Immortality Begins With Internal Breathing

Time passed quickly, and a full day went by. Lin Zheyu still hadn’t found any trace of Blood Qi Realm beasts. As the forest darkened, he gave up the search. He hunted a giant python over six meters long, carried it to a nearby stream, and built a fire to roast it.

Little Black had been carried around all day, its expression dazed and bewildered. It wanted to run, but there was no escape. However, when it saw Lin Zheyu kill the giant python and begin preparing the fire, its confused little eyes suddenly brightened.

Night gradually fell. The python’s carcass had been cleaned, roasted, and half of it was already eaten. While roasting meat and training Little Black, Lin Zheyu found the time surprisingly enjoyable.

The same was true for Little Black. Obsessed with roasted meat, it had lost all thought of resisting or escaping once it realized that staying beside Lin Zheyu meant food. It obeyed all of Lin Zheyu’s training commands without resistance.

The next morning, before dawn, the first streak of light appeared on the distant horizon, though the forest was still shrouded in darkness. Little Black woke up first, dragged a beast’s corpse over, set it beside Lin Zheyu, and sat obediently, waiting for him to awaken.

”Nicely done!” Lin Zheyu patted its head and said with a smile.

There were many types of beasts, and he still wasn’t sure what kind Little Black was. It was as fat as a pig, yet its features resembled a fox. Since foxes belonged to the canine family, calling it a dog head wasn’t wrong either.

Hiss... chirp, chirp... hiss, hiss...

Little Black stood atop the beast’s corpse, waving its claws and calling out repeatedly. It could make two main sounds, hisses and chirps, and the tone of each carried different meanings. Though Lin Zheyu didn’t understand the language, he could roughly guess what it meant. The beast had apparently tried to ambush Lin Zheyu earlier but was slain by Little Black, which was now proudly reporting its success.

After more than a day together, Little Black had learned that fulfilling Lin Zheyu’s commands, or doing something that pleased him, would earn it roasted meat. Having followed him all of yesterday, it had realized that Lin Zheyu was hunting beasts. So it believed that killing beasts would make Lin Zheyu happy, and it would earn more roasted meat by doing so.

This little one is far smarter than I thought!

Looking at the proud Little Black, Lin Zheyu couldn’t help but sigh with admiration. He stood up and began preparing firewood to roast the beast it had brought. Little Black followed eagerly, biting through branches and carrying them to the remains of last night’s fire.

”Heh~.”

Watching the busy little creature, Lin Zheyu couldn’t help but laugh. He took out a pouch of white powder from his robe, called over the busy Little Black, and under its suspicious gaze sprinkled the powder over its body, rubbing it in evenly with his hands.

Then, Lin Zheyu untied the rope looped around Little Black’s body. The powder was a tracking agent; it was highly effective, resistant to water, and lasted up to three days. The only way to remove it early was with a special cleansing solution.

Seeing how well-behaved it was, Lin Zheyu decided to test it, to see whether it would try to run away once freed. If it didn’t, then that would mean the first stage of training had succeeded.

Chirp, chirp, chirp, chirp...

Little Black looked puzzled, scratched at its neck with a paw, and chirped at Lin Zheyu in confusion.

”Keep gathering firewood—this kind of wood,” said Lin Zheyu, pointing toward the dry sticks on the ground.

Little Black seemed to understand, darting off to fetch the firewood and bringing it back without the slightest thought of running away. Lin Zheyu went to the fire pit from last night and lit the wood. He took a small knife and a rough wooden basin carved from a log, filled it with water to clean the beast meat, then prepared it for roasting.

Man and beast worked together. Lin Zheyu handled the meat and the fire while Little Black kept fetching dry branches from the forest. Soon, the rich and tempting aroma of roast meat filled the air. Little Black stopped what it was doing, stared at the roast in Lin Zheyu’s hand, and couldn’t help but drool again.

”Why’d you stop? Keep gathering firewood.” Lin Zheyu picked up a dry branch and gestured as he gave the order.

Little Black still couldn’t understand complex instructions; it needed gestures or demonstrations to catch his meaning. At his words, Little Black gave the roast one reluctant glance, then obediently resumed collecting wood.

”I’ll stay a couple more days before heading back,” murmured Lin Zheyu as he watched the busy creature.

In Bafang City, no one could freely bring in or take out beasts; only the great powers held such privileges. He had originally planned to keep Little Black outside the city, visiting it occasionally to continue the taming process. But Little Black turned out to be even more obedient than expected.

If he stayed for two more days, the two of them might bond enough that he wouldn’t need to restrain it, and he could simply let it roam the forest freely. When the time came, he could track it through the scent left by the powder. If it had been anywhere within two kilometers, he’d be able to find it easily.

Two days later...

The rich aroma of roasted meat drifted through the forest. Beside the campfire lay two beasts bound tightly with ropes, unable to move. Little Black was watching with eyes that seemed to be drooling.

