Chapter Thirty-Six: Tempering the Body with Elixirs

The dark crimson flames continued to burn relentlessly. Under the intense heat, a faint red glow seeped from the bottom of the medicine cauldron, and the boiling potion kept bubbling with a steady rhythm. Steam surged forth, occasionally lifting the lid, releasing waves of herbal fragrance into the air.

The flickering flames reflected in Su Yi’s eyes, as if they were summoning something. In the next moment, Su Yi used iron tongs to lift the cauldron and poured its contents into a large bowl he had prepared earlier. Perhaps he had used too many herbs, for the potion appeared thick and viscous in the bowl.

He extinguished the fire, carefully placed the fuel stones and cauldron aside, and meticulously cleaned every trace of his activities. By the time no evidence remained of what Su Yi had just done, the bowl of medicine was ready to drink.

After closing his eyes for a moment, Su Yi opened them, reached for the bowl, and drained it in one gulp.

The potion was like a torrent of heat, flowing straight down and spreading throughout his body. The intense warmth made Su Yi dizzy, but he forced himself to clean up the bowl and other trivial matters. Then, holding the pill in his hand, he sat cross-legged on the ground, preparing to take it.

His body still radiated residual warmth. Sitting upright, Su Yi slightly opened his mouth and swallowed the pill. The moment it entered, it dissolved instantly, transforming into an overwhelmingly powerful energy that surged violently into his body.

A cry of agony burst forth! The tremendous energy ravaged Su Yi’s body like a raging flood, shattering his meridians, muscles, blood, and bones in an instant.

The pain, deep and soul-shattering, utterly exceeded Su Yi’s limits of endurance. He screamed in torment, rolling madly on the ground. Soon, his body convulsed violently, then collapsed limply like a pile of mud.

Yet the pain did not cease! Most of the bones in Su Yi’s body were broken, countless meridians severed, leaving him unable to control anything below his head. Still, he acutely felt the searing agony.

The rampant energy continued to wreak havoc within him. Su Yi tried to cry out, but no sound escaped his lips. All he could do was clamp his teeth tightly together.

His face was drenched in sweat, large beads rolling down his cheeks and along his neck, now bulging with thick veins.

His features were twisted beyond recognition, terrifying to behold. The pain forced his eyes to bulge grotesquely, the whites filling his sockets and nearly bursting forth. His teeth clenched so tightly that blood seeped from his gums, mixing with the sweat and dripping onto the ground.

Suddenly, Su Yi’s body began to swell. The veins in his arms and legs pulsed like writhing snakes, then, with a thunderous crack, they burst open, spraying scalding blood! Muscles churned and twisted, splitting open with countless fissures, from which blood slowly oozed.

Biting down hard, Su Yi gave a silent howl before finally succumbing, losing consciousness completely.

His swollen body twisted and contorted as if about to explode. His arms felt as though inflated with air, skin cracking open with a sharp hiss, countless pores suddenly expanding.

Then came a constricted contraction, as though an unseen force struggled to contain something. Strange lumps appeared, and at last—pop!—the pores gave way, unable to bear the pressure.

First came threads of blood, shooting out. Su Yi’s skin was now riddled with ruptured pores, exposing shattered muscle and bone—some of which still convulsed reflexively.

Su Yi had fallen into a state resembling false death; his body was marred without a single intact patch. Blood covered him from head to toe, making him seem a man of blood—no, with no sign of breath, one might mistake him for a heap of rotten flesh, twitching grotesquely.

If things continued thus, even if he awoke, Su Yi would not escape lifelong disability.

But soon, strands of multicolored energy slowly seeped from every pore, visible ribbons covering his body’s surface.

They emitted a magical glow and faint herbal aroma. Within this radiance, blood reversed its flow, skin and muscle writhed and squirmed, gradually knitting themselves back together.

Wrapped in a halo of color, Su Yi’s body began to heal at a speed visible to the naked eye. It was not mere recovery, but rebirth. As skin and muscle regrew, the vibrant energy penetrated deeply, absorbed by the newly formed flesh.

Exposed bone slowly began to mend and grow, and as it absorbed the energy, wisps of white vapor appeared, seemingly attracted to the bone, coiling around the fractures, then seeping into them.

The visible energies did not only flow from the surface; streams of power issued from Su Yi’s mouth and nose, suggesting that the same strange transformation was occurring within.

His body repaired itself with astonishing speed. Before long, most of his flesh looked as it once had, save for the skin, which was newly grown—pale, smooth, lustrous, and remarkably resilient.

Suddenly, Su Yi’s body trembled. The pill’s effects had not yet faded; another wave of energy surged forth, tearing the newly healed skin apart once more!

The multicolored energy spilled out again, mending the wounds anew. The peculiar white vapor continued to coil around the bones. After each cycle of destruction and rebirth, Su Yi’s body entered this process again and again.

So it went—unceasing destruction followed by rebirth. The vibrant energy and the unknown force from the pill clashed within Su Yi’s body, a battlefield where they wrestled for dominance as time slipped quietly by.

Unbeknownst to him, midnight had come.

Sensing that time was running out, the two energies unleashed their final reserves for a decisive battle. Su Yi’s body was torn apart and restored repeatedly, a horrifying spectacle that played out dozens of times. In the end, the multicolored energy proved superior, gradually suppressing the pill’s force.

Visibly, Su Yi’s body began to recover fully; new skin formed in abundance, and the colored energy slowly seeped back through his pores, the halo surrounding him dissipating.

Occasionally, a wisp of color still escaped his mouth, suggesting lingering medicinal effects, but even these faded. Su Yi’s chest rose and fell gently, immersed in peaceful slumber.

Yet he did not awaken.

Time passed, and change stirred. The energy within Su Yi’s body, stimulated by some unknown force, began to circulate, forming circuits that spun ever faster.

A strange attraction arose, drawing in ambient energy as if pulled by an invisible hand, all flooding into Su Yi’s body!

He became a bottomless pit, absorbing all energy without reserve. This influx triggered resonance with the residual medicinal power within, unleashing a tidal wave of heat that enveloped him as if he were seated in a furnace—his entire body glowing crimson, seemingly about to bleed.

The surrounding energy poured continuously into him, never ceasing. At one moment, the energy within Su Yi’s body fluctuated violently.

A wave of energy rippled outward like water, then the influx began to lessen, finally ceasing altogether.

Energy absorption ended, and the internal resonance subsided, though residual heat lingered. Su Yi’s skin remained fiery red, but soon, a long-awaited coolness appeared, beginning at his chest and slowly spreading throughout his body.

Where the coolness passed, the temperature dropped, the heat dissipated, and Su Yi’s crimson hue gradually faded, revealing the pale tone of his newly transformed skin.

His chest rose and fell gently as he slept deeply…

Martial Peak, Chapter Thirty-Six: Tempering the Body with the Pill!