17: Chapter 17 [Rejuvenation Pill] and [Spirit Blood Vermilion Fruit]

Arriving at the foot of the Ten Thousand Immortals Tower, Chen Jianfeng and Zhou Yanlie felt their vision blur, and then they appeared in an entirely new world.

Before them were ten steps of white jade, and on either side of the high platform above the steps stood two stone pillars.

"An abode of immortals with eternal life, a home of Daoists who live as long as the heavens."

"Wonderful."

Looking at the two magnificent stone pillars, Chen Jianfeng murmured the inscriptions carved upon them.

Compared to the large characters on the stone pillars, Zhou Yanlie's attention was entirely on the fairyland beyond the pillars.

Rubbing his hands together, Zhou Yanlie said eagerly, "Don't just stand there, let's hurry inside."

Chen Jianfeng nodded, his body gradually descending until he stepped onto the white jade stairs, controlling his legs to move forward with difficulty.

In his past life, as the senior disciple of the sect's sword path, Chen Jianfeng had often met with sect elders and the sect master; landing and walking to meet a senior was the proper etiquette for a cultivator.

The two walked past the white jade pillars, passed through the pavilions and buildings behind them, and arrived at a small lake, where they saw Yang Bai in a small pavilion by the shore.

At this moment, Yang Bai sat upright in the stone pavilion with the bearing of an Immortal Lord, his eyes slightly narrowed, and spiritual energy like raw jade drifting around him, resembling an immortal descended to the world.

"Lord Immortal, Chen Jianfeng has answered your summons and has come here specifically."

"Zhou Yanlie pays his respects to Lord Immortal."

Chen Jianfeng and Zhou Yanlie hurried to the front of the stone pavilion, knelt on one knee, and said respectfully.

"Between us, there is no need for such etiquette; come over."

Yang Bai opened his eyes, a gentle smile appearing on his face, and beckoned for the two to sit down.

The two sat opposite Yang Bai, separated by a stone table, their demeanor quite restrained.

Looking at the two cultivators in white, Yang Bai nodded with satisfaction and smiled, "My apologies, the Immortal World has just been established, so there are few things here, and I have no tea to treat you."

"Lord Immortal, you are too kind; how could we let you prepare tea?"

"It was me, Little Zhou, who didn't think it through; if I had known, I would have brought some fruit up."

Seeing Yang Bai teasing them, Chen Jianfeng and Zhou Yanlie hurriedly waved their hands, indicating they dared not accept such courtesy.

But because of this teasing, the nervous mood of the two also inevitably eased a little.

Yang Bai tapped his finger lightly, and two chessboards appeared on the stone table. "Come, play a game with me, and by the way, let's chat about your experiences during this period."

Chen Jianfeng and Zhou Yanlie looked at each other, then bowed respectfully, picked up the black chess boxes, and began to ponder how to make their first move.

"Clack."

"Clack."

"Clack."

"Clack."

The crisp sound of pieces being placed echoed in the stone pavilion, and the three looked at the chessboards before them with different expressions.

Chen Jianfeng's chess style was simple, just one word — kill.

He had maxed out his innate sword path insights; as long as he imagined the chess match as a sword path battlefield, it became another method of sword path slaughter.

On the other side, Zhou Yanlie, who seemed like a rough brute, was also very difficult to deal with.

Although he was a great general, in his youth, he had been a dashing young gentleman, proficient in the Six Arts of a Gentleman.

Later, after joining the army, he became well-versed in the military strategies of a hundred schools of thought, and using Go to conduct battlefield simulations was a standard practice for him.

If Yang Bai hadn't inherited Chu Gehang's century of Go mastery, combined with the chip computing power of the Divine Authority System, he might really have been defeated.

"Jianfeng, what did you think of the battle a while ago? Compared to the enemies you faced before, who was weaker and who was stronger?" Yang Bai asked softly.

Chen Jianfeng's fingers paused, and after thinking for two seconds, he said seriously:

"Although that group of beasts had ferocious appearances, there was no spiritual energy within their bodies, so that battle was fought quite easily."