One of the restrained beasts was at the second transformation of the blood qi, while the other was only at the peak of the Organ Forging Realm. Living beasts were far more valuable than dead ones. The ones he planned to carry out of the forest for sale, he would usually spare their lives.

”Little Black, I’m leaving now. Stay around here and don’t wander too far, understand?” Lin Zheyu tossed the last piece of roast to Little Black as he gave his instructions. Little Black lifted its head and looked at him doubtfully, not understanding what he meant.

”Keep eating. I hope I’ll still see you next time I’m here.”

Whether it understood or not, Lin Zheyu simply patted its head and stood up. He hefted the two large beasts, one in each hand, onto his shoulders. The weight was nothing to him, though their sheer size made them cumbersome to carry.

Boom.

He stomped hard, leaving a deep pit in the ground, and his figure shot forward. Sensing the commotion, Little Black jerked its head up and stared after Lin Zheyu, its eyes filled with confusion and loss. It looked at the roast on the ground, then at Lin Zheyu’s fading figure, before grabbing the meat in its mouth and following after him.

Lin Zheyu glanced back at Little Black, who was catching up, and said with a smile, ”At least you’ve got some loyalty.”

His efforts over the past few days hadn’t been in vain. Through roasted meat, he and Little Black had built a bond.

”Go back now. Don’t follow me,” said Lin Zheyu.

Little Black stared at him with the roast still in its mouth, puzzled as such complicated speech was beyond it. Seeing that it didn’t understand, Lin Zheyu ignored it and continued on his way. He wanted to see whether Little Black would follow him all the way to the outskirts of Bafang City.

An hour later, the edge of the forest drew near. At last, Little Black stopped. Perched on a branch with the meat in its mouth, it watched Lin Zheyu’s departing figure with eyes full of confusion and reluctance.

It finally stopped. That’s for the best; it might have been spotted by stronger martial artists if it followed me farther.

Lin Zheyu glanced back at Little Black and, seeing the reluctance in its eyes, felt a warm satisfaction. All those days of roasting meat for the little thing hadn’t been wasted. As he neared the forest’s edge, the number of hunters and herb gatherers increased. It wasn’t uncommon to meet them entering the mountains for their work.

”Damn, that guy’s a monster!”

Not far away, a burly man from a five-person hunting party couldn’t help but exclaim. The others followed his gaze and were stunned to see Lin Zheyu sprinting with two enormous beasts slung over his shoulders.

”It’s him!” someone shouted.

”You know him?” a companion asked curiously.

”Not personally, but I’ve seen him twice. He’s become quite famous in the marketplace lately. Every time he shows up, he’s carrying two or more live beasts. I heard the wildest time was when he brought in a beast at the fifth transformation of blood qi alive. The whole market was in an uproar, but it’s too bad I wasn’t there,” said that man.

”Damn! So that’s the guy!”

The others gasped in disbelief.

They too had heard of a fierce hunter rumored to capture beasts at the fourth transformation of blood qi alive and even slay those at the fifth transformation. Such men rarely appeared in markets as mere hunters. A martial artist that powerful had no need to earn money by hunting; there were plenty of factions eager to recruit him.

As Lin Zheyu reached the market at the foot of the mountain, a crowd quickly gathered around him. Before he even entered the market proper, people had already surrounded him. Carrying the two massive beasts, Lin Zheyu’s powerful aura radiated outward, forcing the crowd to instinctively part and make way.

”Two live beasts, one at the second transformation of blood qi, the other at the peak of Organ Forging Realm. Bid if you’re interested. The highest price takes them.” In the bustling street, Lin Zheyu set the two beasts down and announced loudly.

”240 taels of silver!”

”280 taels of silver!”

”300 taels of silver!”

The crowd buzzed with excitement as offers were shouted, though most were just there for the spectacle.

After waiting a while and hearing no higher bid, Lin Zheyu looked at the man who had offered 300 taels of silver and said, ”Deal.”

The man looked to be in his fifties but was well-kept, and his aura was strong. He was at the second transformation of blood qi. He stepped forward and drew out 30 taels of gold from his robe. After confirming the beasts were genuine, he signaled for his men to carry them away, but did not leave himself.

”My friend, might I have a word with you in private?” asked the man with a pleasant smile.

Lin Zheyu glanced at him coolly and replied, ”No.”

With that, he turned and walked away. As his reputation spread, many came seeking him out, but Lin Zheyu rejected them all. He had stayed in Bafang City mainly to search for his mentor, Liang Song, and to earn funds through beast hunting. He planned to remain for no more than three months. By then, whether or not he found Liang Song, he would leave. Therefore, he had no desire to get entangled with any of Bafang City’s factions.

”My friend, don’t be so quick to refuse. Why not hear my offer first? You can decline afterward if it doesn’t please you,” the middle-aged man hurried after him, speaking confidently, clearly certain that his offer would be tempting.

They had been keeping an eye on Lin Zheyu for some time. A man capable of slaying fifth transformation beasts was considered a top-tier martial artist even within Bafang City.