Chapter 62: Chapter 62: I Wasn’t Wrong About You

Refusing to accept it, Jiang Che ate several more dried insects.

As a result, the generated Qi Blood, without exception, all flowed into the Heart of the Black Abyss!

Only after he had eaten a full catty of dried insects did the Heart of the Black Abyss finally stop absorbing his Qi Blood.

Only then did the excess Qi Blood slowly begin to enter his internal organs.

’What in the world is going on?’

Jiang Che was a little shocked.

His Qi Blood growth was already very slow.

If he also had to nourish a Heart of the Black Abyss...

How in the world would he ever manage to fill his Qi Blood?

’I hope it’s only like this today...’

「The next morning.」

Jiang Che got up early and began to eat Exotic Beast Meat.

To his disappointment, the newly generated Qi Blood still went to the Heart of the Black Abyss first!

Jiang Che instantly felt a bit frustrated.

’For no good reason, there’s a thief inside my body stealing my Qi Blood!’

He sensed the Heart of the Black Abyss and felt it was completely empty.

After the Qi Blood entered, it was like pouring it into a bottomless pit; there was no change at all.

’Do I have to fill it completely before it stops absorbing my Qi Blood?’

Jiang Che felt a bit desperate.

However, the thought that he had at least gained a decent trump card from this made him feel a little better.

Besides, he was also a little curious.

If this Heart of the Black Abyss were to be completely filled, what kind of transformation might it bring?

...

...

With the Blood Sacrifice eliminated,

the Government Office issued a notice.

The mysterious figure who had been hunting Martial Artists had been brought to justice.

Everyone was urged to resume their normal lives.

The various Martial Arts Halls and Escort Agencies also resumed normal operations.

The East District regained its former liveliness.

「White Cloud Martial Arts Hall.」

Gong Yulei, Zhang Xiong, and Lin Xue’er were already waiting in the courtyard.

Besides them, there were a few other people present.

Two of them had weak Qi Blood.

One was a dark, skinny youth who seemed rather introverted, standing alone in a corner.

The other was a fair-skinned, slightly chubby boy with a somewhat round face. He seemed more extroverted and was chatting with Zhang Xiong about something.

These two were new recruits from the Apprentice Hall who had just recently managed to sense Qi Blood.

In addition, there were three older-looking disciples.

One was a tall, sturdy man who looked to be about thirty years old.

Another was a tall woman with a bob cut.

Her gaze was sharp, and the muscles on her exposed arms were well-defined, no less so than any male disciple’s.

The last was a handsome man with somewhat effeminate features.

These were the formal disciples of the White Cloud Martial Arts Hall from an earlier batch.

...

"Senior Brother Zhang, how come even the senior brothers and sisters we don’t normally see are here today?"

the fair-skinned, chubby boy asked Zhang Xiong, his voice filled with excitement and curiosity.

"I heard that because of the mysterious culprit, no one has come for a long time. Now that the culprit has been brought to justice, Master wants to check on everyone’s training progress," Zhang Xiong said coolly.

"Is it just us? I heard Master has over twenty formal disciples. Where are the others?" the chubby boy continued to ask.

"For various reasons, those people stopped training and have taken positions in various factions. The ones still looking to improve are just us."

Zhang Xiong’s tone was a bit impatient. The chubby boy was a chatterbox who kept pestering him with questions.

But as a senior brother, he couldn’t very well refuse, so he had to answer them one by one.

"Oh right, Senior Brother Zhang, what’s the deal with that mysterious figure? Do you know?" the chubby boy was still asking.

"I don’t know."

"Senior Brother Zhang, what’s that beautiful senior sister’s name? She’s so pretty!"

"..." Zhang Xiong simply stopped replying.

But the chubby boy wasn’t the least bit embarrassed and kept rambling on about whatever came to mind, his mouth never stopping for a moment.

Just then, Jiang Che arrived.

"Jiang Che!"

Zhang Xiong quickly went to greet him, thinking, ’I can finally shake off this little chatterbox.’

But before he even got close, a look of shock crossed Zhang Xiong’s face.

He saw Jiang Che walking toward him, his body brimming with vigorous Qi Blood and a sharp aura, exactly like the few of them after they broke through to the Stone Skin Realm.

"You... you broke through?!" Zhang Xiong exclaimed in shock.

Jiang Che smiled and nodded.

’Everyone will find out sooner or later, so there’s no point in hiding it.’

"Good man! You... you’re something else!"

Zhang Xiong slapped Jiang Che hard on the back, knowing he hadn’t been wrong about him!

Although Jiang Che had only broken through to the Stone Skin Realm by taking a Qi Replenishing Pill and eating Middle-Grade Exotic Beast Meat from the Shao Mansion,

a breakthrough was a breakthrough, and it was a good thing. It didn’t mean he couldn’t advance further in the future. In his heart, Zhang Xiong was genuinely happy for him.

