddenly opened.

In his dream, Zhou Yan walked inside, as if he had returned to his own home.

In reality——

Mount Tai, Jade Emperor Peak.

A gentle, serene purple aura shimmered, illuminating every inch of the space.

Finally, it becomes completely full.

(End of this chapter)