Chapter 358: One Miserable Person

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Below the Cloudstorm Arena, there are several large chambers that once served as rooms for its most esteemed fighters and later as cages for Murong Bang’s many fearsome beasts. Today, it is only Xiao Nan and Liu Jin’s copy inside one of those rooms. They are surrounded by a wide variety of cultivation resources: pills, elixirs, rare fruits, and more.

Most of them were purchased from the Five Blessing Group, but some had come from the Imperial Treasury and even been donated by the Eternal Flame Clan’s Apothecary. All of them are there to help Xiao Nan and the Duke reach the next level. However, there is something that must be done first.

Away from prying eyes and behind several protective barriers, Liu Jin places his hands on Xiao Nan’s back and carefully examines his Qi. Other than his master and Ruan Goutin, Xiao Nan is the strongest person whose Qi he has been in such close contact with. At a glance, it feels almost peaceful, but that is simply because Xiao Nan’s Qi is moving so fast that it is hard to make out its many wild fluctuations.

“You have become unreasonably strong,” Liu Jin says.

Xiao Nan laughs.

“I have always been incredibly gifted, Little Brother. I’m simply too amazing.”

Liu Jin snorts softly. No matter how much Xiao Nan has tried to control it, the Renegade Realm has noticeably swollen the size of his already sizable ego.

“Is it really a problem?” Xiao Nan asks. There is a note of worry in his voice. “Little Brother, I know my power better than anyone. As much as I’m thankful for your offer, it is okay if you do not do this. I do not need it to become an Emperor.”

The power of a Renegade is all perfectly contained within Xiao Nan’s body, but that just means being near him is akin to being near an active volcano. If Liu Jin dares meddle with his power, he might end up burnt to ashes.

What a pity that meddling with Xiao Nan’s power is what Liu Jin intends to do.

Meridians are the pathways through which Qi flows through the body. However, these pathways are rarely free of obstructions. Most people are born with a few or many meridians blocked, then develop more blocks over their lifetimes. These blocks are often the result of doubts and inner turmoil. In the worst-case scenario, a person with them might go on to develop a Heart Demon.

Regardless, the quickest way to improve someone’s cultivation is by removing those blocks, but it is not easy to alter the meridians of high-level cultivators. As a person grows in cultivation, their meridians enlarge and improve in quality to better handle their increased power, making it harder to tamper with them.

To attempt to alter the meridians of a high-level cultivator is difficult.

To attempt to alter the meridians of a Renegade borders on suicidal.

Xiao Nan is right in that Liu Jin does not need to do this. Considering Xiao Nan’s natural talent, it is only a matter of time until he reaches the Emperor Realm.

However…

“I… We do not have time,” Liu Jin says.

As long as Serene End is out there, no one in the Empire is safe. Someone from the Death Fashioning Scripture can easily turn an entire city into a horde of monsters, which would then be let loose on the Storm Dragon Empire. Before something like that happens, Liu Jin needs to be ready to respond with overwhelming force.

“Elder Brother, you are strong, but I need you to be stronger still,” Liu Jin says. “I apologize that I demand something so outrageous of you, but that is exactly why I must be willing to take this risk.”

Xiao Nan does not answer right away.

“You know, it’s funny,” Xiao Nan says. “Sometimes, I look at you, and I see you as you were in Eastern Port City. Then, something happens, and I realize how much time has passed. Go on, Emperor Qing Jin. Do what you must with my meridians. I trust you.”

It is the first time Xiao Nan calls him by his full title. Liu Jin feels something warm in his eyes, but he quickly blinks it away.

“I will not betray your trust, Elder Brother,” Liu Jin says as he begins to work.

Removing a block is a fairly simple process. However, it is not an easy one. Liu Jin first has to harmonize the flow of his Qi with that of Xiao Nan, but the power of a Renegade is too fast and furious. The core in the center of Liu Jin’s body is quickly pushed to its limits as he forces more Qi through his meridians.

“Little Brother!”

“It’s okay!” Liu Jin shouts as some blood flows out of his mouth. “I can do this.”

