—The Great Extreme Tyrant Sword was freaking awesome!
Its black-and-white sides even came with built-in rules. It was practically the king among seventh-tier Mystic artifacts!
But he couldn’t stay obsessed with his own masterpiece forever…
So Yan Zhen began body refining again under the guidance of his Saint Lord Master.
Mystic Ancestor experts underwent a baptism of the power of heaven and earth, gaining all-around improvements—including to their physiques—and thanks to his dual cultivation with Yi Xian’er through her baleful aura, Yan Zhen had made significant progress even without focused training.
Of course, he was still a ways off from seventh tier. So in the days that followed, he shifted his cultivation focus entirely to body refining.
And the body refining regimen? Swimming. Not in the Bitter Pool, but straight out in the Bitter Sea.
From one island to the next.
His Saint Lord Master wore a bikini swimsuit and rode golden waves alongside him, holding the White Lotus Reflecting Light Mirror to record the whole thing.
The point of the swimming was to awaken the dormant power in his bloodline.
He had already refined six kinds of divine blood into his body: snake, star, dragon, heaven, earth, sea… Aside from the Star God Blood and Dragon God Blood, he hadn’t tapped into any of the others even a little.
He hadn’t learned a single blood technique yet, either.
Divine blood was incredibly potent. Take the Evil Consort: after awakening her Evil God Bloodline, her strength had surged by a full star. And that was at the Mystic Saint Realm.
Clinging to that conviction, Yan Zhen finally dragged himself onto the beach and flopped down like a dead fish, feeling like every function in his body had shut down.
But this was just the beginning.
For three straight days, he endured hellish training, his only comfort the hugs from his Saint Lord Master.
Then on the fourth day, the crystal pendant jolted sharply. It slipped free of its cord on its own and shot into the sky, actually drawing down a heavenly tribulation.
Yan Zhen’s spirits lifted. Could the ninth-tier holy pill be ready?
The tribulation clouds bypassed the Bitter Sea Cave-Heaven’s barriers and loomed directly overhead. Then they unleashed countless lightning bolts at the crystal pendant amid endless rumbling thunder.
The lightning storm raged for an entire day before finally letting up.
As the tribulation clouds dispersed, the crystal pendant blazed with light. An arcane aura rippled out, only to fade into stillness moments later.
Jialan Fairy’s beautiful eyes sparkled.
“Looks like Chen Xi succeeded… Let’s go see her.”
With that, she reached out with her jade arm and looped it around Yan Zhen’s waist.
Yan Zhen glanced down at himself. Aside from his Long-Trunk Little Elephant Swim Pants, he was buck naked. His Saint Lord Master, meanwhile, sported a white bikini embroidered with gold that barely covered anything—her snowy peaks and perfect rear on full display.
Standing together like that, they almost looked like mother and son. If the Beautiful Female Master saw this, she’d probably get upset.
“Yan’er? Hurry and activate the Star Shifting Fire Seal.”
At his Saint Lord Master’s urging, Yan Zhen tried to protest.
“Saint Lord Master, shouldn’t we change before heading to the Fire Refining Starry Sky? We don’t exactly look presentable like this.”
“We’re just popping in for a look. We’ll be right back to training. Don’t tell me you want to slack off inside? Cultivation can’t be abandoned halfway.”
“Uh…”
“Come on, be a man about it. Stop dawdling.”
“…”
With no other choice, Yan Zhen activated the Star Shifting Fire Seal. He and his Saint Lord Master entered the Fire Refining Starry Sky together, emerging amid spatial distortions atop the altar.
Yan Zhen blinked. A winding crystal river hung in the air above them, breathtakingly beautiful and wafting a faint medicinal fragrance—like something out of a dream.
But one whiff was enough to refill most of the mystic power Yan Zhen had burned through. Totally overpowered.
“Is that… a ninth-tier Mystic pill?”
Jialan Fairy replied solemnly.
“The Nine Curves Heavenly River Pill… The ultimate recovery elixir. It’s a strategic asset whether in the Jialan Holy Land or among the God Race. For a single person, it takes pill form; for a group, it turns into a river… A river like this could instantly restore a legion of ten thousand Mystic Ancestors and keep their mystic power flowing endlessly.”
“Whoa, that’s insane! Hang on, the Nine Curves Heavenly River Pill… That name rings a bell.”
“It’s a pill Chen Xi refined by improving on the eighth-tier Heavenly River Pill. Only she, having mastered the Starlight Glazed Fire, can make it. I have one myself—hers from way back.”
Hearing that jogged Yan Zhen’s memory. The script had mentioned this pill. Less a treat for Mystic Saints and more a legion game-changer.
One pill could tip the scales of an entire war.
His Beautiful Female Master was incredible!
As they spoke, Chen Xi had condensed the crystalline river back into a flawless pill that spun in her palm like a diamond, glowing softly and reflecting visions of winding rivers.
She pocketed the pill, then turned around—only to freeze at the sight of Yan Zhen and Jialan Fairy, their outfits and posture catching her off guard.
Yan Zhen hurried over.
“Master, you must be exhausted.”
Chen Xi hummed in acknowledgment, then couldn’t help asking.
“Zhen’er, what’s with you and Jialan dressing like that?”
Jialan Fairy sidled up and hooked her arm through Yan Zhen’s.
“We’re swimming.”
“Swimming?”
“Uh, more like body refining through swimming. We were in the middle of it when the commotion drew us here, so we didn’t have time to change.”
“Are you jealous, Chen Xi?”
Chen Xi shot her best friend a look.
“Who’s jealous? I’m just curious… You can change clothes anytime with a thought, yet you show up like this. Trying to rile me up on purpose?”
“We’ll be right back to training. Easier not to change. Besides, no outsiders here.”
“Hmph.”
Chen Xi ignored her friend’s nonsense and handed the pill bottle to Yan Zhen.
“Take this, Zhen’er. Give it to the Evil Consort when she shows up.”
Yan Zhen accepted it gravely. Ninth-tier Mystic pills were priceless treasures, even if they were “just” recovery elixirs. He couldn’t afford to lose it.
“Master, are you okay? You must be worn out.”
“I’m fine. A few days’ rest will do it. Now go back to training.” Chen Xi turned to her friend. “Jialan, Zhen’er is in your hands for now. Teach him well.”
“I’d do that without you telling me.” Jialan Fairy patted Yan Zhen’s head. “Rest easy. I’ll wake you if anything comes up.”
Chen Xi nodded slightly, then faced Yan Zhen again. She cupped his face and planted a kiss on his lips.
“Your Master needs a few days—up to half a month at most, or ten days at least. Use the time to train hard with Jialan.”
With that, she shooed Yan Zhen and Jialan Fairy out.
Yan Zhen was suitably impressed, even if he didn’t fully get it.
“Refining a ninth-tier Mystic pill sure takes it out of you—even Master can barely handle it.”
With the pill in hand, Yan Zhen resumed body refining under his Saint Lord Master’s watch. In just five short days, he reached the peak of sixth tier.
But breaking through to seventh tier—Body Refining Great Accomplishment—required awakening the hidden power in his bloodline. Every God Race member had to go through it.
Before he could, though, the Evil Consort had moved the Dead City near the Jialan Holy Land and was secretly calling out to Yan Zhen.
“Already? Alright, time to meet her.”
Jialan Fairy donned her Saint Lord attire. A historic summit was about to begin.