Gong Yulei and Lin Xue’er were standing not far away, chatting.

Recently, Lin Xue’er had invited Gong Yulei to be an Honored Guest Elder for her family, offering him a hefty sum plus a share of the profits.

Gong Yulei’s status as the Vice Gang Leader of the Fish Dragon Gang had immediately helped her reduce a lot of her troubles.

Because of this, she had gained a lot of face within her family.

Now, she had firm control over her entire family, and her business was growing bigger and bigger.

Those uncles who had been stirring up trouble before had also finally settled down.

Seeing that Jiang Che seemed to have broken through to the Stone Skin Realm,

the two of them glanced over.

Gong Yulei snorted coldly, a look of contempt on his face.

Lin Xue’er chuckled lightly.

"I didn’t expect him to actually break through. But for someone who forced it with Elixir Pills, that’s probably the limit of his potential."

She suddenly thought of something interesting and continued:

"By the way, Brother Gong, do you know how that mysterious figure was caught?"

"Oh? Tell me."

"This is what a friend from the Government Office told me, but I don’t know if it’s true. They said that the mysterious person’s Perception was extremely sharp. If any expert at the Iron Skin Realm or above appeared within a hundred-meter radius, they would flee, making them impossible to catch! So, the Government Office found a Stone Skin Realm Martial Artist to act as bait, and that’s how they finally caught them."

Gong Yulei frowned. "Really? The gap between the Iron Skin Realm and the Stone Skin Realm is enormous. Normally, a single blow would be fatal. How could this person have acted as bait?"

He was somewhat skeptical.

Ever since their master, Luo Kun, had spoken of the gap between the Iron Skin and Stone Skin Realms, he had specifically sought out a skilled fighter at the Early-stage of the Iron Skin Realm from the Fish Dragon Gang to spar with.

He was defeated right away, without even a chance to fight back!

He tried countless times and always lost within three moves, with absolutely no room to maneuver.

He considered himself to be second to none among those in the Stone Skin Realm.

Therefore, he simply couldn’t believe that someone with a Stone Skin Realm Cultivation could hold their own against that mysterious person from the Iron Skin Realm!

"I’m not sure. It’s possible my friend got the Cultivation Realm wrong. I was also a bit skeptical when I heard it," Lin Xue’er agreed.

"Oh, and I also heard that to persuade that person, the Government Office rewarded them with five catties of Top Grade Exotic Beast Meat!"

"Top Grade Exotic Beast Meat?!" Gong Yulei looked shocked.

Since becoming the Vice Gang Leader of the Fish Dragon Gang, he had come into contact with more and more Noble Family Members. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

His knowledge of the world was naturally different from before.

Even their Gang Leader couldn’t get his hands on this Top Grade Exotic Beast Meat, let alone him!

Even the Five Great Noble Families only had small quantities of it.

Basically, it was only ever rewarded to the most talented younger members of a clan.

And even then, only a tiny amount was used at the critical moment of a breakthrough.

To think that the Government Office would actually offer something like this just to capture one mysterious person?

"Yes... I was shocked when I heard it too. This is Top Grade Exotic Beast Meat we’re talking about! It’s said to be a great help for Breaking Realm! Many people rely on it to break through to the Iron Skin Realm!"

Lin Xue’er’s face was also full of envy as she spoke.

They were all currently in the Stone Skin Realm and would all face the hurdle of the Iron Skin Realm in the future.

For the vast majority of Martial Artists, this hurdle was like a natural chasm.

Ever since Luo Kun said that only one person managed to successfully break through to the Iron Skin Realm each year, they were no longer as confident as they had been at the start.

Failing to break through to the Iron Skin Realm could, at best, cause one’s Realm to regress, and at worst, result in damaged meridians.

Although, in theory, one could start their Cultivation over,

leaving aside the time it would take to train back to one’s Peak,

the failure itself would also take a toll on one’s Temperament.

It was like someone who had almost drowned being too afraid to ever enter the water again.

So, an item like this that could reduce the difficulty of a breakthrough was incomparably precious to them!

At that moment, Luo Kun slowly walked into the courtyard.

He was still dressed in a faded black martial arts uniform, his head of inch-long white hair standing on end.

With his hands behind his back, his eagle-like gaze swept over the crowd.

Upon seeing Jiang Che, his expression changed slightly.

’This kid broke through? Not bad!’

However, he knew it was because Jiang Che had taken a Qi Replenishing Pill, so he wasn’t too surprised.

He cleared his throat and slowly addressed the crowd:

"I’ve called you all here today for one reason: to check your Cultivation progress. Alright, who’s first?"