Chapter 41: The Three Hidden Meridians

Chapter 41: The Three Hidden Meridians

Fast! Fast! Fast!

Ning Xiaochuan pushed the blood in his body to its limits, fleeing desperately through the dense forest. The blood on his back soaked through his clothes, dripping continuously onto the ground.

Xiao Li pursued relentlessly, closing the distance between them rapidly—ten meter, nine meter, eight meter…

The sword energy he unleashed could already strike the Protective Profound Qi Armor enveloping Ning Xiaochuan. Once the distance narrowed to three meter, his sword energy would shatter Ning Xiaochuan’s defenses.

"Whoosh—!"

The sound of rushing water reached Ning Xiaochuan’s ears. Just beyond the slope ahead lay a raging river, reigniting a glimmer of hope in his despair.

He was now only thirty meter away from the river. If he could cross that distance, he might escape with his life.

Ning Xiaochuan swiftly pulled out an Intermediate Elixir and swallowed it, then charged down the slope toward the river.

"Boom!"

The medicinal power and Profound Qi of the elixir exploded within his body, boosting his speed significantly. Yet, Xiao Li was still slightly faster, inching closer with every passing moment.

Ning Xiaochuan let the elixir’s energy surge through him, his eyes fixed on the distant river. A chilling sensation crept up his spine, his body drenched in sweat as the sound of slicing wind grew louder behind him.

"Bang!"

A sword strike shattered his Protective Profound Qi Armor.

Ning Xiaochuan was now just a step away from the river, but without his defenses, leaping into the turbulent waters would mean certain death.

At this critical moment, Ning Xiaochuan twisted his body forcefully, channeling all his Martial Arts Profound Qi to condense a Profound Qi Sword. "Profound Qi Sword—Quintuple Slash!"

"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Ning Xiaochuan unleashed five consecutive slashes.

Xiao Li countered with five strikes of his own, all landing on Ning Xiaochuan’s chest, sending him flying backward. With a splash, Ning Xiaochuan plunged into the river.

Xiao Li rushed to the riverbank, staring at the murky, crimson waters. His fingers lightly brushed his neck, where a shallow cut bled faintly.

This wound was from the fifth strike of Ning Xiaochuan’s "Profound Qi Sword Quintuple Slash."

That final strike had been terrifyingly powerful—so much so that even Xiao Li had failed to block it completely. Had the sword energy deviated just slightly, it would have severed his throat, and he would have been the one to die.

"A mere Ninth Level of Profound Qi Heart Nurturer nearly killed me… How infuriating."

Xiao Li knew Ning Xiaochuan wasn’t dead. Though all five strikes had hit his chest, Ning Xiaochuan had avoided fatal injuries.

A warrior’s vitality was formidable—death didn’t come so easily.

Xiao Li began following the river downstream, searching for any trace of Ning Xiaochuan.

……

Over ten li downstream, Ning Xiaochuan clutched at the water weeds, dragging himself out of the river. His body was covered in blood, his face pale from prolonged immersion.

"Pfft!"

He spat out a mouthful of river water mixed with blood.

Severe blood loss left his mind foggy. His vision darkened, and he collapsed headfirst into the muddy marsh, gasping for breath.

After a long while, he struggled to sit up again, enduring the weakness and pain in his body as he circulated the Martial Arts Profound Qi within him to seal the wounds, temporarily stopping the blood loss.

"Luckily, I took the Intermediate Elixir in advance, allowing me to hold my breath underwater for half an hour. Otherwise, I would have died today. Huh? Why are there three extra blood vessels in my body?"

Ning Xiaochuan discovered three additional blood vessels in his body, each extremely thin—almost invisible to the naked eye—and only detectable through Internal Vision.

The first blood vessel originated from the Martial Arts Heart Palace, extended straight to the cerebral cortex, and then looped back to the Martial Arts Heart Palace, making it the shortest of the three.

The second blood vessel started from the Martial Arts Heart Palace, flowed through the internal organs, and then returned to the Martial Arts Heart Palace.

The third blood vessel, the longest of the three, began at the Martial Arts Heart Palace, coursed through the limbs, and then circled back to the Martial Arts Heart Palace.

All three blood vessels were independent of each other and separate from the body's other blood vessels, circulating along an unusual and mysterious path.

This was something Ning Xiaochuan had never imagined before, defying all conventional understanding.

"Could these be the Three Hidden Meridians within my body?"

These three hidden meridians had been stimulated by the Intermediate Elixir, causing them to manifest in his body.

However, none of them had been unblocked yet—they remained sealed "dead meridians."

Only by unblocking all three hidden meridians and transforming them into "living meridians" could a martial artist turn their ordinary body into something miraculous, evolving into a Divine Body and unlocking the hidden treasures of divine abilities within, giving rise to unimaginable mystical powers.

Now that the hidden meridians had manifested, the next step was clear!

Ning Xiaochuan began to focus on breaking through the hidden meridians, immediately choosing the third one—the one connecting the Martial Arts Heart Palace to his limbs.

The longer the hidden meridian, the more time it took to unblock. Under normal circumstances, Ning Xiaochuan would have chosen the first hidden meridian—the one connected to the brain—since it was the shortest and required the least time.

