It was late at night and all was quiet.
In a small courtyard of Yan Qu Hall, Deng Weixian and his Godfather had prepared early.
Li Xuan was nestled in the bushes, yawning boredly.
He had a small workout during the day, and finally stopped hiccuping.
Otherwise, this undercover work would have been truly difficult.
"Weixian, begin."
His Godfather instructed.
He had come specifically to watch Deng Weixian practice martial arts today, precisely to observe how Deng Weixian removed the blood fiend from the Linhu Essence Blood.
Upon hearing this, Deng Weixian immediately retrieved a jar of Linhu Essence Blood, newly acquired last night, from the room.
He had learned his lesson that morning, so he naturally knew which jar to take.
"It's rare for Godfather to be so expectant; I naturally cannot disappoint him."
Thinking this, Deng Weixian skillfully extended his hands into the ceramic jar.
A bone-chilling coldness immediately assailed him, causing him to tightly furrow his brows and endure the intense pain.
Although this pain was still difficult to bear, it was clearly much better than that morning.
At least it didn't hurt so much that he questioned his existence.
The process of absorbing Linhu Essence Blood was very quick, taking less than thirty breaths of time before Deng Weixian began to practice the Tiger Form Ten Styles.
His Godfather, seeing that Deng Weixian could now persist for nearly thirty breaths of time, nodded in deep approval.
"This child indeed has a special constitution; at this stage, he can absorb so much Linhu Essence Blood."
"When he advances to the Ningxue Realm, the amount of Linhu Essence Blood he absorbs will be more, not less, than mine."
"The stronger the Ice-Cold Breath, the better he will cultivate in the future..."
"Barring any accidents, his achievements will be higher than mine."
From this moment on, his Godfather actually truly entertained the idea of genuinely acknowledging this adopted son.
Eunuchs in the palace, whenever they had the chance, would always acknowledge godfathers and godchildren.
However, most of these were exchanges of interests, with no genuine affection to speak of.
He himself was no different in the beginning.
In his eyes, Deng Weixian was merely a chess piece that could be molded and discarded at will.
From start to finish, it was merely a casual act.
But as Deng Weixian gradually displayed increasing value, his Godfather couldn't help but start to waver.
Resilient in spirit, a man of few words and many deeds, efficient in handling matters, extraordinarily talented...
Coupled with the special constitution he displayed at this moment, it must be said that his Godfather was truly moved.
He would eventually grow old, and by then, all his power would eventually leave him.
At such a time, having a reliable adopted son would determine whether he could have a good end.
Look at Chief Steward Shang in the palace; in his youth, he reached the pinnacle of power in the imperial harem, becoming a legendary Grand Eunuch.
In his later years, he wisely retreated, unhesitatingly delegating power to his adopted sons, and now holds a leisurely position in the palace, enjoying his golden years.
Chief Steward Shang's entire life was dignified.
Such a life was almost the dream of all eunuchs in the palace.
But his Godfather understood the difficulty involved even more clearly.
Trying to find a reliable adopted son in the palace was harder than ascending to heaven.
Yet now, such a candidate seemed to have appeared before him.
Watching Deng Weixian sweat profusely on the training ground, skillfully performing the Tiger Form Ten Styles and Bloodthirsty Tiger Claw, his Godfather's heart grew even more restless.
Recalling the two previous tasks he had given him, which were both handled splendidly, the impulse became even more insistent.
"Alas, let's wait and see, let's wait and see..."
Sincerely taking on an adopted son was not a small matter, and his Godfather had to be even more cautious.
"To win this child's heart, I must avenge him, but that is, after all..."
"Let me think again, let me think again..."
Even though he prided himself on making swift decisions, at this moment, his Godfather couldn't help but hesitate greatly.
For them, eunuchs who were destined to have no descendants, truly acknowledging an adopted son was simply too difficult.
Not only did they have to invest their precious resources, but they also had to unseal their hearts, which had long been hardened like cold iron.
"Benefit and righteousness clash, good and evil are opposite."
