Immortality Begins With Internal Breathing

In the darkness, outside the Han residence, two figures moved stealthily.

”Brother, should we make a move on that man? He seems to be on good terms with Han Mo,” one of the men whispered as he watched Lin Zheyu walk into the distance.

”Forget about him. Our main target is that bastard Han Mo’s wife and children,” muttered the other man.

”Alright.” The man nodded and kept his eyes fixed on the Han residence.

Today was New Year’s, the most relaxed day for the Han household. They had been lurking in the shadows for so long, all for the perfect moment to strike.

Whoosh.

The cold wind howled as the night grew darker. Those who had stayed up for the New Year vigil began returning to bed, and the streets slowly grew quiet.

”Get ready. We’ll climb over the wall from there and—”

Halfway through his words, a crushing force struck the man’s neck. His vision went black, and he lost consciousness.

”Brother!”

Bang.

The other man cried out, but before he could react, he too was knocked unconscious.

So they were after Senior Brother Han. I’ll take them back for questioning and see who sent them, thought Lin Zheyu.

Carrying the two unconscious men, Lin Zheyu vanished into the night. He had just checked and found that only these two suspicious men were lurking outside the Han residence. They had concealed themselves well, and it had taken him quite some effort to uncover them.

Fortunately, his perception far surpassed that of martial artists at the blood qi gauze stage; otherwise, he might not have found them at all.

Back in his courtyard, Lin Zheyu tied the two men securely and stuffed their mouths with ragged cloth. One of them was at the peak of the Bone Forging Realm, while the other had just stepped into the Organ Forging Realm. Their strength was not insignificant.

”Well, what a pleasant surprise. These two actually carried so much silver on them,” exclaimed Lin Zheyu.

He searched their bodies and found 118 taels of silver, along with several poisons and hidden weapons. Carrying such a large sum of silver on their person, they were likely planning to strike once and then flee.

Splash.

Lin Zheyu fetched a basin of cold water and doused the two men awake.

”Mmmph... mmmph...”

They woke from unconsciousness, eyes wide, muffled cries spilling out as they struggled against the ropes.

”Save your strength. Tell me, who sent you?”

Lin Zheyu pulled the cloth from one man’s mouth so he could speak.

”Bah! Let me go, bastard! Who the hell are you? Why did you capture me?” the man struggled and shouted.

”That’s what I should be asking. What were you two skulking around Senior Brother Han’s residence for?” replied Lin Zheyu.

”You think I’ll tell you? You motherless bastard, you piece of trash, you—ah...” cursed the man.

Halfway through his tirade, his voice cut off, replaced by a strangled scream stuck in his throat. Expressionless, Lin Zheyu had reached out and squeezed the man’s cheeks, producing faint cracking sounds. Tears welled in the man’s eyes from the pain, convinced his jawbone was about to be crushed by the young man before him.

”Mmmph...”

Seeing this, the other man thrashed about, muffled sounds suggesting he wanted to speak.

”Then you can talk.” Lin Zheyu stuffed the cloth back into the first man’s mouth and removed the gag from the other.

”That dog, Han, killed my father and dozens of my brothers. What’s wrong with me killing his family?” the man spat viciously.

”Oh, so you’re bandits from outside the city. No wonder you carried so much silver, poison, and hidden weapons,” said Lin Zheyu.

With his Senior Brother Han’s temperament, the only people he would kill down to their parents and brothers were bandits.

He turned to the man and asked, ”With the city gates being inspected so strictly, how did you sneak in?”

”Hmph, so what if I tell you? It was the Xing Family who contacted us. They said they could give us a chance to enter the city for revenge. After that, we were to join them and become their deathsworn,” said the man coldly.

He knew he would not survive this time, so he remained straightforward, unlike his younger brother, who had cursed and struggled. The man had no intention of keeping the Xing Family’s secret. The Xing Family was no saints, and had they not approached and threatened him, he might have fled long ago.

