Cultivating Immortality, Starting from Childhood Sweethearts

Once!

Twice!

Thrice!

Xu Ming grabbed the dog's head and slammed it into the ground repeatedly. Beneath the dog's head, a small crater had already formed, with shards of stone flying in all directions.

Xiao Ye and the man who called himself Dead Dog stared blankly at the boy.

Dead Dog couldn't believe it. The boy, who looked like he couldn't even hurt a chicken, had suddenly become the biggest variable in his plan.

"Boom!"

Xu Ming clasped both hands together like a hammer and brought them down heavily on the muscle dog's head one final time. The dog lay motionless on the ground, no longer breathing.

[You have slain a dog (with nascent intelligence, enhanced by the Frenzy Pill). Blood Qi +5, Vitality +5, Combat Experience +5, and gained skill—Blood Qi Frenzy (Beginner).]

[Blood Qi Frenzy (Beginner): Activate your Blood Qi for ten seconds. Afterward, you will enter a weakened state.]

[Killing beasts enhanced by the Frenzy Pill or those with berserk abilities will upgrade Blood Qi Frenzy.]

"Go!"

While Xu Ming was momentarily dazed by the text appearing in his mind, Dead Dog commanded the remaining muscle dog to attack.

The dog charged at Zhu Cici.

At this moment, the group's positions formed a triangle: the middle-aged man stood not far from Xiao Ye, who was locked in battle with one muscle dog. Xu Ming, still catching his breath, was near the dog he had just defeated, and Zhu Cici stood frozen in another direction.

Although Xu Ming's earlier display had deeply shocked Dead Dog, he noticed the boy panting heavily and realized he was unlikely to defend Zhu Cici.

But no one expected what happened next.

The muscle dog, mid-leap, its jaws about to clamp down on Zhu Cici's neck, was intercepted before it could reach her. Xu Ming had already dashed in front of her.

Blood Qi Frenzy!

Under the effects of Blood Qi Frenzy, Xu Ming felt his blood boiling. All pain and exhaustion vanished.

His eyes turned blood red as he became a "ten-second real man," exuding a raw and wild energy. It was as though he had opened the Dead Gate of the Eight Inner Gates.

Heaven-Opening Fist: First Form—Drumbeat!

[T/N: I think I should use Heaven-Opening Fist instead of Cleaving or Splitting.]

The Heaven-Opening Fist consisted of five forms, each requiring a martial artist to meet different cultivation and comprehension thresholds. But Xu Ming had long since mastered the first form.

Dead Dog watched in horror as a crimson blur tackled his muscle dog to the ground. What followed was a barrage of relentless punches, each one accompanied by the sound of a drumbeat and the sickening crunch of the dog's skull.

Xu Ming's fists split open, his blood mingling with the splattered remains of the muscle dog's head. It was impossible to distinguish human blood from dog blood anymore.

Despite his shock, Xiao Ye recognized this as their best opportunity. Stepping forward, her Butterfly Shadows technique manifested as she slashed relentlessly at the muscle dog in front of her, focusing entirely on taking it down.

With Xu Ming's final punch and Xiao Ye's last slash, the remaining two muscle dogs collapsed lifelessly.

[You have slain a dog (with nascent intelligence, enhanced by the Frenzy Pill). Blood Qi +5, Vitality +5, Combat Experience +5.]

[Blood Qi Frenzy (Beginner) Experience: +0.5%.]

As the last line of text disappeared from his mind, the time limit for Blood Qi Frenzy expired.

Xu Ming's body went limp, collapsing onto the lifeless muscle dog beneath him.

"Ugh, why is my luck always this awful..." Dead Dog muttered weakly.

The three dogs he had raised were dead, and the golden Qi Luck Dragon outside the barrier was on the verge of collapse. Several Wu Kingdom cultivators had already arrived. The middle-aged man knew his plans were doomed and had no choice but to retreat.

Otherwise, he really would end up a dead dog.

