On the second day.
As the red sun rose, its path shone brightly.
Yi Chen stood in a place of scenic mountains and clear waters, before him lay a solitary raised grave.
After Shi Shoufu died yesterday, he first deliberately trashed the room, then came out and falsely claimed that the mastermind behind the scenes had been severely injured by his hand and fled far away, not long to live.
However, that murderer, with a diseased heart full of hatred, lashed out in his final moments, severing the wrist of Fu Shou Tang's Boss Shi and causing his death.
The matter was concluded.
Of course, this version of the story naturally couldn't deceive Master Lianhua.
However, after Yi Chen earnestly appealed to him and reasoned with him and then copied the "Corpse Sutra" left by Shi Shoufu to give to Master Lianhua, Master Lianhua fell silent.
He simply uttered, "What is this thing called love that teaches men to vow their life and death to each other?" and then spoke no more.
Yi Chen set the narrative, Master Lianhua tacitly agreed, and the rest, even if doubtful, had to hold their noses and accept it.
Who with such low emotional intelligence would dare to question Taoist Yi Chengzi who casually smashed armored zombies for fun?
Sometimes the truth isn't important, who speaks it is.
Once one has power, they gain the right to define certain things. If you can't accept it, just keep it to yourself.
"Boss Shi, the first promise I made to you has been fulfilled; Xiao Cui's ashes after cremation have also been secretly buried next to you. This spot is blessed with good fengshui, a fine burial site, you and Xiao Cui rest easy here."
"I won't charge you for the fengshui consultation."
"Some things can't be blamed on me. If I were to say you were the mastermind behind the crime, I fear your grave would be dug open sooner or later. You wouldn't pass the official's scrutiny, so fabricating this tall tale was already doing my best."
"Right, as for the deed to your Fu Shou Tang, I can't be bothered to take it. I've told the elders of your town, the deed will be kept at your Shi family's ancestral hall. Should your brother return from his journey one day, he can retrieve it himself."
After reciting the Rebirth Mantra three more times to the grave mound before him, Yi Chen decided to leave; there was still the second promise he made to Boss Shi that hadn't been fulfilled.
Someone wasn't going to enjoy a long life.
But before leaving, there was one more thing he had to do.
"Deep Red, give me a boost. Minor Pure Yang Skill, break through for me!" Yi Chen silently exclaimed in his heart.
This place was sparsely populated, perfect for a breakthrough.
[Minor Pure Yang Skill has broken through to the sixth level. An additional expenditure of ten Deep Red Points is required to extrapolate the subsequent technique, totaling fifty Deep Red Points needed for the breakthrough. Confirm breakthrough? Yes/No]
"Eh, a price hike? It actually requires an extra ten points to deduce the subsequent Minor Pure Yang Skill technique?" Yi Chen curled his lips, muttered a complaint about the profiteer, and then chose yes.
The fifty Deep Red Points were deducted in the blink of an eye, as a torrent of memories suddenly flooded his mind.
Within that span of memory, he racked his brain tirelessly studying the Minor Pure Yang Skill, finally perfecting the pathway to the sixth level.
Afterward, Yi Chen's spirit became momentarily dazed; he saw a Daoist atop a mountain peak, absorbing the essence of heaven and earth without rest, day and night, assiduously circulating the Minor Pure Yang Skill.
The deep red Inner Qi within his body grew increasingly saturated over time, until one day, a wisp of faint purple Inner Qi appeared within him.
This thread of faint purple Inner Qi was like a gluttonous beast—it emerged to greedily consume the surrounding deep red Inner Qi, slowly transforming it.
Ninety-nine years passed in the blink of an eye. The young Daoist had become an old man with white hair; the deep red Inner Qi within him had all transformed into surging faint purple Pure Yang Inner Qi.
Inner Qi liquefied, red turned to purple, and the Minor Pure Yang Skill finally reached the sixth level.
Though the transformation would take long to describe, in reality, it was completed in just a moment. Yi Chen opened his eyes again, now with a faint purple hue in his gaze.
