Chapter 87 - Black Formula
Following Zhua Qi and the others, Shi Yan headed for the Yin Valley without stopping.
Zhua Qi proved his value along the way by removing those odd plants and brutal demon beasts.
Zhua Qi turned out to be the co-master of the Dead Swamp, for he even knew this area, the Yin Field, far better than Chi Xiao.
All along the way, Zhua Qi removed all the obstacles easily. In doing so, Chi Xiao and Xia Xin Yan could save their energy for the fight with the Nine-headed Sky Snake.
The nearer they got to the Yin Valley, the more they could feel the Yin Qi.
Gradually, Shi Yan could feel his Profound Qi flowing slower and slower; his ribs and bones were experiencing immense pressure from the Yin Qi.
So did Zuo Shi.
The nearer they came to the Yin Valley, the more pale her face became. Apparently, she wasn’t able to adapt to the atmosphere there either.
“Let’s have a rest here, Zhua Qi, Miss Xia, we need to study the treasure map as well.” Chi Xiao was being considerate of his students, so he stopped at one clean and flat area and took out the treasure map to study with Zhua Qi and Xia Xin Yan.
Zhua Qi didn’t want to stop, but since Chi Xiao took out the map, he agreed with him instantly.
He walked up to Chi Xiao quickly and giggled, “I’m very familiar with the Yin Valley. Let me see the map and I can find the position of the Gate of Heaven.”
Xia Xin Yan hesitated and she too walked up.
Chi Xiao had learnt the map by heart, so he handed the map to Xia Xin Yan and let her watch Zhua Qi, while he himself walked towards Zuo Shi and Shi Yan.
“How do you two feel? Can you endure it?” Chi Xiao looked to Zuo Shi.
Zuo Shi’s pretty face had turned pale, “Yes I can endure it, but it’s too uncomfortable. The Yin Qi has slowed my Profound Qi and seems to be consuming it as well. The nearer we get to the Yin valley, the faster it is consumed.”
“That’s natural.” Chi Xiao nodded and explained, “The heavy Yin Qi would affect your body, so your Profound Qi would try to adapt to it, thus it gets consumed. You two pay attention to it. It’s just the beginning. The Yin Qi will be denser in the valley, so if you two can’t bear it you will have to stop before you enter it.”
“Teacher, the [Basalt Scripture] seems to be able to remove some Yin Qi” Zuo Shi suddenly said.
Chi Xiao was surprised, finding it funny and annoying, “Then why didn’t you train it long ago?”
“I just realized it.” Zuo Shi protruded her tongue and grinned naughtily, “Fine fine, I will train with it diligently from now on. I found that once I operate the [Basalt Scripture], the Yin Qi can’t enter my body.”
“If you were hardworking long time ago, you might have finished training the [Basalt Scripture] already.” Chi Xiao shook his head with regret and resignation.
“Stop it! It’s not too late to start now.” Zuo Shi pouted with a grunt.
Chi Xiao sighed in his mind and turned to Shi Yan, “How do you feel?”
“I’m fine. I’m ok with it.” Shi Yan replied calmly.
“Well, do your best.” Chi Xiao nodded, “You should stop when you can’t bear it, then Han Feng will stay and protect you, while Ku Long will enter the Yin Valley with us. We only need to find out what’s inside the Gate of heaven this time, then your Shi family will send more experts here. So don’t worry too much if you can’t enter the Gate.”
Shi Yan nodded, not saying anything more.
Chi Xiao comforted him and requested Zuo Shi to work hard, then walked back to Zhua Qi and Xia Xin Yan.
“Young Master, the family head told us that it’s most important that you are safe. Don’t push yourself if you can’t bear it. The family head said that we just need to find out the exact position of the Gate and what’s inside it.” Ku Long said in a low voice beside him.
“I got it.” Shi Yan looked indifferent, but his brows were furrowed.
A short distance away, Zhua Qi, Xia Xin Yan and Chi Xiao were still studying the treasure map.
Although Zhua Qi regarded himself as a know-it-all when it came to the Yin Valley, he couldn’t figure out anything when he saw the map, as seen from his confused expression when whispering with Chi Xiao.
Shi Yan glanced over them and sat down where he was, when a thought came across in his mind.
He was curious about the Gate of Heaven, and he wanted to go inside of it too.
