Ye Qiu’s face showed astonishment.
He hadn’t expected that Master Longbrow, after eating just one swordfish, had cultivated another stream of true qi.
Unbelievable!
“No wonder this old thing tricked me to eat alone. Swordfish really can boost cultivation.”
Just as Ye Qiu thought this, Master Longbrow opened his eyes, chuckling, “Little brat, you didn’t come back for a while, and this Taoist was worried the grilled fish would get cold and taste bad, so I ate it for you.”
“Don’t be mad.”
“There’s more than one swordfish in Tianchi. We can have a feast later.”
Ye Qiu cursed, “Shameless!”
Master Longbrow pretended not to hear and said, “You saw the effect of the swordfish. This Taoist ate just one and broke through to the fourth stream of true qi. Little brat, jealous or not?”
“Let me tell you, no need to envy me. If you eat swordfish, your cultivation will break through too.”
“According to ancient texts, swordfish are pack animals. There must be plenty more in this Tianchi.”
“I’ll lure them out, little brat, you handle the catching.”
Master Longbrow finished speaking, walked to Tianchi, bit his middle finger, and squeezed out a drop of blood.
Drip!
The blood fell into Tianchi.
Strangely, after entering the water, the blood floated on the surface, not mixing with it.
Ye Qiu knew Master Longbrow must have used some secret technique.
At that moment.
Master Longbrow muttered an incantation, his left hand swiftly drawing a talisman. Five seconds later, his index and middle fingers pointed at Tianchi, and he softly commanded, “Disperse!”
Instantly, the drop of blood released a strong smell of blood.
“Little brat, get ready, the swordfish are coming.”
“Give it your all.”
“Catch as many as you can.”
Master Longbrow said, quickly stepping back a few paces.
Ye Qiu activated his Heavenly Eye, staring into Tianchi. After a while, he saw no sign of swordfish.
“Old thing, will this really work?” Ye Qiu sounded skeptical.
Master Longbrow said confidently, “Little brat, trust me. This Taoist would never deceive you.”
“When the swordfish come, catch them with all you’ve got. Don’t hold back.”
“Miss this chance, and you won’t get another like it.”
Ye Qiu kept his eyes on Tianchi.
Two minutes later.
Suddenly, a white shadow appeared in the water.
“They’re here!”
Ye Qiu focused entirely, locking onto the shadow, inner energy surging in his palm, ready to act.
Then he saw a second white shadow, a third, a fourth…
Hundreds of swordfish appeared.
Bloody hell, so many?
Ye Qiu was stunned.
The swordfish, like streaks of light, rushed up from the depths of Tianchi, heading toward the blood drop.
Ye Qiu quickly pulled out a needle pouch, grabbing dozens of golden needles. As the swordfish neared the surface, he struck.
Swoosh!
Swoosh!
Swoosh!
…
Golden needles shot out, instantly killing dozens of swordfish.
The dead swordfish floated on the surface, bellies up.
The others, sensing danger, turned and fled to the bottom of Tianchi.
Ye Qiu swiftly retrieved the swordfish killed by the needles.
Master Longbrow, seeing so many swordfish, grinned ear to ear, exclaiming, “Big haul! Big haul!”
“Little brat, eating these swordfish will surely boost our cultivation.”
“Your martial talent is high. Maybe eating a dozen or so will get you to nine streams of true qi.”
Ye Qiu felt a spark of anticipation. If these swordfish could help him reach nine streams of true qi, he’d have more confidence facing the Forbidden City.
“Little brat, let’s get to work, quick.”
They gutted and cleaned the swordfish, then started grilling.
Ye Qiu silently counted, fifty-four swordfish in total.
After grilling them, he and Master Longbrow brought out monkey wine, eating grilled fish and drinking.
“Grilled fish with wine, the more you drink, the better it gets. Awesome!”
After eating five grilled fish, Master Longbrow’s face was flushed, like he was drunk, and he said, “Little brat, I’ll rest a bit. Don’t eat them all, save some for me.”
With that, Master Longbrow sat to the side, cross-legged, and began circulating his energy.
Ye Qiu devoured over a dozen swordfish in one go, but there was no sign of a breakthrough, not even a slight feeling.
What’s going on?
Ye Qiu silently circulated his energy, found his true qi normal, and frowned.
“Why do swordfish work for the old thing but have no effect on me?”
“Maybe I haven’t eaten enough?”
“No, that’s not right. The old thing broke through with just one swordfish the first time, and now after five, he’s about to break through again. I’ve eaten over a dozen, so why no effect?”
Ye Qiu was baffled and ate another twenty or so swordfish.
Suddenly, a powerful aura burst from Master Longbrow, with five streams of true qi appearing behind him.
“Damn it, this old thing broke through again.”
Ye Qiu’s eyes were red with envy.
Master Longbrow opened his eyes, grinning, “Little brat, I didn’t lie, did I? Swordfish boost cultivation. This Taoist has reached five streams of true qi… huh, you ate so many and didn’t break through?”
Ye Qiu said glumly, “The swordfish had no effect on me.”
Master Longbrow was stunned, “No way, they worked for me, how could they not work for you?”
Ye Qiu said, “I don’t know why.”
“Could it be related to your innate true qi?” Master Longbrow asked.
“Maybe!” Ye Qiu had long noticed that breaking through with innate true qi was far harder than with acquired true qi.
Moreover, each breakthrough now required facing a powerful heavenly tribulation, and the slightest mistake could mean death under it.
“Little brat, since the swordfish don’t work for you, let me eat the rest!”
As he spoke, Master Longbrow ate all the remaining swordfish.
Soon, he broke through again, cultivating a sixth stream of true qi!
Ye Qiu was thoroughly depressed.
He’d thought he’d break through too, but in the end, it all benefited the old thing.
After breaking through, Master Longbrow stood before Tianchi, hands behind his back, exuding the air of a lofty sage, and said, “At this moment, this Taoist is deeply moved and shall compose a poem.”
That damn old thing is showing off again.
Ye Qiu cursed inwardly.
Master Longbrow declared loudly, “*River City, Tianchi Swordfish!*”
“Midnight hunger strikes, oh so strong, on wild hills, by Tianchi’s song. One swordfish, how it tastes so fine?”
“Golden needles in hand, a hundred strong, catch swordfish, gut them long.”
“Chicken legs, tripe, or roasted lamb, spicy soup with fiery tang.”
“None compare to swordfish’s delight.”
“No regrets, this journey’s right!”