A surge of faint purple Pure Yang Inner Qi, far exceeding its previous state, suddenly appeared within his meridians.
This power was so strong that, wave after wave, it continuously strengthened his body. Every cell in his body, nourished by the faint purple Inner Qi, shone with a crystal-like luster as if it had been revitalized by a potent elixir.
The faint purple Inner Qi, with each powerful circulation, also began to seep into his bones, which started to show faint purple lines as if carved from white jade.
The lines, as though naturally formed or like cryptic symbols, were gracefully shaped, appearing profound and mysterious.
More than ten seconds later, the entire enhancement was completed, and a Daoist with the presence of a majestic mountain emerged.
Under the enhancement of the faint purple Pure Yang Inner Qi, Yi Chen's height surged a few centimeters above his six-foot-three stature, nearing two meters tall. His arms became muscular and sinewy, tough enough to stop a charging horse.
He lightly swung his fist at a tree in front of him, releasing a burst of faint purple Qi from his body that struck the trunk, as thick as a sea bowl. The tree was cleanly sliced as if by a high-temperature oxy-acetylene cutting torch, snapping apart with a charred cross-section and crashing down with a thunderous fall.
At this moment, the display panel on Yi Chen's retinal screen also underwent corresponding changes.
[Name: Yi Chen]
[Lifespan: 18/97]
[Strength: 27.0, Stamina: 24.0, Spirit: 27, Agility: 23] (normal human value is 1)
[Cultivation Technique: Minor Pure Yang Skill Level 6 (Traits: Body Enhancement, Intense Heat, Divine Power, Evil Warding, Resilience). Active Skill: Yang Extreme Change (Strength triples for ten minutes, after which Inner Qi and Strength temporarily reduce to 70% of the original value.)]
[Passive Skills: Danqing Painting Skill Lv1, Auspicious Event Host Lv2, Funeral Host Lv3, Culinary Skill Lv3]
[Origin Point: 1.0] (Can be obtained through physical training, used to enhance the four dimensions of strength, stamina, spirit, and agility.)
[Deep Red Value: 16.] (Can be obtained through special items or by slaying demons and evil beings. Used to enhance cultivation levels or for deduction.)
"Good! You truly didn't disappoint me, Deep Red."
"With my effort and your unrivaled wisdom, we've completed in just over ten seconds the journey that would take others ninety-nine years."
"Let's push harder; I feel that I'm not far from the power of Master's Pure Yang True Force."
This improvement significantly raised Yi Chen's four-dimensional stats, especially his strength, which increased to 27 points, the most outstanding among his dimensions. His lifespan also increased by five years, which pleased him greatly.
Besides, the sixth level of the Minor Pure Yang Skill now included an active skill called Yang Extreme Change which tripled his strength for ten minutes. Although after the effect, both Inner Qi and strength would weaken to seventy percent of their original value.
But in a fight where life and death could hinge on a split second, even a slight increase in strength could tip the scales of victory in his favor, let alone a threefold increase.
As for the color change of the Inner Qi to faint purple, although Yi Chen had never heard of Minor Pure Yang Skill being cultivated into faint purple Pure Yang Inner Qi before, and his master, a person of spiritual nature, also possessed a red-colored, domineering Pure Yang True Force, Yi Chen didn't care.
As long as it was powerful and the potency was strong enough, color was a minor issue. Even if it turned pink, he wouldn't mind.
Though, the image of a Daoist exorcising demons with pink Inner Qi was somewhat unconventional...
"However, it seems I've taken a path that's entirely different from that of spiritual nature. Is this the path of martial arts or the way of spirit? No spirituality, but I have Deep Red Points to make up for it?" After dispersing the faint purple Pure Yang Inner Qi, Yi Chen's height also returned to just over one meter ninety.
He stroked his smooth chin, pondering to himself.
Regarding the Yang Extreme Change active skill derived from the breakthrough of the Minor Pure Yang Skill, Yi Chen decided to try it out after returning to the Taoist temple.