But these were extraordinary circumstances. A powerful enemy could strike at any moment, forcing Ning Xiaochuan to prioritize the third hidden meridian.

If he could unblock the third hidden meridian, his Martial Arts Heart Palace would be able to directly channel Profound Qi into his limbs, increasing the speed of his legs and the strength of his arms.

Though called hidden meridians, they did not carry blood—instead, they flowed with Martial Arts Profound Qi.

Naturally, they also required Martial Arts Profound Qi to break through.

"Boom!"

"Boom!"

...

After multiple failed attempts, Ning Xiaochuan quickly calmed himself, no longer recklessly ramming Profound Qi into the meridian, as doing so would only cause internal injuries.

Instead, he controlled the Profound Qi within his Martial Arts Heart Palace, extracting a single strand and condensing it into a needle-thin thread, slowly piercing the tip of the hidden meridian.

"Pop!"

The Profound Qi penetrated a small section of the hidden meridian.

Success!

Though only a tiny portion had been opened—just an entry point—it was progress.

The hidden meridian was as thin as a strand of hair and completely sealed.

Now, Ning Xiaochuan needed to fully unblock it, allowing Profound Qi to flow freely through it.

He controlled the Martial Arts Profound Qi, pushing it forward inch by inch. With each advance, the pain in his body intensified.

When the Martial Arts Profound Qi had opened up one-tenth of the Hidden Meridian, Ning Xiaochuan was in so much pain that he nearly fainted, with beads of blood oozing from his pores.

Ning Xiaochuan quickly withdrew the Martial Arts Profound Qi back into his Heart Palace, exhaling deeply before washing away the bloodstains on his body with clean water.

Though he hadn’t succeeded in fully opening the first Hidden Meridian, this was already a cause for celebration.

"Opening one-tenth of the Hidden Meridian on the first attempt is already quite impressive. Given three more days, I should be able to fully open the first Hidden Meridian. By then, my speed shouldn’t be any slower than Xiao Li’s."

Suddenly, Ning Xiaochuan sensed something. Gently parting the water weeds, he glanced toward the opposite bank of the river. There stood a young man in white, his sharp eyes scanning the surroundings with a venomous gaze.

Even across the wide river, the young man could see everything on the opposite bank with perfect clarity.

That young man was none other than Xiao Li!

Standing by the water’s edge, he sharpened his vision, searching for traces of Ning Xiaochuan. A warrior of the Divine Body Realm possessed terrifying eyesight—capable of discerning the patterns on a mosquito’s wings even from a kilometer away.

"I’ve already spotted you. You’re on the opposite bank. I’m coming for your life now," Xiao Li laughed loudly.

Ning Xiaochuan’s heart skipped a beat, nearly causing him to bolt out of the water weeds in panic.

But he immediately retreated again. "I almost fell for his trick. Xiao Li must just be testing me. If he had truly seen me, he would’ve silently crossed the river to kill me, not given me a warning to alert me."

Holding his breath, Ning Xiaochuan waited for a while and confirmed that Xiao Li was indeed only probing, not making any move to cross the river.

Ning Xiaochuan let out a sigh of relief.

"This isn’t a long-term solution. Sooner or later, Xiao Li will find me here. I have to leave."

Only when night fell did Ning Xiaochuan emerge from the weed-filled swamp and flee into the forest.

However, it wasn’t long before Xiao Li caught up with him again.

"How is this possible? How could you know my whereabouts?" Ning Xiaochuan sprinted desperately, his mind filled with confusion.

"Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Xiao Li leaped from tree to tree, closing in swiftly as he sneered, "My Martial Arts Heart Palace is the 'Abnormal Beast Heart Palace,' granting me an extremely keen sense of my enemy’s aura. As long as you stayed in the water, you were fine. But the moment you left, your scent spread, making it all too easy for me to track you."

Finally, Ning Xiaochuan understood why Xiao Li had been testing that particular stretch of river during the day. His Abnormal Beast Heart Palace must have detected Ning Xiaochuan’s presence, but since Ning Xiaochuan was hiding in the swamp, Xiao Li couldn’t pinpoint his exact location.

That was why he had tried to provoke Ning Xiaochuan.

He must have been lying in wait near that riverbank the entire time, immediately giving chase the moment Ning Xiaochuan emerged.

Now that Ning Xiaochuan understood the reason, he abruptly stopped and turned back toward the river.

Xiao Li let out a cold laugh. "Do you really think you still have a chance?"

With a sweep of his arms, Xiao Li condensed five Profound Qi Swords, swirling them around his body before sending them slashing toward Ning Xiaochuan in five deadly arcs.

"Profound Qi Sword Sixfold Slash!"

Ning Xiaochuan unleashed six consecutive sword strikes, each one stronger than the last, with sword waves surging layer by layer.

"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The six layers of sword waves shattered Xiao Li's five swords.

"Don’t let me break through to the Divine Body Realm, or your death will be imminent," Ning Xiaochuan sneered coldly before sprinting away and disappearing into the forest.

"He’s actually grown stronger again!" Xiao Li's eyes turned icy as he immediately gave chase.

During their first clash, Ning Xiaochuan couldn’t withstand his five swords and suffered heavy injuries.

But this time, Ning Xiaochuan actually shattered all five of his swords.

To improve so much in just a single day—it was truly astonishing.