The lightning technique used one's own True Essence as a guide to accumulate the power of heavenly lightning; Yin and Yang produced thunder and lightning respectively.
The requirement for this lightning path was not low. One needed to be at Level 4 of the Spirit Refinement Realm to cultivate it.
The main reason was, the lightning path consumed too much True Essence. Without sufficient cultivation, one could not support it.
According to the records in the ancient books, once this technique was cultivated to a high level, a single bolt of lightning could break through any illusion.
Was this not the Dao technique that he wanted to use to restrain demons?
Zhang Li happily memorized this lightning technique and slowly circulated his True Essence according to the instructions.
He conjured a seal with one hand, while his True Essence condensed and split. He then borrowed the power of the convergence to produce lightning in the void.
"Heaven and earth are boundless, Heaven and earth produce lightning!"
With a deep shout, he raised his hand and pointed forward.
There seemed to be muffled sounds of thunder rumbling, and his face turned pale.
There was no lightning, but his meridians were almost torn apart by the rapidly circulating True Essence.
As expected, the lightning technique was not as simple as he had imagined.
Zhang Li was not in a hurry, though. After he took a pill to nourish his meridians, he began to study the lightning technique and read the book on the Divine Elephant Body Condensing Force.
Body refinement included the bones, skin, blood, organs, and even the strength of the soul.
Spirit energy and blood were condensed to produce the power of an elephant as the user stepped into the Foundation Establishment Realm.
The notes also mentioned at the end that when nine elephants merged into one, its spirit would appear.
He did not know how to produce nine elephants. Besides, this cultivation technique would stop at the Foundation Establishment Realm. What a pity.
Zhang Li took out a Body-tempering Pill and swallowed it without hesitation.
The 20 spirit stones had to be used where they were needed.
Cultivation could not be skipped.
The two spirit stones around him shattered, and spirit energy surged. It fused with the power of the pill in his body, and Zhang Li felt as if his body was expanding.
His physical strength also seemed to be increasing rapidly.
After all, it was a cultivation method that led straight to the Foundation Establishment Realm. It was indeed extraordinary.
As he felt searing pain all over his body, Zhang Li began to throw punches around the quiet room.
The Divine Elephant Body Condensing Force came with eight forms of the Body-tempering Fist.
He rummaged through his storage bag and found a few body-tempering tools.
There was thick and heavy stone armor, all kinds of iron chains as well as stone drums used to train the body.
He ran his hand across all of them.
...
It was said that the Luo River was connected to the Cangjiang River, and it stretched for thousands of miles.
At this moment, there was an endless stream of boats on the wide river.
Luojing had a population of a million, and most of its supplies were transported via the Luo River and Jin River.
Zhao Ji was standing on the deck of a 50-foot-long wooden boat, and he could not hide the anxiety in his eyes.
He looked at the pleasure boat that was slowly wandering half a mile ahead and clenched his fists tightly.
"Prince, you should be calm when you face problems." A voice rang out behind him.
The person who spoke was wearing green martial arts robes. He appeared to be about 50 years old, and his eyes sparkled.
Sun Jinran performed the martial arts rites in Prince Yu's residence. He was a peak Spirit Condensation expert who was halfway to becoming a grandmaster.
"Master Sun, I can't calm down." Zhao Ji gritted his teeth and punched the side of the ship.
"There are only four days left of the 14 days that His Majesty has set.
"Father hasn't rested for three days and three nights. Yuyan is risking her life, and she's been floating on the Luo River for five days."
Zhao Ji turned to look at the ships that were passing by. Anger and worry filled his face.
"There's been another murder on the Luo River.
"What is that demon trying to do?" Zhao Ji gritted his teeth and asked in a low voice.
Sun Jinran was silent.
There had been a battle in the lower reaches of the Luo River yesterday. It was said that the waves were three feet high and that the sounds of battle were thunderous.
Someone with that kind of power had to be a first-class expert in the middle stage of the Spirit Condensation Realm, at the very least.
In the end, there was a broken corpse floating in the water, which was fished up from the lower reaches of Luyang Prefecture.
Now, Luojing was not the only city in a panic. Even the surrounding prefectures were starting to be afraid.
