Cube-like Supernatural Powers: Longevity Begins with Qi Refining

Chapter 37 Merfolk - Old Fish

"Senior, could you tell me about the owner of this bronze palace?"

Xiong Zhou's complexion returned to normal, and he looked at the remnant soul of the merman.

It is truly incredible that a near-immortal at the sixth level of Qi Refining could touch the power of the River of Time.

However, if this being at the sixth level of Qi Refining is an indestructible holy body, then it seems to make sense.

Even if he didn't understand this special and ancient physique, he could imagine how powerful it must be, and how exaggerated it must be to be blessed by heaven and earth.

The merman seemed somewhat surprised to see Xiong Zhou regain his composure so quickly, and his enormous tail swayed.

The remnant soul of the merman nodded and said, "Alright."

"The name of the owner of this palace is the Grand Secretary. My memories of this part are now fragmented, and I cannot recall his name."

"But he possesses an indestructible holy body that is close to that of an immortal, that is beyond doubt."

The remnant soul of the merman played his flute and drifted slowly forward a distance, splashing up wisps of azure light.

He continued, "In my memory, he was the younger brother of the ruler of this world, a prince of this dynasty, the most trusted one, possessing immense power and influence. This palace was bestowed upon him by the ruler of this world."

"However, at a certain time, this near-immortal immortal holy body, the master of this bronze palace, apparently had a dispute with the ruler of this world. The two were at odds over some things and eventually took action."

"That day, the sky collapsed and the earth split open."

The flute slowly approached Xiong Zhou, almost floating in front of him.

"The details of the process are unclear, but in the end, the ruler of this world was defeated, the master of this palace won, and the power of the entire world and the dynasty that ruled this world fell into the hands of this immortal holy body."

"Next came the war of attrition. All the living beings in this world were turned into soldiers, seemingly to fight against a certain power or being."

"The result of the struggle was naturally failure. This world has become what it is today, and this immortal holy body has perished."

The flute stopped in front of Xiong Zhou, and the almost transparent merman looked at the "child" that couldn't reach his belly.

Xiong Zhou's expression became subtle.

He asked softly, "Then, given that this world has become like this, with time seemingly reversed, what are your thoughts, senior merman?"

"Or has something already been confirmed?"

When the male merman's remnant soul looked at his own skeleton, his extremely complex expression clearly showed that he understood something in an instant.

The mermaid's remnant soul spoke with a touch of etherealness: "When I was alive, I heard a rumor that a fragment of a celestial artifact, which was either extremely incomplete or of the time-related kind, was possessed by the owner of this palace."

"Therefore, rumors spread that this near-immortal immortal holy body was skilled in time-related laws and proficient in the Dao of years, and that the path he followed might be the Dao of the Light of Time... Of course, this statement was neither refuted nor denied by this immortal holy body who was a prince."

"As for the issue of time and space, it is probably the effect caused by the power of that fragment of a time-related immortal artifact."

"It restarts this entire world again and again, along with certain special points in time."

In his last sentence, the remnant soul of the merman spoke in an incredibly hazy tone, as if muttering in a dream.

Xiong Zhou stared at the flute that had floated to his chest and was drifting towards his brow, clicked his tongue softly, and seemed to understand something.

He chuckled and said in a teasing tone, "Senior, you wouldn't be trying to possess me, would you?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the flute was already pressed against Xiong Zhou's forehead, emitting a wisp of azure blood light.

The merman's remnant soul chuckled, "What do you mean by possession? You cunning bloodline descendant, don't put it so harshly. This is called the deceased ancestors bestowing an opportunity upon the juniors."

He seemed to recall something that could infuriate even a merman.

The voice of the merman's remnant soul suddenly carried a hint of barely suppressed rage, "And what about your ancestor? He often came here to toy with me, a merman, using fishhooks!"

"I can't hold that big dog accountable, so I'll settle the score with his bloodline descendants!"

Upon hearing this, Xiong Zhou looked at the remnant soul of the male merman, who was five meters tall, with a rugged face and was almost transparent, and his expression was extremely subtle.

Teasing the mermaids with fishhooks?

That's just fishing.

This seems to have become a traditional activity for older folks?

Not only the ancestors in the memories passed down through bloodlines, but even Dad seems to really enjoy this activity.

