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Translator: uly
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: Black Demon Vajra Body
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"More powerful than me, isn't she, the Palace Lord?"
Black Wind said.
"Doesn't mean I'm not scared."
"Are they ghosts?"
What burst through the grave wasn't anything other than a human head. But that wasn't all. Heads popped out from other mounds as well. The sight of human heads emerging from hundreds of graves was chilling.
"Ghosts are even scarier."
Cold River Merchant pressed even closer to Black Wind.
"You're married?"
"Why?"
"With a husband, this looks just right for misunderstandings."
"I am."
"Not beaten to death by the Palace Lord's husband instead of Yulat Jikson?"
"No need to worry about that."
"Why?"
"We broke up."
"I see. But don't ghosts float around?"
"Pr-Probably."
Cold River Merchant gripped Black Wind's arm even tighter.
"But those ones are walking."
"Walking?"
"They're coming this way."
"They are, huh?"
Fear vanished from Cold River Merchant's voice.
"Something's changed, it seems."
Black Wind sensed her voice regaining its calm.
"What?"
"You, Palace Lord."
"Can't be helped."
"Are those illusions created by the Array of Truth too?"
Black Wind asked.
"No. Those are real."
"Not ghosts, then?"
"Yeah."
"So what are they?"
"Jiangshi."
"Jiangshi aren't scary?"
"Not ghosts."
"...."
While the two conversed, the jiangshi closed in right before them. That was when a chill emanated from Cold River Merchant's body.
She released Black Wind's arm.
Ssss!
An odd sound came from both her arms. It resembled the noise of a lake's surface freezing as the pitch-black night temperature plummeted.
A faint silvery glow emanated from Cold River Merchant's head.
Swoosh!
Several jiangshi lunged at the pair. Surprisingly, the jiangshi here differed from the usual sort. Normal jiangshi hopped stiffly due to rigid joints, but these walked and extended their arms like ordinary people.
Swoosh!
Cold River Merchant swung her right arm.
Shooo!
A pure white glow spread like a fan and shot forward. Black Wind thought the silver radiance dispersing in the air was beautiful.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
The jiangshi froze in place instantly.
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
Dull thuds followed as they shattered into pieces.
"Amazing."
Black Wind stuck out his tongue. Could this really be the same person who'd been trembling in fear of ghosts moments ago?
"Cha-ha!"
Cold River Merchant shouted and swung her left arm. Once more, pure white glow adorned the front.
Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!
The jiangshi charging at the two halted simultaneously, soon crumbling into ice shards. The Ice Palace's supreme technique, Ice Extreme Void Ice Demon Art, was extraordinary. Even jiangshi impervious to blades couldn't withstand it.
"We can go forward now?"
Cold River Merchant asked.
"Yup!"
Black Wind unwittingly saluted.
Cold River Merchant advanced, eliminating jiangshi along the way. Black Wind surveyed the interior.
"Let's head to the largest grave you see there."
Black Wind pointed to the mound at the left edge. Cold River Merchant cleared a path with her ice arts.
As the two moved toward the large mound, swarms of jiangshi rushed them. There were so many even she struggled to handle alone.
"Will this work?"
Black Wind raised his halberd and asked.
"No need to chop them."
"Just block, then?"
"Yeah. But what's with the sudden salute?"
"Now I know you're one scary lady, so I gotta be careful."
"Hohohoho!"
While laughing, one jiangshi slipped through.
Swoosh!
"Gasp!"
Cold River Merchant leaned her upper body back and thrust her left hand.
Rip!
Thud!
As her clothes tore, silver glow struck the jiangshi's chest.
Crack!
The jiangshi shattered into an ice lump.
"Ta-ha!"
A shout burst from Black Wind's mouth. The halberd in his hand sliced through the air.
Clang!
It struck the jiangshi's neck precisely, but didn't sever it.
Thud!
The jiangshi's fist hit Black Wind.
"Urk!"
Black Wind's body floated lightly.
Floating, he flipped in midair and landed on the ground.
"You okay?"
"Yeah."
Snap!
Black Wind drew his demon hook with his left hand and bent his upper body until his chest nearly touched the ground. Then he channeled his Beast Blood Demon Art.
"Today it ends! Raaargh!"
He plunged into the jiangshi horde.
Clang! Clang-clang! Clang-clang!
Thud! Thump-thump! Thump-thump-thump! Thump!
Clang-clang-clang! Clang-clang-clang!
Thud! Thud! Thump!
His halberd and demon hook battered the jiangshi, while their fists pummeled his entire body.
"Urgh! Ack! Urgh!"
Black Wind screamed yet swung his demon hook and halberd.
"I'll go."
Cold River Merchant, startled, dashed toward him. She leaped while gathering all her inner energy.
She halted mid-motion.
Black Wind's movements were odd. He should've collapsed under the one-sided beating, but he didn't.
Swoosh!
Watching him, she swung her right hand.
The Ice Extreme Void Ice Demon Art's stance, Ice Heaven, unfolded, shattering over ten jiangshi into ice. While destroying them, she kept her eyes on Black Wind. His clothes tore at struck spots, exposing bare skin.
"Acupoints?"
Her eyes widened.