Stomping his foot, Dead Dog leaped into the air just as the barrier shattered, flying swiftly toward the outskirts of the Wudu (Wu Capital). A colossal Heavenly Law Manifestation of black clouds shielded his retreat.

"Since you've come all this way, why not stay a little longer for some tea? Leaving in such a hurry would make Wu Kingdom seem ungracious," Xiao Mochi's calm yet commanding voice echoed.

"Mr. Xiao, you're too kind, but let's save it for another day." Without even turning his head, Dead Dog bolted toward the horizon with all his might.

"Amid the autumn rain, the river sky clears; one wash sweeps away the season's sorrow." A poetic verse rolled off Xiao Mochi's tongue.

High above the sky, a rift appeared. A curtain of water descended, forming an impenetrable barrier in Dead Dog's path.

"Awrooo!"

Dead Dog, still frantically flying, howled as his body shifted into its true form.

His entire body turned jet black, covered in red molten patterns resembling flowing magma. It radiated a terrifying heat, and his tail split into a hundred fiery branches.

[In the southern wilderness live the Fire-Averse Tribe, a people dwelling near the Black Kunlun. They feed on fiery beasts and even flames themselves. Such beasts are called Disaster Hounds.]

The Disaster Hound opened its maw and unleashed a torrent of black flames, punching a hole through the watery curtain. Before the barrier could reform, the beast charged through.

"Do you really think you can come and go as you please in my Wudu?"

General Mo, Wu Kingdom's Great Pillar, arrived just in time, his fist surging with power like a mountain as he struck.

Other arriving cultivators of Wu Kingdom, each a formidable fighter, also launched their attacks.

Dead Dog did his best to evade, and when he couldn't, he enveloped himself in flames to withstand the blows. But after several strikes, blood spilled from his mouth.

"If you don't help me, I'm really going to die!" Dead Dog yelled desperately toward a distant part of the sky.

"Pathetic," a woman's voice echoed from the heavens, cold and disdainful.

A one-legged fiery bird soared into view, flames trailing behind it like a rainstorm of fire.

Emperor Wu frowned, raising his hand.

The golden Qi Luck Dragon coiled above the city rooftops, devouring the fiery rain as it fell.

"You might as well be a dead dog! Wasting a Void-Breaking Pearl like that—just wait until the Prime Minister punishes you!" the fiery bird snapped, its tone laced with irritation.

The bird swooped down, clutching Dead Dog in its talons before spitting out a blue pearl. The pearl shattered, tearing open the void. Without hesitation, the bird and the dog escaped into the rift.

The void entrance quickly closed behind them.

Above Wudu, the black clouds dissipated, leaving the sky as calm as if nothing had happened.

"The Wanxiang Demon Kingdom!" Emperor Wu growled, his fists clenched tightly, his expression thunderous. "Wei Xun! Draft an edict. Tell that bastard Li Nan to give me an explanation!"

Wei Xun dropped to his knees, bowing deeply, his head knocking against the floor. "Yes, Your Majesty!"

---

Far away, above a desolate mountain range, a rift tore open.

A bird and a dog tumbled out, rolling down to the mountaintop.

"You damn dead dog! You useless dead dog!"

The fiery bird, seething with anger, hopped up and stomped on Dead Dog's head. Then it jumped off, only to leap back and stomp again—repeating the process over a dozen times.

Dead Dog could only curl up, covering his head with his paws, looking pitiful and aggrieved.

"You wasted a Void-Breaking Pearl! And you didn't even kill the target! How are you going to explain this?!" The fiery bird, still perched on Dead Dog's head, refused to relent, pecking furiously at his back.

"Stop yelling, stop yelling. I know you're angry, but let's not get ahead of ourselves," Dead Dog pleaded, his tone filled with grievance. "It's not like I came back empty-handed."

"Oh? What did you gain, then?" The fiery bird's temper flared again.

Dead Dog grinned slyly. "I found someone even more deserving of death than the Heavenly-born Scholar."