"If one were to truly evaluate their strength, they wouldn't even count as Qi Refining cultivators; they could only be considered martial artists from the mortal world who had cultivated blood energy and half-stepped into cultivation—they wouldn't even count as grandmasters."

Indeed, although that group of trolls was nearly three meters tall and had developed muscles, their only advantage was this physical constitution.

Unfortunately, this advantage meant nothing in front of these Qi Refining cultivators; even a body-refining cultivator at the second or third level of Qi Refining could crush the leaders of the troll legion with their combat experience and physical constitution.

Not to mention those Dharma cultivators who could conjure fireballs with their hands.

Yang Bai seemed to understand a bit, then looked at Zhou Yanlie and asked:

"Zhou Yanlie, you are a crown prince of the mortal world and have enjoyed the beautiful scenery of the mortal realm. After coming to White Jade Capital, have you felt the tediousness of cultivation?"

Zhou Yanlie hurriedly shook his head, revealing a look of trepidation, "I dare not. Having a place to cultivate with peace of mind has always been my dream. In a fairyland like White Jade Capital, I do not feel the slightest bit of tediousness."

When the samsara heavenly tablet selected people on the Universal Continent, it did not choose randomly. Under Yang Bai's instructions, the samsara heavenly tablet would only select existences who possessed strong obsessions before death.

This obsession was an obsession to become stronger, a belief to seek the Dao with all one's heart, not some thoughts about romance or fighting for power.

Therefore, the cultivators currently in White Jade Capital were all, without exception, cultivators obsessed with cultivation and cut off from the mortal world.

'It seems the training intensity can be increased even further,' Yang Bai thought to himself with a slight smile.

"This is also my first time creating an Immortal World, so there will inevitably be some shortcomings; I will need you to provide suggestions in the future." Yang Bai placed the chess piece back into the box, his gaze becoming serious, "Now, it is time to discuss some serious matters."

The two opposite the stone table subconsciously placed their chess pieces back and sat up straight.

"Just as I said before, four months from now, a catastrophe will descend upon White Jade Capital."

"As the creator of the Immortal World, I will fight those invaders, and during this time, I will leave White Jade Capital to you."

"These two things are beneficial to your bodies; eat them now."

As he spoke, Yang Bai waved his hand, and a medicinal pill exuding a medicinal fragrance, along with a vermilion fruit, floated in front of the two.

Chen Jianfeng's eyes narrowed slightly, as if he had thought of something, and then his gaze became fanatical. Meanwhile, the Zhou Yanlie beside him swallowed his saliva at an inappropriate time, his face full of desire.

Seeing that Yang Bai had spoken, the two first bowed in salute, then impatiently ate the items.

After swallowing the [Heaven-Returning Pill], Chen Jianfeng felt his internal organs become warm, with endless medicinal fragrance spreading from his abdomen.

Before he could enjoy it for even a few seconds, a sharp pain as if tearing flesh and crushing bones came from within his body.

Chen Jianfeng gritted his teeth, his face flushed red, and his expression was very strange—it was pain, but also ecstasy.

The pain lay in the fact that this severe pain was no different from having his tendons pulled and bones stripped, even stronger than the pain during his most desperate moments; if it weren't for Yang Bai being in front of him, he would definitely have drawn his sword and leveled this entire hilltop.

But the ecstasy lay in the fact that this severe pain came from his lower body, the lower limbs that had been without sensation because his Geng-Gold Sword Bone had been broken.

Compared to Chen Jianfeng's gritted-teeth persistence, Zhou Yanlie seemed to have already given up.

At the moment he ate the [Spirit-Blood Vermilion Fruit], Zhou Yanlie discovered that his blood had caught fire—physically catching fire.

Then, he was enveloped by the spiritual fire ignited by his own blood, collapsing onto the table, his life or death uncertain.

Watching the continuously rising aura on the two, Yang Bai nodded with satisfaction, "I am truly looking forward to it."