Incredibly, every spot Black Wind took hits from the jiangshi were acupoints. Some were deadly vital points that killed instantly. Yet he didn't die.
"On purpose... why...?"
Meanwhile, more jiangshi swarmed him, relentlessly punching.
"It's blackening."
She suddenly realized his acupoints were turning black.
Thud! Thud! Thump-thump-thump! Thud! Thud!
Now Black Wind didn't even scream.
At first, only the acupoints bruised black, but it spread outward.
Thump! Thump-thump! Thump-thump-thump!
"My god! Black Demon Vajra Body!"
Cold River Merchant murmured like a groan.
The world's toughest physique was called the Vajra Indestructible Divine Body. It resisted blades and swords, as well as heat and cold. Achieving it required at least ten cycles of功力.
But the Vajra Indestructible Divine Body had a fatal flaw: losing inner energy shattered it.
Yet there existed a body that overcame this.
It could be cultivated regardless of inner energy, but its brutal method made completion impossible, known only in theory.
That art was the Black Demon Vajra Body. It was gained solely through blows. Pummeling the body's acupoints thousands, tens of thousands of times broke bones and tore muscles.
Regrown bones hardened; healed muscles became tougher than blades could cut. Repeating this dozens of times blackened the entire body, reaching the Vajra realm—the Black Demon Vajra Body, true Vajra Indestructible Divine Body.
The Black Demon Vajra Body had nothing to do with inner energy.
Muscle power grew infinitely, granting superhuman feats.
"To think someone uses jiangshi to complete the Black Demon Vajra Body."
Cold River Merchant muttered in disbelief.
While she watched, Black Wind's whole body turned ink-black.
"Three years old...."
She recalled his words.
At three, his arm broken, he'd begged in markets. Perhaps not just his arm broke then.
"Raaaaargh!"
A beastly roar erupted from him.
The thick killing intent made the air quiver. Black Wind gripped his demon hook and halberd.
He bent low, chest nearly to ground.
"Raaagh!"
His form leaped.
The halberd in his right hand cleaved the air. Its motion was too fast to see.
Swoosh!
The halberd passed through a jiangshi's neck.
Incredibly, with pure muscle power and speed, he'd severed a blade-proof jiangshi's neck.
"Monster...."
Cold River Merchant shook her head.
"What're you waiting for! Go!"
Black Wind yelled.
"Got it."
Cold River Merchant flew toward the mound he'd indicated. While she leaped, Black Wind surrendered to the jiangshi again. After about fifteen minutes of beatings, he reached the mound where she waited.
Strangely, the jiangshi didn't pursue to the mound.
"How'd you know this spot's safe?"
Cold River Merchant asked.
"Think why they placed jiangshi here, and the answer comes."
"...You gonna keep talking up to me?"
"Bother you?"
"Not bother—feels like teasing."
"Really? Back to normal, then."
Black Wind shrugged.
"Why place jiangshi here?"
"For protection."
"Protection... to guard something...."
"Yeah."
"How'd you know they guard this mound?"
"Humans instinctively crave higher, grander homes than others."
"The biggest grave's the master's?"
"Yeah. And top-notch."
"What?"
"That."
Black Wind eyed Cold River Merchant's chest.
'No way....'
Cold River Merchant anxiously looked down.
"Gasp!"
Too shocked to cover, both breasts were exposed. Normally shreds remained, but the chest fabric was gone entirely.
"Want this at least?"
Black Wind removed his robe and offered it. Cold River Merchant quickly draped it. Torn and frayed everywhere, unfit for much, but better than full exposure.
"That just now was Black Demon Vajra Body?"
Cold River Merchant asked.
"Yeah."
"Seemed you'd trained it long before, right?"
"Yeah. Couldn't pass the final stage for ten years, but luck struck."
"Why not train other arts?"
"I trained like mad, near death."
"But no inner energy at all?"
Not just hugging arms—she'd infused energy to check his cultivation.
"No inner energy means no dantian, right."
"Same difference."
Dantian forms through energy cultivation. No energy, no dantian. She thought so.
"Know what martial impotence is?"
"A body without dantian?"
"Let's go in."
Black Wind turned to the grave.
Cold River Merchant gazed quietly at his back. Now she understood his beastly roar. Fury—or lament—at his body that yielded no inner energy despite desperate training.
"What?"
"Ah, got it."
Cold River Merchant hurried after. Black Wind inspected the ground.
"...No entrance?"
She said.
"There is."
"Where?"
"Here."
Black Wind tapped the ground with his toe.
"Really?"
"Try a light palm wind here."
"Got it."
Cold River Merchant struck the ground with palm wind. Power enough to scatter dust. As dirt flew, the surface revealed.
"It's real."
Cold River Merchant was startled. An iron ring was embedded in the ground. She flipped it up and pulled. The stone was heavy—requiring three cycles of功力 to lift.
Inside the stone lay descending stairs. She propped the stone, descended, then closed it.
The stairs were deep. Near-vertical, after five zhang down, the bottom appeared. At the stair base stood a stone door to another space. Illuminating it: tiny luminous pearls in the ceiling.
"Shall we?"
Cold River Merchant pushed the stone door.
Grind!
With a low rumble, it opened.