Chapter 10 Red Dragon Mark!

He clenched his fist, feeling the heat flow within his body that was vastly different from before; it stirred and rolled, causing Li Guanyi to feel somewhat dazed.

If the sensation before could be described as a breath the size of a sesame seed,

then now it must be at least as large as a chicken egg, clenched together, very solid.

With a fist clenched, in a horse stance, he threw a punch forward; the punch was solid, filled with a boundless energy, giving him a feeling of inexhaustible strength.

Taking a step back, he drew the short sword given by Aunt, retreating with the sword in hand, he swept horizontally, chopped vertically, and slashed diagonally.

Sweeping Cloud, Mountain Splitting, Pushing Mountain, Heavenly Wolf Slash.

Refuse Ridge, Mountain Splitting, King's Piercing, Kill the Driver.

The moves, utterly different from the commonly known Breaking Army Eight Sabers in both name and the inner strength required, poured out breathlessly.

Accompanied by the emergence of muscle memory, he went from initial unfamiliarity to rapid proficiency.

Breaking Army Eight Sabers, entry level!

Breaking Army Eight Sabers, proficient!

Breaking Army Eight Sabers, mastery!

Breaking Army Eight Sabers—

The aura of murder was cold yet orderly, and even in this limited space, it still stirred up a ghastly layer of sword light. At last, the sword light paused, and Li Guanyi stepped back half a step, gently exhaled, and with a firm grip, the short sword came crashing down like a crescent moon.

The killing move, Heavenly Wolf Slash!

A buzzing sound came, originating from within, as all muscles and bones tensely resonated before erupting.

The final move was executed.

Li Guanyi held the short sword in both hands, breathing slowly, feeling the quivering of his muscles, a sense of foreign familiarity surfaced in his mind—it was as though he had practiced this saber technique for years, yet his body lacked the corresponding muscle memory.

The muscle exertion brought soreness and a faint trembling, gradually soothed by the flow of heat.

Breaking Army Eight Sabers, great success!

Li Guanyi reflected on everything that had just happened, deep in thought, "This is..."

"The bronze tripod absorbed some kind of power from Yue Qianfeng, turning into that dragon, seemingly carrying part of Yue Qianfeng's martial memory, aiding me in my cultivation..."

Li Guanyi's thoughts suddenly came to a halt.

A massive wave of hunger gripped his stomach, and as he began to think, his brain demanded energy—the gastric acid in his stomach roared like tumultuous waves, threatening to surge out and disrupt his thinking. Li Guanyi fiercely rubbed his belly, his rationality crumbling under the onslaught of his appetite.

It was like the feeling of overwhelming hunger after finally winning a game after playing all night.

Hungry! Hungry! Hungry!

He swallowed and tiptoed quietly out of the house.

First, he grabbed a carrot, cleaned it, and stuffed it into his mouth, crunching it up before swallowing it down. Starting a fire and cooking at that moment would be too troublesome and time-consuming. Li Guanyi pulled out a flatbread from a wooden cabinet, then removed a stone weighing down a black jar and used a pair of clean chopsticks to pick out some preserved pickled vegetables and garlic.

Squatting behind the cabinet, he devoured the flatbread in bites, with a mouthful of pickled vegetables, quickly finishing the bread to relieve the tumultuous hunger in his belly.

Then, he licked his lips, and pulled out another flatbread, tearing it and placing it in his mouth, finally able to ponder the situation.

"It's like the body needs a large amount of nutrition, causing hunger. Matter is conserved; martial arts transform the body and require nutrition, but the nutrition needed to advance the Breaking Formation Song in one go couldn't possibly be satisfied with just a few flatbreads. It seems the Jade Liquid within the tripod is the key, at least serving the function of... ah, Primordial Qi."

Li Guanyi turned the chopsticks around, absentmindedly scratching the ground with them.

Their rented yard did not have the luxury of a floored surface, and the ground inside the house was just dirt, which was convenient for Li Guanyi to write something. He casually poked a dead ant with the end of the chopstick, and while scratching his chin, he scribbled absentmindedly on the ground, using it to organize his thoughts.

"The tripod can collect Primordial Qi or Divine Charm from powerful individuals."

"Once it's full, it can transform into, well... a Red Dragon or something, and use Divine Charm and Primordial Qi to aid cultivation..."

Li Guanyi grasped the general purpose, but new questions surfaced.

Stroking his chin, he muttered to himself, "Now, what are the requirements for this tripod to absorb power? Must it be from martial artists of a certain caliber, or are there other specific requirements?"

"Secondly, how strong is the feedback from the tripod? Where is the limit?"

"Can it only assist in cultivating the techniques that the other person possessed?"

Li Guanyi found that he had more and more questions about the tripod when he suddenly heard faint footsteps. He gobbled down the flatbread in two or three bites, hunched over and turned around, only to see his Aunt standing tense, who also spotted Li Guanyi; both were startled, recoiling a step back at the same time.

Then, Murong Qiushui relaxed, extended her fair finger, and touched the young man's forehead, chiding him:

"I heard noise outside and thought it was a thief."

"I didn't expect it to be you, you gluttonous cat."

The young man scratched his head and reined in the seriousness from before, simply responding with a shy smile, "I'm hungry."