Many people said that this was the work of pure evil.
Every time the state fell into chaos, there had to be evil spirits involved.
There were already rumors in the market that the emperor of Zhao was about to be replaced and that there was a villain beside the emperor.
Hence, the emperor was furious.
"What do you want, Demon?" Zhao Ji looked down at the turbulent river.
Rumors were not scary. What was scary was the person pushing the rumors.
Once the emperor was angry, people would die. The first to bear the brunt would be Prince Yu and everyone involved in the investigation.
Being in the middle of a trap, Zhao Ji could not escape.
"Your Highness." On a small green boat not far away, someone cupped his hands and called out to him.
Zhao Ji raised his head and was slightly stunned.
It was Imperial Censor Su Ming, the state minister's disciple.
Su Ming smiled faintly and waved his hand as his small boat slowly came closer.
"Prince, are you willing to board my boat for a chat?"
Even the son of the third prince had to give face to the disciple of a great grandmaster.
He refused Sun Jinran's offer to go with him and took a step forward. Just as his feet landed on the water, he stomped down it.
Splash!
The surface of the water exploded, and he flew up into the air.
He was 30 feet above the water's surface as he treaded on the waves in the air.
Zhao Ji's martial arts cultivation was already at its peak.
At his age, he was already considered an expert among his peers in Luojing.
"Prince, you are truly dashing." Su Ming smiled as he wrapped his fist in his palm and straightened his sleeves. "I definitely can't do that."
Zhao Ji naturally did not believe him.
The disciple of Minister Dongfang Jing had found martial arts through literature. How could he not be as good as a junior?
Scholars were always humble.
"Su Ming, are you here for a boat ride?" Zhao Ji asked as he looked at the boat.
There were no bailiffs or guards on the boat, and Su Ming was not wearing his imperial censor uniform either.
"I'm not taking a bath for the next few days." Su Ming stretched out his hand and gestured for Zhao Ji to sit at a small table at the bow. "The Luo River is not a peaceful place. I've come to take a look at things."
"Mengmeng, serve the tea," Su Ming called out softly toward the cabin.
A woman in the cabin replied and brought some teacups.
Zhao Ji knew that scholars valued etiquette the most. At this moment, he did not look sideways and only looked at the small table before him.
The woman's hands were fair, almost indistinguishable from the white porcelain teacup.
Her movements were light and gentle, and the fragrance of tea permeated the air.
Zhao Ji could not help but look up slightly.
The woman named Mengmeng was about 17 or 18 years old. She wore a light cotton shirt and had no makeup on. There were only two wooden hairpins in her hair.
Her face was beautiful and gentle as she focused on pouring the tea and water.
As if sensing Zhao Ji's gaze, the woman looked up. Her large, watery eyes were bright and clear.
Zhao Ji was born in the imperial family and had long gotten accustomed to beautiful women.
However, the woman before him had a unique charm.
He felt a little odd as he lowered his head slightly.
Who was this woman to Su Ming?
Most scholars enjoyed traveling with beautiful women and having fun on a boat.
"Ahem, I forgot to introduce you. Mengmeng is my cousin. Her surname is Yu. She's from Yongzhou Prefecture in the southeast. She's staying at my place temporarily."
Su Ming coughed lightly and whispered, "The flood in the southeast has been heavy this year…"
Cousin?
Yu Mengmeng?
Zhao Ji nodded as a trace of insuppressible joy rose in his heart.
"His Majesty has already allocated 300,000 taels of silver from the palace treasury to help with the flood. The minister has also transferred three capable officials from the Ministry of Personnel to aid with disaster relief.
"We should be able to minimize casualties and damages before the new year."
Zhao Ji was aware of the imperial court's arrangements. At this moment, he raised his head and looked at Yu Mengmeng."If Ms. Yu's family isn't affected much, you can return home for New Year's."
"Capable officials, huh. Haha…" Su Ming chuckled softly.
Yu Mengmeng nodded and did not say anything. She then handed a teacup to Zhao Ji with both hands.
Zhao Ji accepted the teacup and took a sip. The tea's fragrance lingered on his lips.