Even if you often fail to catch anything, you still enjoy the fishing.

Suddenly, the remnant soul of the mermaid extended its thick index finger, pointing directly at Xiong Zhou's crown chakra.

A cool sensation flashed through his mind, and the flute immediately recognized Xiong Zhou as its master. The remnant soul residing within the flute then drifted directly towards the inner world.

On the pixelated plains, Xiong Zhou's solidified consciousness sat quietly on a block of earth, watching a wisp of azure blood light emerge from nothing, evolving into an equally solidified merman consciousness.

Xiong Zhou sighed, "Senior Merman, what I possess is the bloodline of a cunning creature, not that of a mermaid."

"As a vessel without mermaid blood, and as a Qi cultivator specializing in earth and wood elements, I don't seem to fit your needs very well."

"As for that predecessor, whom I can't quite describe, he's already gone anyway, so let bygones be bygones, shall we?"

"Senior merman, perhaps you could reconsider?"

The solidified consciousness of the male merman, several times larger than Xiong Zhou, seemed to have taken hold of the young Xiong Zhou and did not immediately erode the two paths suspended in mid-air above the pixel plain.

He was still quite interested and patient, and with the composure of a strong person, he slowly explained: "It's alright. As a descendant of the cunning bloodline, your current foundation and bloodline concentration can be modified so that I can change your path to be dominated by the water element."

The male merman circled around, clicking his tongue in amazement: "I must say, your inner world is quite well constructed. At least the cunning one I know, the one with the same bloodline as you, is far inferior to you at the first level of Qi Refining."

"Moreover, your fortune is beyond his reach; you have even managed to cultivate two different paths."

"It's truly unimaginable what kind of extraordinary opportunity and good fortune you received before?"

Xiong Zhou grinned.

He stretched out his fingers and counted them one by one.

"There aren't many opportunities left."

"My dad and mom are Qi Refiners at the peak of the sixth level of Qi Refining. They found me a whole bottle of a very rare Qi Refining fourth level Enlightenment Pill called 'Minor Enlightenment Pill'."

"After swallowing ten pills, I broke through the bottleneck from 'Great Completion' to 'Subtlety'."

The male merman's expression changed; the composure that had been vaguely present on his face suddenly stiffened.

"Then, I went to a newly created world and swallowed nearly a thousand lotus seeds that were at the fourth level of Qi Refining and had the effect of enlightenment. I directly had my own path of cultivation."

"Oh, and I also had the help of a senior sister who was at the peak of the sixth level of Qi Refining. I learned the Saintly Path of the Primal Totem from her."

"Although she was a wolf in sheep's clothing and swindled me out of a piece of my spoils, as her subordinate god, I still managed to get a lot of benefits from her and gain some advantages in authority."

"Yes, there is another one who is probably at the fifth or sixth level of Qi Refining, a primitive totem of the Ox Clan who has lived for millions of years. He gave me a rudimentary form of authority to help me break through the limits of my potential."

The male merman's stiff expression could no longer be maintained. Looking at the two paths in mid-air above the pixelated plain, he slowly wagged his tail and retreated a little.

He seems to have gotten himself into a huge mess. How come there are so many karmic consequences related to the sixth level of Qi Refining, and such a huge amount of them?

If we get caught, what will happen?

Xiong Zhou, who had already raised four fingers, patted his head and extended his fifth finger.

"I almost forgot, ever since I started cultivating, my senior brother has come to my house from time to time to give me special lessons."

"For a Qi Refining Stage 7 Immortal to come to my house and give me special instruction, that must be quite an opportunity, right?"

The male merman's face had turned pale.

Damn it, this cunning descendant is a wicked second-generation immortal!

The immortals themselves came to cook for me; how terrifying is that for a mermaid!

Furthermore, with all these senior sisters and senior uncles, this is clearly a disciple of the Immortal Sect!

Moreover, they came from beyond the heavens, and perhaps they were disciples of a celestial sect under the care of elders!

I might, perhaps, most likely, be in trouble...

He was not an immortal and could not fully comprehend the power of a celestial being.

But the mere legends circulating in the world chilled his heart and made him lose the will to struggle.

The male merman's lips twitched, revealing an extremely stiff smile.

