Sword drawn from the constellations, poison as its edge.

Chapter 19 Innate? Acquired?
Time passed little by little.

The charcoal on the stove was almost burned out, and white steam rose from the clay pot, wafting a fragrant aroma.

Zhui Fengzi and A Zi's stomachs were already rumbling, but they didn't even glance at him. Their four eyes were fixed on Jiang Mingzhe without blinking.

"Whoosh—ha—"

With long, deep breaths, Jiang Mingzhe suddenly raised his hands, which were pressing on his lower abdomen, to his chest, then slowly pressed them down. He opened his mouth slightly and exhaled a thick purple breath. Before it could dissipate, he immediately inhaled, as if a whale were sucking in the sea, and the purple breath entered through his mouth and nose.

"Alright!" Zhui Fengzi and A Zi exclaimed in unison.

Jiang Mingzhe's eyelids twitched, and he opened his eyes. He was surprised by how bright the room was. He turned his head to look out the window and saw that the sky was already beginning to lighten.

I've been practicing for so long? It feels like only a short while has passed.

Jiang Mingzhe was utterly astonished, feeling as if it were the first time he had ever played League of Legends, and before he knew it, the all-night session was over.

Azi asked impatiently, "Big Ginger, how many acupoints did you open?"

Zhui Feng Zi chuckled, as if he had heard something utterly absurd, and shook his head repeatedly: "Although Junior Brother Jiang's talent is astonishing, he is not a god after all. It is fortunate for disciples of our sect to be able to open their minds after two years of cultivating their Qi. Only Senior Brother and you can successfully open your minds within a year. Even with the help of the Five Treasures Flower Honey Wine, Junior Brother Jiang can still raise his internal Qi to half a finger in one night, which is already extremely frightening."

Jiang Mingzhe couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.

Zhui Fengzi smiled and looked at Jiang Mingzhe: "Junior Brother Jiang, it's not that I'm jealous of you or wish you bad luck, it's just that after you drank this wine, the hurdle of finding the Qi sensation will be much easier for you, and cultivating Qi will also be much easier. However, if the internal Qi grows too fast, it will inevitably be difficult to control. I guess you've been struggling with that Qi all night, haven't you?"

Jiang Mingzhe thought for a moment and nodded: "Senior brother is indeed worthy of being called senior brother, his insight is truly remarkable!"

People say that people speak the truth when they're drunk, but for Jiang Mingzhe, it's often after drinking that the real performance begins.

Even after Zhui Fengzi offered him this exceptionally valuable Five Treasures Honey Wine, Mingzhe still had no intention of revealing the truth.

He had just finished cultivating, following the route described in the Qi Cultivation Chapter, using his mind to guide the flow of Qi. He felt many tiny but real energies rapidly merging into him, and that Qi quickly grew from a hair's breadth to the thickness of a little finger.

After spinning around several more times, it grew to the size of a small wine glass!
At this point, the energy along the path also became much scarcer, and the growth rate of internal energy slowed down.

Although the extent of his internal energy far exceeded the "half-finger thickness" that Zhui Fengzi had imagined, Jiang Mingzhe did not find it difficult to control at all.

Jiang Mingzhe pondered to himself, thinking it must be related to the degree of focus he maintained.

He recalled how he used to study for hours without looking up, completely absorbed in his work, and he maintained the same level of focus when controlling that flow of air.

But then a small accident happened...

He planned to ask Azi about this privately later.

Just as he thought of Azi, Azi stood in front of him, her little face tense and unusually serious: "Big Ginger, you must remember one thing: when you are practicing, never let any of your fellow disciples see you!"

Jiang Mingzhe blinked, and Azi, without keeping him in suspense, told him in detail about the purple aura appearing on his face.

He added, “Actually, it’s the same when we practice internal energy cultivation, but it’s usually just a wisp of yellow energy, or at most white energy. Master said that purple, crimson, blue, white, and yellow are different colors that indicate how well you are compatible with the cultivation method of our sect. For example, when I practice, the energy that appears on my face is white energy.”

