Secret Records of the Leader of the Beichen Sword Sect-Chapter 1007 - 515: Catching Miscellaneous Fish (Part 2)

Therefore, to protect itself, the Hidden Reed Fish almost blends entirely with its surroundings, its skin pattern slowly changing with the color of water plants. Its life cycle is short, and it doesn’t grow large. Even if caught by the Fishing Guy, it would likely be mistaken for some fish fry and casually thrown back into the river, with no chance to join any exclusive collection.

But don’t underestimate this seemingly ordinary mixed-breed fish! Because this mixed-breed fish is also bizarre! It has meridians! It can cultivate! It can become enlightened! And it cultivates special True Qi!

Indeed, life always finds a way.

The Hidden Reed Fish, living and dying within a day, seems just like fish used for raising, akin to roadside weeds, not even caught by fishermen. But in fact, it can refine the combined Xuanming Red Evil Qi! Achieve a Balance of Yin and Yang! It’s a rare elite creature! And it’s only found in Yunmeng Swamp! There are no other branches! 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

Well, similar ecological niche fish exist in other places, but in those places, mixed-breed fish are just that—ordinary. Only the Cloud Dream Hidden Reed Fish has achieved evolution because it resides in Yunmeng Swamp.

Ah, this story has its origin, according to Chen Xuantian’s research, ahem, fine, it’s according to Peng Ju’s research, that Yunmeng Swamp, before becoming a vast water body, was once the Imperial City of the Ancient Demon Clan, the Vermilion Bird Feather Emperor.

Yes, it’s that Vermilion Bird on the flag. Tens of thousands of years ago, in the Ancient Times, the Demon Clan ruled the world. All living beings were divided into five clans: Shellworm, Scale, Fur, Feather, and Shell. Among these, the Feather Clan dominated the world, able to fight and fly the strongest. Among the Feather Clan, those with Phoenix inborn talent were considered the highest, having the best Comprehension. Five Phoenixes rotated in succession as the Feather Emperor, in fact becoming the Demon Emperor Supreme.

And the Feather Clan, to suppress all clans, supposedly shared cultivation and evolution methods. In the literal sense, even a crow could transform into a Phoenix. Every one of them had astounding combat prowess. So much so that by the end of the Demon Clan era, it was also the Feather Clan’s most prosperous period. The Vermilion Bird clan had ten siblings, each cultivating to the Demon Emperor realm and mastering the ultimate technique of the Feather Clan, the Three-legged Golden Crow Great Dao Body. Known as the Celestial Demon Emperor, it was the essence of the daytime sun, the Sun Golden Flame, world-weary incinerator, ten suns in the sky, a scourge to all life.

Later events, as everyone knows, the clans could no longer bear the oppression, and the Rebel Army from various clans rose up, rebelling against the Feather Clan. However, it was challenging to contend against the ten Celestial Emperors’ joint efforts, initially losing more than winning. Unexpectedly, a Supreme Immortal emerged among the Shellworm tribe! Immediately declaring to challenge the Celestial Emperors, fighting against them just like parents would. Frickin’ went for it!

Then the Supreme Immortal appeared from nowhere, delivering powerful Gang Fist punches and kicks, breaking the sky and shaking the earth, exterminating demons and destroying cities, turning the Yulin Imperial City into a massive pit of ruins, obliterating nine Demon Emperors and taking one as a concubine. It was absurd beyond absurdity...

Ahem, in short, even though the Golden Crow Dao Body was shattered into ashes by a mere punch of the Gang Fist, that’s a testament to the power of the Gang Fist, not the weakness of the Golden Crow. Thus, the ash of the nine Celestial Emperors scattered across the ground, where their unparalleled demonic power continued to burn with apocalyptic golden flames, forming a Groundly Heavenly Tribulation across a thousand miles.

Fortunately, during that time, the Supreme Immortal’s Four Ministers and the Eastern Demon Emperor, Azure Dragon Meng Zhang, were present. The Dragon Emperor, using Azure Dragon Essence, redirected the Li River’s waters to finally douse the world-incinerating fire and submerged the ruins of the Feather Clan’s Imperial City under the vast Yunmeng Swamp. Since then, Yunmeng Swamp has become the domain of the Dragon King and its lineage, to oversee and suppress the remnants of the Demon Clan and the Imperial City’s seal.

Thus, time flies like an arrow, and years pass swiftly. Later generations long forgot the devastating great battle from tens of thousands of years ago. Only Peng Ju, who attained the Dao on Qingcheng Mountain and witnessed the vastness of the world, knowing of heaven beyond the heavens, continued to track the location of the Feather Clan’s Imperial City relics. Therefore, he came to Yunmeng Swamp, attempting to discover Golden Crow’s burial ground through analysis of the lake’s sand composition.