His gaze, however, caught sight of Auntie wearing a loose, brown robe with white trim, her black hair cascading down like a waterfall, eyes bright as morning stars, palms pale and delicate. Then, as if nothing was out of the ordinary, she flung aside the iron pot that was missing a ring, with a clang.

The corners of the young man's mouth twitched.

If he had been a thief, he might have already been killed by Auntie.

The iron pot with its missing piece could spin with substantial force; previously, a total of thirty-seven petty thieves had fallen under that one hit from Auntie, supreme in its execution. A woman walking through life with a child, no matter how inconspicuous, always attracts trouble.

If he had turned around a step too late, he might have also earned himself a strike from Auntie's pot.

Murong Qiushui stepped forward, her eyes sizing up Li Guanyi from head to toe, and then suddenly smiling, she asked, "Did Li Nu'er practice martial arts today?"

Li Guanyi was stunned, "Aunt, how did you know?"

Murong Qiushui smiled and said, "Although Auntie doesn't understand martial arts, I do know that after martial artists learn inner strength, it's normal for their appetite to increase. Besides, my Li Nu'er is exceptionally talented; the Red Dragon Guest would have to be blind not to teach you a cultivation technique."

She lightly lifted her skirt and hopped over, moving to the other side of the cabinet, from where Li Guanyi was standing. It was only then that Li Guanyi saw Auntie's bare feet, white as white jade. She must have rushed out before she had time to put on shoes, having heard some noise. She stepped on the black earth and moved to the side of the cabinet, smoothing out the wrinkles in her clothes before sitting down and patting the ground next to her.

Li Guanyi sat down beside her.

Murong Qiushui frowned slightly, "I mean, give me a piece of pancake too."

The young man paused, jokingly saying, "Didn't Auntie stop eating after dark?"

Murong Qiushui coughed softly and said, "Got up once and got hungry!"

Li Guanyi almost burst out laughing, shook his head, and worried about waking Auntie; he had just made do with hard, cold pancakes. Since Auntie also wanted to eat, he decided to cook, boiling two bowls of noodles and frying two poached eggs.

It was to ingratiate himself with Yue Qianfeng and get access to the bronze tripod that he brought meat and wine every few days, yet their own lives were quite plain. After all, Li Guanyi was a fugitive, and even though he had some valuables that could be sold for money, he dared not draw too much attention. Currently, there was no more meat left at home.

He brought over two bowls of plain noodles, placing a rock next to the cabinet, with one bowl of noodles for each, and a small dish in the middle carrying some salted vegetable strips. Li Guanyi said, "There's not much meat left at home, so let's just make do with this."

Murong Qiushui suddenly burst into laughter, raised her eyebrows, and said,

"Anyway, I still have a chicken leg here, do you want it?"

Li Guanyi raised an eyebrow.

Murong Qiushui picked up the noodles with her chopsticks and then twirled them into a large, narrow at the top and wider at the bottom, mound of noodles that somewhat resembled a chicken leg. Li Guanyi couldn't help but offer a wry smile, yet seeing Auntie so smug, he pointed to a large piece of salted vegetable and said,

"If that's a chicken leg, then this must be a big chunk of braised pork."

"Hey, then this piece would be roast goose."

Murong Qiushui and Li Guanyi sat beneath the wooden cabinet in a somewhat dilapidated courtyard.

Auntie had pawned all her jewelry after falling ill to maintain their livelihood.

This courtyard was exchanged for Auntie's white jade pendant. That pendant was so extraordinary that even Li Guanyi could tell its remarkable quality: oily as lard, smooth as cream, sounding like metal, fine as silk, white as fat, and sticky as paste; it was carved with the Thousand-Handed Guanyin. It was a keepsake from an uncle that the pawnshop owner offered a mere ten silver pieces for when he saw a weak woman and a child.

At that moment, Li Guanyi wanted to pull Auntie away, but she calmly decided to pawn it.

Even though it infuriated Li Guanyi, Auntie just patted his hair, smiling and saying that keepsakes are never as important as people. Afterwards, she took out half of the silver and rented this courtyard, keeping the rest aside for everyday expenses.

Even so, this courtyard was rundown. Aside from the living quarters, the other rooms had minor leaks; during heavy rain in the summer, they had to catch the water with buckets, sitting in front of the cabinet, looking up through the slightly broken roof at the ink-colored sky and a few stars.

After setting aside the bowls and chopsticks, Li Guanyi turned his head to see Auntie, her head drooping low, already asleep.

The twelve-year-old boy gripped the sword at his waist.

The feel of the sword was cold to the touch but also reassuring. Li Guanyi whispered,

"One day, I will make the meals I talk about today a reality."

Li Guanyi lifted his sleeping Auntie and carefully walked back. Auntie wasn't short, yet she was light, like a dandelion seed that could be blown away by the wind. As he drew closer, he could smell a faint floral scent; he then placed Auntie back in her room.

Their bed was just earth mixed with straw stacked up, a layer of dry grass on top, and then the bedding. It was difficult to endure when it rained and during the winter.

Li Guanyi tucked Auntie in properly and slowly walked back to his own room.

He exhaled, bowed his head, and pulled open his shirt to check on the bronze tripod at his chest.

He was slightly taken aback.

The red Jade Liquid inside the tripod had long since disappeared, but there was a different change.

On the walls of the bronze tripod, an imprint of the red Azure Dragon.

Striking indeed!