”The Xing Family has been in Lion Valley, reaching out to powerful bandits everywhere and making secret moves. They must be plotting something big,” the man added.

”Anything else?” Lin Zheyu asked curiously.

”Hmph, that’s all. Give me a quick death. I’ll be a man again in 18 years,” said the man.

”You are indeed a tough man, but you chose the wrong path,” said Lin Zheyu calmly.

Bang, bang.

Two punches struck out, slamming into the temples of the two men. The sound of breaking bones echoed. Their temples caved in, blood seeped from their seven orifices, and they fell silent forever. Lin Zheyu did not use a blade. Though quicker, it would have spilled too much blood, staining the floor and making cleanup troublesome.

Late at night. Lin Zheyu carried the two bodies while avoiding the city patrols, found a desolate, remote spot, dug a pit, and buried them. Men like them, rootless and nameless, would have no one to avenge them even in death.

***

The next morning, at dawn, Lin Zheyu woke early, exercised for more than an hour, and then went out. He arrived early at Chen Peijun’s home and knocked gently on the door.

Knock, knock, knock.

The door opened with a creaking sound.

”Senior, Happy New Year.”

Lin Zheyu brought half a kilogram of venison[1] jerky, a customary New Year’s gift in Songyi City.

”Come in.” Chen Peijun accepted the jerky and said, ”You even brought a gift. Not bad. All these years, you’re the first to give this old man something, hehe.”

As Lin Zheyu stepped into the courtyard, the house felt desolate, devoid of any festive atmosphere. There wasn’t even a trace of ritual offerings or ceremonies. The old man, like him, lived alone. But Old Master Chen was even more reclusive and rarely mingled with others.

”Sit.” Chen Peijun sat, took a sip of tea, and motioned for Lin Zheyu to make himself comfortable.

”Since you have sworn the oath, I will teach you properly. However, mastering the science of toxicology is no easier than training in martial arts; it requires learning many things. For example, poisoning techniques, methods of producing poisons, the ability to identify toxins, and antidote and defense techniques all require extensive effort to learn. But if one could master toxicology, even a Bone Forging Realm cultivator could kill a Blood Qi Realm cultivator,” said Chen Peijun calmly, his tone filled with absolute confidence.

Lin Zheyu thought inwardly, Why don’t you poison Gang Leader Zhao Guanbin then, if your poison arts are so great? I guess it’s because poisons also have significant limitations.

Still, the fact that Old Master Chen had formed a collaboration with Liang Song, who had reached the third transformation of the Blood Qi Realm, meant his poison arts were not to be underestimated.

”I do not intend to master toxicology. I only want to learn defensive techniques against poison to prevent being ambushed,” said Lin Zheyu.

His focus was on martial cultivation; studying toxicology was merely to prevent others from plotting against him.

”That is not simple. To learn defensive techniques, you must first learn how to identify poisons. Only by clearly recognizing each toxin can you take proper precautions. There are so many varieties of poisons in the world that it is impossible to identify every single one.

”Fortunately, after poisoning, the human body displayed characteristic reactions such as dizziness, blurred consciousness, slowed flow of blood qi, darkening of the pupils, blackened lips, and so on. By observing these symptoms, one could roughly determine the category of toxin and the appropriate treatment methods......” Chen Peijun spoke at length and in great detail, and Lin Zheyu listened intently.

What he described was not only a theory, but more important were the daily drills and the cultivation of an instinctive sense for poisons. This skill came with practice. The more exposure one had to poisons, the keener one’s sensitivity became, allowing one to easily detect when someone attempted to poison them.

”What I just explained was only the general principles. Knowing is one thing, and doing is another. This is the Toxicology Codex passed down from my ancestors, refined over several generations into a complete compendium of poisons. It records the most common poisons and their antidotes. If one encounters rare, deadly toxins, then only experience can be relied upon.”

1. Venison is the dark, lean meat from antlered game animals, primarily deer, but can also include other large game like elk or moose. In this case, it is from a deer. ☜