"Righteousness moves gentlemen, benefit moves villains."
Thinking of this saying, Deng Weixians Godfather couldn't help but curl a faint smile under the shadow of his cloak.
This was something his own Godfather had taught him in the past.
Based on his understanding of Deng Weixian, merely offering great benefits would make it difficult to completely win him over.
Only by treating him with sincerity would it be possible for him to truly pledge allegiance.
"Alas, let's talk about it later."
This matter was just so frustrating; those who were easy to win over he didn't fancy, and those he fancied were not easy to win over.
His Godfather shook his head, no longer dwelling on it.
He then went to check the jar of Linhu Essence Blood that Deng Weixian had absorbed, and indeed found its color had faded.
"As expected, his constitution is truly miraculous."
"It's just..."
His Godfather tilted the ceramic jar and, by the moonlight, carefully examined the liquid inside.
"The absorbed blood fiend wasn't as thoroughly removed as in the first jar."
"Although he seemed calm earlier, it wasn't hard to see he was enduring intense pain."
"It seems my previous thoughts were overly optimistic."
His Godfather now understood that while Deng Weixian's constitution could remove the blood fiend within the Linhu Essence Blood, there should be a limit to it, and it couldn't achieve the infinite removal of blood fiend he had previously imagined.
This also rendered many of his previous ideas obsolete.
"Come to think of it, this is normal."
"He has brought me too many surprises recently, making me somewhat unrealistic."
His Godfather smiled bitterly and shook his head, putting down the ceramic jar and watching the young man practice martial arts on the ground.
"But even so, he is a martial arts prodigy; in the future, I must find more Yin-cold attribute martial arts for him."
"I must make good use of the excess Ice-Cold Breath in his body."
Now that he had figured out that Deng Weixian's constitution had an upper limit, his Godfather was not overly disappointed; instead, he immediately made future arrangements, intending to properly develop his adopted son's talent.
...
Li Xuan, hidden in the shadows, couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief as the father and son showed no excessive suspicion of anything else from beginning to end.
The blood fiend within the Linhu Essence Blood was naturally absorbed by him.
However, unlike the intense pain his Godfather mentioned, Li Xuan only felt a cool, comfortable sensation.
Yesterday, when he soaked his feet, he specifically soaked both jars once.
As a result of this soaking, a difference emerged.
Perhaps Li Xuan's body had reached its limit for absorbing blood fiend, and the effect of absorbing blood fiend became increasingly poor.
This was why the two jars of Linhu Essence Blood had different colors.
Only then did Li Xuan realize that the constantly circulating cool sensation within his body was not merely the power of the Linhu Essence Blood.
Moreover, as his strength continuously improved these past two days, his appetite had actually become smaller and smaller.
Changes seemed to be occurring within Li Xuan's body that even he himself wasn't entirely clear about.
He could clearly feel that his body's strength and speed were continuously growing, and his weight was becoming more substantial.
Yet, the amount of food he needed to consume daily had actually decreased.
As he continuously approached the Ningxue Realm, Li Xuan felt as if he was constantly advancing towards a higher-level species, like evolution.
His breathing, sleeping, and even sunbathing could now provide him with more energy replenishment.
However, correspondingly, he found it even harder to control himself around Linhu Essence Blood, a food containing special power.
Even Li Xuan himself was a bit confused whether he was cultivating immortality or simply becoming a picky eater.
"No, the more I think about it, the hungrier I get."
"I have to go find Little Deng tonight to beg for some more."
"Anyway, this kid is rich now, and he definitely won't use up three jars of Linhu Essence Blood."
"As his older brother, I definitely have to help him share the burden."
"This kid is also so stubborn, why is he practicing so seriously? He should just finish up and go to sleep."
Li Xuan anxiously waited for Deng Weixian to finish his training in the bushes, completely oblivious to the puddle of drool that had formed at his feet, creating a small pool.
He also didn't notice a small mound in the center of the puddle at his feet, covered with a group of small ants, wildly waving their antennae at him.
Judging by their excited appearance, they definitely weren't saying anything good.