Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
"Wow, is that a sparrow that's so big?" Zhang Yang turned his head and exclaimed to Yu Qingwei.
"A sparrow is still a sparrow," Yu Qingwei said with a heavy expression, lightly sighing.
"Then have we shrunk?" Zhang Yang asked again.
"We are still us," Yu Qingwei explained. "At least here in Zichen Temple, we are."
Zhang Yang felt a bit confused. A sparrow is still a sparrow, and we are still us, so why does the sparrow look so large? Before Zhang Yang could ask, Yu Qingwei said, "We've fallen into a trap! This is a nested formation; the outer layer we broke through was a simple Five Elements Formation that concealed Zichen Temple, while inside Zichen Temple is a much more sophisticated formation."
"So you mean to say that in reality, this Taoist temple and we ourselves haven't shrunk, but our thoughts, abilities, and vision have all become as if they were very small, trapped within this Zichen Temple?" Zhang Yang realized.
"Exactly. This isn't just a simple formation. I was careless; Zichen Temple is Toothless's lair. How could he let anyone come and go freely?" Yu Qingwei said. "If it weren't for his injuries, we would probably be dead by now."
"Ugh..." Zhang Yang gasped.
"Shrink the Earth to an Inch!" Yu Qingwei said.
"This Shrink the Earth to an Inch is originally a Dao Gate movement technique. I've heard that some senior experts can turn miles into inches, traveling tens of miles in a single step, making mountains and rivers seem trivial. I didn't expect Toothless to use the Shrink the Earth to an Inch technique to place restrictions on Zichen Temple, trapping us in this formation," Yu Qingwei continued.
"It seems that the Jiazi Rainbow Shadow you mentioned is indeed an extraordinary book. Toothless has not only studied it but has also made progress," Zhang Yang pondered.
"Surviving by the skin of our teeth; it seems the tortoise shell divination is real," Yu Qingwei sighed. "If we can't escape this formation, once Toothless recovers, he will come back and crush us in an instant."
"We'll starve to death too; I see the rice jar is empty. It seems he had planned this all along. Damn it, living over 110 years isn't for nothing," Zhang Yang interjected.
Yu Qingwei wasn't proficient in the Shrink the Earth to an Inch technique, and both of them were at a loss. They walked back to the main hall together and sat down on the cushions to rest temporarily.
Yu Qingwei fell silent, his eyes slightly closed as he contemplated how to break the formation. Zhang Yang wasn't skilled in this area either; after sitting for a while, he stood up. The large bronze incense burner on the offering table was covered in ash, and beside it lay a scattered incense stick.
Zhang Yang casually picked up the incense stick. Unlike ordinary yellow incense sticks, this one was blood red and had a hard texture that couldn't be easily broken.
"Take a look at this incense stick; there doesn't seem to be any problem with it, right?" Zhang Yang suddenly said.
Yu Qingwei opened his eyes and stood up.
"Looking at the color, it should have saffron added. The texture is hard, so it must be made of wood. Shall we light it and take a whiff?" Yu Qingwei said.
"Could this be another trap set by Toothless?" Zhang Yang asked. Before Yu Qingwei could respond, Zhang Yang continued, "It shouldn't be; there's no need for that. Anyway, since we can't leave for now, it's fine to take a break and enjoy the fragrance."
Zhang Yang took out a lighter, ignited the incense stick, and placed it in the incense burner. Then, both Zhang Yang and Yu Qingwei sat down on the cushions.
As the incense burned, a blue mist wafted out. The fragrance filled the air, and Yu Qingwei took a deep breath and slowly said, "The base should be old sandalwood; there’s quite a bit of saffron added, and..."
"And there's also blood energy," Zhang Yang suddenly interjected.
"Hmm?" Actually, Yu Qingwei intended to say that it was high-quality saffron. Saffron is well-known as Saffron, referred to as 'Xiao Fu Lan' in the Compendium of Materia Medica, because only the stigmas of the flowers can be used medicinally, and each flower has only three stigmas. Therefore, about 200 flowers are needed to collect one gram of stigmas.
Saffron requires strict growing conditions and blooms only once a year, which explains its high value.
As for the blood energy that Zhang Yang mentioned, Yu Qingwei did not detect it. The reason Zhang Yang could smell it was not due to his heightened sensitivity but because after merging with the green level, he needed to absorb fiery fragrances to reach higher levels. He had smelled the spices given to him by Godmother, including Agarwood, Sandalwood, Dragon Brain, Musk, several times and gradually became particularly sensitive to the scents.
On the other hand, Yu Qingwei did not detect it not only because he was less sensitive than Zhang Yang, but also because saffron has a strong and unique fragrance that can mask fishy smells; most of the bloody scent would have been dispersed. In some European countries like Italy, high-end dishes often use saffron powder to eliminate fishy odors while adding a golden hue to the dishes.
"Blood energy?" Yu Qingwei pondered.
"I get it now. Toothless Old Daoist practices Magic, resisting the natural yang energy within himself by using techniques that draw yin to supplement yang. Could this blood energy be something he added as 'ingredient'?" Zhang Yang suddenly said.
"Heavenly Essence Initial Blood!” Yu Qingwei exclaimed suddenly. “Toothless must have added this; it's also a method of drawing yin to supplement yang! Moreover, he must have refined this Heavenly Essence Initial Blood with true qi; otherwise, the blood energy would be even stronger and might not be usable after entering his body."
"This old monster is almost becoming an essence," Zhang Yang remarked.
Just then, Zhang Yang suddenly felt dizzy; images of a Green Figure danced in his mind but seemed to encounter endless resistance, making it very difficult to move. As he struggled with this sensation, his dizziness intensified.
"Are you okay?" Zhang Yang hurriedly asked Yu Qingwei.
"I'm fine, very comfortable," Yu Qingwei seemed to still be enjoying himself, not opening his eyes.
Seeing this, Zhang Yang closed his eyes again, adjusting his breathing and trying to circulate his energy. The figure in his mind began to move gradually, and the feeling of dizziness slowly diminished. However, no matter how much the Green Figure moved, it seemed to be restrained, as if it could hardly break free.
Zhang Yang's internal energy surged violently, and the Green Figure's movements became more forceful, but the resistance encountered by the figure seemed to be able to overcome strength with softness, making it difficult to break through.
As an incense stick burned out, Zhang Yang was nearly drenched in sweat.
The Green Figure also seemed exhausted; the resistance enveloping it had turned into a thin membrane, incredibly tough and impossible to escape.
"I'm going out for some fresh air," Zhang Yang said as he stood up with effort. Yu Qingwei appeared to still be in enjoyment, sitting on the mat with closed eyes, only lightly responding with a soft "mm."
Zhang Yang exerted all his strength to walk out of the main hall; each step felt laborious. By the time he reached the center of the courtyard, it seemed he could barely stand.
"Ah!" In his mind, the Green Figure seemed to be trying its utmost to break free, causing Zhang Yang to involuntarily shout out!
"Boom!" Suddenly, dark clouds rolled across the originally clear sky. A bolt of lightning struck down with a terrifying force like a shimmering silver dragon aimed directly at Zhang Yang's head!
Comment 0 Comment Count