His Qi enters Xiao Nan’s meridians, and the raging Qi within threatens to drown it immediately. Liu Jin cannot possibly fight against the current, so he must allow himself to be carried without losing himself in the greater flow. Every passing moment forces Liu Jin to push more of his Qi into Xiao Nan, trying to locate every obstruction.

It comes as no surprise that Xiao Nan only has a few blocked meridians. Some of them are recent, a product of the Renegade Realm. No matter how well Xiao Nan has been trying to handle it, the Renegade Realm always takes its toll. Liu Jin’s Qi snakes around an obstruction. Sweat shines on his forehead as his Qi begins to squeeze, targeting the obstruction from all sides until he has broken it.

Blood spurts from his back.

“It is okay!” Liu Jin yells before Xiao Nan can do anything. “It’s okay!”

As soon as the obstruction was removed, Xiao Nan’s Qi rushed to flow through the now open pathway. Such a large amount of Qi could not be contained, so it was natural for it to spill over. Since Liu Jin’s Qi is connected with Xiao Nan’s Qi, it flowed into him, and he suffered a backlash. That is all. He fully expected something like that to happen.

It’s fine. The first one is done.

Now, it is time for the others.

“It is not okay, Little Brother!” Xiao Nan yells. “You have done enough! If you want to continue, do it after you have healed!”

“I have gone this far already. There is no point in stopping,” Liu Jin counters. “You will become stronger after this, and that will make removing obstructions more dangerous. It has to be now.”

Xiao Nan’s body trembles with repressed emotions.

However, he does not move.

“Thank you,” Liu Jin whispers as he sets to work once more.

The second obstruction is easier to remove. Liu Jin already knows where it is located, so it is just a matter of exerting more power to allow his Qi to reach it.

Another wound opens on his body, further staining the room with his blood.

The more he works, the wilder the backlash from Xiao Nan’s Qi becomes. Xiao Nan is trying his hardest to contain his Qi, but there is only so much he can do. New wounds keep appearing on Liu Jin’s body. That he isn’t already dead is proof of the control Xiao Nan has over his power. Dangerous as this might seem, everything is completely under control. Because…Because…

He is a copy.

Even if his body is destroyed, it doesn’t matter. He is merely a soul fragment in a physical vessel. It doesn’t matter if his flesh breaks. It doesn’t matter if his organs burst one by one. If the worst happens, he’ll simply return to the original.

Ultimately, there is nothing safer than this.

Thus, one by one, Liu Jin finishes removing all the obstructions in Xiao Nan’s body.

“Congratulations,” Liu Jin says, lying on the floor. “Your cultivation will be much improved after this.”

Xiao Nan does not say anything. The prodigy of the Xiao Sect takes in his wounded form in silence.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

“How are you not in pain?” he asks.

“I turned off my ability to feel pain long before the process began,” Liu Jin replies. “Don’t worry. It looks terrible, but the damage is mostly physical. It will heal in a few hours. My Qi will take longer to regenerate.”

He laughs.

“What is so funny?”

“I was just thinking that the easy part is now done,” Liu Jin explains. “The Duke is more set in his ways, so it will be harder to work on his meridians.”

Predictably, Xiao Nan does not laugh with him.

~~~

Liu Jin looks at the blood he just coughed out, feedback from the strain suffered by his soul fragment. A flash of his Qi burns it away. It is a good thing that his meeting with Elder Xue finished a few hours ago. It would have been awkward to explain why he suddenly started coughing blood. Liu Jin was not entirely sure it would happen, but he is not surprised that it did. A cultivator on the level of Xiao Nan cannot merely do physical damage anymore.

Regardless, things have been progressing well. Improving the Duke’s meridians is going to be far harder than he initially assumed, but that just means he needs to take several precautions beforehand. He might even need to sacrifice a soul fragment, but it doesn’t matter. Once it is all done, it will only be a matter of time until the Duke and Xiao Nan become Emperors.

Liu Jin sighs.

In front of him, there is a transparent, floating map of the Storm Dragon Empire. Marked on it are all areas where suspicious activity has been reported. Anything from ghost stories, unusual migration and weather patterns, and even testimonies from local drunks. Nothing is too small or fanciful for the army to investigate. However, Liu Jin does not have high hopes. People such as Serene End or the disciples of the Temple of the Thousand Shadows will only be found when they want to be found.