"When the eldest brother practices, his face turns blue. Master says that someone with his talent is one in a thousand and is very suitable for cultivating the Tribulation Crossing Scripture. Therefore, he is younger than many of his senior brothers, but his martial arts are the best. As for crimson, it is one in ten thousand. It is said that if one practices the sect's techniques, one year is equivalent to ten years for others. And your purple aura is even rarer than crimson. Master once said that there could not be such a person in the world."

Crimson, or red, is already one in a million; the even more precious purple is naturally beyond question.

No wonder Azi told Jiang Mingzhe not to reveal himself to others. A surge of secret joy welled up in Jiang Mingzhe's heart: So I really am that one-in-a-million martial arts prodigy!
While pleased with himself, he was also puzzled: "Senior sister, if there is no such person in the world, why is he included?"

Azi blinked, momentarily speechless: "Anyway, anyway, that's what Master said..."

“I do know a little about this matter,” Zhui Fengzi replied.

"Our sect's Tribulation Crossing Scripture, in terms of internal energy power alone, is not particularly outstanding. Its true strength lies in the fact that the internal energy we cultivate can be refined into various poisons. With the enhancement of poison, its power is no less than any other unique skill in the world! However—"

Zhui Fengzi's tone revealed a deep sense of envy: "The amount of poison each person can withstand is quite different."

"Purple, crimson, blue, white, and yellow symbolize different upper limits of the poison power that can be absorbed. For example, I can only absorb ordinary snake venom, while Azi can absorb the potent venom of some rare snakes. Zhaixingzi is even more powerful; he once absorbed the venom of the Golden and Silver Blood Snake, a rare species of snake, considered one of the most poisonous creatures in the world. As for your purple color, it is called an innate poison body, which cannot be absorbed by any poison in the world!"

"A congenital poison body?" Jiang Mingzhe murmured.

Although it sounds impressive, upon closer inspection, it seems to be just that kind of thing.

Perhaps only by cultivating this Star Constellation Tribulation Transcending Scripture can one be considered a martial arts prodigy, one in ten thousand...

No, a genius at making poisons.

Before Zhui Fengzi could finish speaking, he said, "I once overheard my master mention that the human body naturally contains various poisons, including cold, heat, dampness, and turbidity. The higher the level of poison within one's body, the stronger one's ability to withstand external poisons. Someone like you with a congenital poisonous body... according to my master, you would surely die before the age of three... Eh!"

As if realizing something, Zhui Fengzi exclaimed, "Could it be that your poisonous constitution wasn't innate, but rather cultivated later in life?"

As soon as he said it, Zhuifengzi's expression changed.

It seems I've stumbled upon an astonishing secret!

How did this old thief suddenly end up with a son at his age?
Could it be that he found some secret method for cultivating a congenital poison body, but was too old to master it himself, so he simply had a son and personally cultivated him into a peerless talent comparable to a congenital poison body?
Jiang Mingzhe's expression was also extremely strange.

A vague suspicion began to form in his mind—

I was just saying, how come I, someone who has only ever won ten yuan in the Double Color Ball lottery, have such a rare talent?

Damn it, my "congenitally toxic body" is probably a product of modern food industrialization!
From air to water, from food to daily necessities.

gutter oil, smog, Sudan Red...

Modern people are already immune to all poisons!
Moreover, these bizarre toxins are absorbed into the body little by little in extremely small amounts.

Isn't this the body-refining secret method that Zhui Fengzi has been dreaming of?
I'm afraid that even those with truly innate poisonous constitutions don't have as many different kinds of toxins in their bodies as modern people!

Jiang Mingzhe finally understood this and let out a frustrated sigh.

Zhui Fengzi, feigning kindness, patted him solemnly on the shoulder: "Remember your senior sister's words, don't tell anyone about this."

He then smiled and said, "We'll all keep this a secret for you. Let's eat first; the chicken and snake are stewed until they're very tender. Fill your stomach first."

Upon hearing the word "eat," Jiang Mingzhe's stomach rumbled like thunder.

(End of this chapter)