However, the Yin Qi here was really tough, as it was omnipresent. At the same time, it was becoming more dense, which was affecting his body a lot.
Before they got to the Yin Valley, he had to consume his Profound Qi to defend from its influence. He couldn’t imagine how powerful the Yin Qi would be in the valley. By then, his Profound Qi would be totally consumed, and it would be very dangerous if anything came up.
“I must find a way to defend against the Yin Qi!”
After a short deliberation, Shi Yan’s expression was determined. He sat cross-legged and tried to search in his memories.
An idea flashed across his mind!
The [Black Formula]!
His face lit up. He picked up his bag and took out a book on the Mortal Level Martial Skill, [Black Formula].
It was only an elementary level Martial Skill, which needed to collect Yin Qi while training. It was best to train with it where there was dense Yin Qi.
Since he took the [Black Formula] from Karu he had given up training it as it was only a Mortal Level Martial Skill and required a Yin Qi-filled environment.
After he got to the Shi family and witnessed so many Martial Skills, he had forgotten about the [Black Formula].
Therefore, that book was buried in oblivion in that bag.
The Yin Field here was heavy with Yin Qi, it was the best place to train in the [Black Formula]!
Although the [Black Formula] was only a Mortal Level Martial Skill, since it required Yin Qi, once one was adapted to the environment, he could gather the Yin Qi and use it as a weapon.
Shi Yan didn’t care much about its power for as far as he was concerned, it was just a Mortal Level Martial Skill, which had limited power.
Nonetheless, the [Black Formula] could absorb Yin Qi and help him adapt to it, which solved his problem for now!
Therefore, he picked up that formula right away!
While Chi Xiao, Zhua Qi and Xia Xin Yan were busy figuring out the position of the Gate of Heaven, Shi Yan devoted himself to the [Black Formula] and its practice process.
Sitting on the ground, Shi Yan flipped open the book of the [Black Formula] with a solemn face.
Before long, he had read through the first volume, and secretly put the book into his bag with his brows furrowed.
Although the [Black Formula] was merely a Mortal Level Martial Skill, it appeared to be strange. To train with it, one must trigger the Yin Qi between the heaven and earth and form three Yin Swirls around the three meridians in one’s chest: Tian Que, Shen Que and Yin Du.
As long as the swirls are formed, one can trigger the [Black Formula] and absorb the Yin Qi around them easily.
Once the three swirls absorbed enough Yin Qi, they would produce three Yin Pearls, which would go down the three meridians.
And after that, the Yin Swirls could continue absorbing Yin Qi endlessly.
As long as there was enough Yin Qi, the Yin Swirls would produce more Yin Pearls and submerge into the meridians.
The more Yin pearls in the meridians, the more powerful the [Black Formula] would be.
The one who trained with the [Black Formula] could collect Yin Qi by merely triggering the [Black Formula] and absorbing it into the three Yin Swirls.
Although the [Black Formula] was merely a Mortal Level Martial Skill, no one knew how much Yin Qi it could absorb.
It seemed that the three Yin Swirls would devour Yin Qi ceaselessly once there was enough Yin Qi.
Shi Yan had seen many Martial Skills in the Martial Spirit Palace of the Shi family, but he had never seen anything as strange as this one.
There was an end goal to train to with every Martial Skill, but the [Black Formula] could be trained endlessly.
Sitting on the ground with a rigid face, Shi Yan sorted through the practice process he understood in order to train with the [Black Formula] and he found it literally extraordinary.
However, he didn’t hesitate at all. To enter the center of the Yin Valley, he memorised the practice process several times and began to train with it, while Chi Xiao and Zhua Qi were still whispering.
Shi Yan connected his eyes, nose and heart, operated his will to Tian Que, Shen Que and Yin Du meridians and concentrated Yin Qi into them.
During that process, his body was still under pressure, as his hadn’t adapted to the Yin Qi yet.
Gradually, the Yin Qi began to circle around the three meridians according to Shi Yan’s will.
He found that his body was having a strange attraction to Yin Qi as he began to operate the [Black Formula].
While he was refining his Yin Swirls, the Yin Qi around him began to gather and poured into his pores. At last, it arrived at the three meridians and started to spin slowly.
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Translated by: Qian
Edited by: Moto, Chancs and Vick