Yes, it was at this time that the Cloud Dream Hidden Reed Fish entered Peng Ju’s line of sight.

If it were ordinary mixed-breed fish elsewhere, living for extended periods in water would mean they would more or less absorb some Xuanming Qi. But that’s not cultivating, merely absorbing the Spiritual Qi with many impurities, and its flesh wouldn’t amount to much, generally of little use.

But the Hidden Reed Fish has evolved! Because Yunmeng Swamp is the Imperial City of the Demon Clan! The graveyard of the Demon Emperor! The Lake of Seals!

Because the Golden Crow Demon Emperor was blown up by a single punch from the Supreme Immortal! Blasted to smithereens! It fell here! Thus, scattered across the entire surface lake sand are mixed with the bone ashes of the Demon Emperor! Add to that, the Azure Dragon lineage also pitched in! They flooded the lake with Dragon Essence to suppress the Golden Crow’s demonic power! Forming a unique natural balance! Creating an incredible petri dish!

Even as merely a mixed-breed fish! Eating bone ashes, swallowing Dragon Essence for tens of thousands of years, of course, can evolve! Additionally, they evolved two meridians specifically to digest the fiery water spirits influenced by the Golden Crow Sand and Azure Dragon Essence within Yunmeng Swamp! This turned them into the elite among mixed-breed fish!

Say what you will, but if Golden Crow Sand or Azure Dragon Essence were slightly more concentrated, it would be seized as Heavenly Materials Treasures by humans or demons. However, precisely because it has dispersed within Yunmeng Swamp, it is too diluted to be artificially refined, allowing it to be overlooked, making it so that only mixed-breed fish consume it.

Thus, within the reeds and aquatic grasses of Yunmeng Swamp, the Cloud Dream Hidden Reed Fish unconsciously consumes, harmonizes, and digests these two diametrically opposed, conflicting Demon Emperor energies. On a microscopic level, it subconsciously demonstrates the universal truth of "Water and fire completing one another, Yin and Yang harmonizing, a Balance of Li and Kan." To the extent that it naturally refines within its body, it harmonizes the Yang Flame breath from the lake’s sand and the Azure Dragon Essence from the lake’s water into an extremely pure and balanced cultivation treasure!

Essence of Yin-Yang Fusion!

Know that water and fire do not coexist. Even for Mountain Man cultivators, to perfectly integrate the Red Evil and Xuanming Qi within their meridians is extremely challenging, let alone achieving water and fire complement each other, refining into Twinflame Waters. Such a perfect balance of Taiyin and Sun, mutual fusion, and supplementation requires exceedingly high cultivation and very attentive deliberation.

Therefore, the perfect Essence of Yin-Yang Fusion requires the meticulous refining of an Alchemy Master. It can be said to be invaluable, with high demand but no market supply. But due to the coincidental confluence of time, location, and various natural reasons, these mixed-breed fish have managed to refine it! If Old Xuan Sect knew this, they would probably be exclaiming profanities and banging their heads against the ground...

Well, it’s actually not that shocking.

Precisely because the Hidden Reed Fish is an extremely weak, extremely fragile, short-lived mixed-breed fish, it can absorb these subtle Spiritual Qi, can meticulously refine water and fire, and refine the Essence of Yin-Yang Fusion, yet once this fragile ’balance’ is disrupted, for instance, if they consume too much Golden Crow Sand or drink their fill of Azure Dragon Essence, or if one of the Twinflame Waters leaks a bit, it will lead to the mixed-breed fish becoming ’possessed by demon, meridians snapped’ and immediately dying.

As such, even though the Hidden Reed Fish occasionally evolves specialized meridians to digest the demonic power within Yunmeng Swamp, it is unable to leverage this advantage to further evolve into a higher-level demon clan.

After all, if they grow slightly larger, or if their environment changes just a bit, these mixed-breed fish either die violently or get eaten, thus preventing others from discovering any unique traits, naturally leaving no competition for this Immortal Fate with Chen Xuantian.

Moreover, the most exquisite part is that the fish meat is so tender and fresh, that it can be eaten directly, without cooking or elaborate preparation! Cooking would instead disrupt the Balance of Yin and Yang and spoil the nutrients!

At this moment, Chen Xuantian squats by the water, rolls up his sleeves, and begins scooping the fish, eating each one he catches, stuffing them directly into his mouth with a cool flourish, his mouth full of fish paste. While eating, he calculates, planning to circle around the lake eating these mixed-breed fish for eighty-one days until achieving Two Qi Perfection, then drinking a mouthful of bone broth to settle his stomach, readying himself for seclusion to form the Golden Core of the Li Dragon and Kan Tiger.