He said in a slightly hoarse voice, "Listen to me, young friend, actually I get along quite well with your ancestor who is also of the cunning bloodline."

"What I said before was all a joke. Didn't I just say that entering your inner world was a chance for you?"

"This really isn't possession..."

As he spoke, the male merman pulled out a large number of Qi-refining scriptures and the true meaning of heaven and earth that he knew from his memory, listing tens of thousands of different information light points, which floated in mid-air above the pixel plain and were neatly arranged.

He held nothing back, emptying his entire stock.

"As a fallen loser, I only hope that, young friend, you will bring me to this world if possible..."

But then he changed his mind.

"Of course, if that doesn't work out, then forget it. As long as you can meet someone you like in the future and find a decent successor for these inheritances, that will be fine."

The male merman, with a somewhat rugged face, had a very forced smile.

Xiong Zhou narrowed his eyes, a look of pleasure in them.

What's this called?

My Immortal Uncle Lu, the Qi Refining Master

"Senior merman, why bring this up so early? There's no need to rush. Why don't you go back to that flute and then show me the way?"

"I'm quite interested in how this bronze palace came to be."

Our first treasure hunt can't end so hastily.

He was quite interested in the commemorative artifacts inside the bronze palace.

The male merman chuckled a few times, then swiftly withdrew from the inner world of the bear boat and returned to the flute he held in his hand, causing the still-existing magical artifact to emit a low hum.

A shrunken merman, only the size of Xiong Zhou's thumb, leaped out of the flute and looked at the "little thing" in front of him with a somewhat "simple" smile.

The merman's smile became even more stiff.

"Actually, young friend, as you probably guessed, I am just a 'captive' in this side hall. My remnant soul has been able to exist until now thanks to this clan artifact."

"I really don't know much about the owner of this palace, nor do I know the core layout of this palace."

"Only in the outer areas have we heard of it."

Xiong Zhou nodded slightly.

"It's alright, I didn't intend to go to the core area of ​​this palace all at once."

"Let's tour the outer perimeter of this bronze palace first, and then we can enter the core area."

According to Xiong Zhou's guess, the translucent blood-red phantom following him was targeting the core area of ​​this bronze palace.

Going now would be like throwing lambs to the slaughter.

Xiong Zhou doesn't want to be eliminated so soon.

It's unclear whether other senior disciples will also enter this bronze palace.

It would be great if a more powerful disciple of Tai Li could also join.

Even in a one-on-one fight, it's impossible to perish together with that semi-transparent blood-red phantom like Senior Brother Yu Changqing. Perhaps if several of them attacked together, they could achieve the same effect.

Xiong Zhou suppressed his slight anticipation and looked at the flute in his hand.

"I've chatted with you for so long, senior, may I ask your name?"

The mermaid's remnant soul, about the size of a thumb, coughed softly and said, "Fish Ball, from the Ningyun Mermaid Clan."

Xiong Zhou nodded. "Okay, Mr. Yu."

"Now, please give me directions, Elder Yu, and take me to explore the outer perimeter of this bronze palace."

The flute, engraved with coral patterns, floated in the air and drifted towards the passage until it reached a bronze mural and gently tapped it a few times.

"This palace is most likely sealed off now, most of its functions are unusable, and the normal formations are not working."

"If we break through here, we can probably open a passage to the outer area."

"If I remember correctly, it should lead to a small herb garden; the walls are very sturdy..."

Before Old Yu could finish speaking, Xiong Zhou had already arrived at the designated position and threw out both fists.

After more than ten hits, a pixel block fell, turning into a stream of light and merging into the inner world of Xiong Zhou.

Old Fish opened his mouth wide, his eyes almost popping out.

His finger pointed at the bronze wall, then at Xiong Zhou's trembling fist.

"This...this is material for the fifth level of Qi Refining!"

"You just knocked it down like that?!"

Xiong Zhou glanced at Old Yu and waved to him.

"Don't make such a fuss. I've already gone quite a distance in the practice of the Way."

"It's just material for the fifth level of Qi Refining, nothing special."

Xiong Zhou stood behind the now-open, square passageway and arrived at a spacious, open courtyard.

"Quick, show me the way."

Time waits for no one.