12. The injuries had largely healed.

“Use martial force to stop conflict, and through martial force, enter the Way!”

“The old man once said that in the current world, martial arts retain only the ‘martial’ but have lost the ‘Way.’ In other words, on Earth, the Dao and magic arts have faded, leaving martial arts merely as a means to strengthen the body.”

Lin Fan pondered deeply. Suddenly, the Jade Void Breathing Technique began to operate on its own. This was a foundation he had laid earlier, requiring no deliberate practice—just by imagining it, he could enter a meditative state like an old monk. Whenever Lin Fan felt restless, the Laogong point on his palms would emit a faint coolness, calming his troubled mind and clearing his thoughts.

This time, his practice of the Jade Void Breathing Technique brought a new insight. Subtle streams of primordial energy flowed into his body with each breath. In an instant, it felt as though two distinct energies—one yang, one yin; one fire, one water—coursed through his heart, lungs, and limbs.

In that moment, Lin Fan felt as if he had drunk a potion that cleansed his lungs; the oxygen entering his body carried a sweet freshness.

“Fizz!”

These two different forces converged at his wounds, itching so intensely he wanted to scratch, as though thousands of ants were crawling there. A wisp of black smoke rose from his left chest like smoke from a chimney, faint and drifting, carrying a foul stench reminiscent of rotten fish and shrimp.

The smell came quickly and vanished just as fast, dissipating as if it had never appeared.

“Has the poison from the Purple Spirit King been expelled from my body?”

Lin Fan nearly leapt up. His gravest injury was the poison left by the Purple Spirit King’s claws—a toxin a hundred times more potent than ordinary poisons, incredibly difficult to counter. Yet now, the Jade Void Breathing Technique had actually expelled the poison. How could he not be thrilled?

Yet Lin Fan remained composed, silently nurturing his body and steadily practicing the breathing technique.

He had never expected that leaving Earth would allow the breathing technique left by Wu Xuzi to manifest such extraordinary effects!

Suppressing his excitement, Lin Fan continued to run the breathing technique. Besides the wound from the Purple Spirit King, he had dozens of other injuries—bruises, blast wounds—numbering over a hundred. Only because Lin Fan had exceptional awareness and had practiced martial arts since childhood was his constitution far superior to ordinary people.

As Lin Fan cultivated, the bowl of plain porridge he drank earlier was quickly digested, and soon an intense hunger surged through him—hunger so fierce it felt as if he hadn’t eaten for days, like an empty, gnawing void.

“Keep cultivating!”

Lin Fan gritted his teeth, enduring the hunger, and continued operating the breathing technique.

Suddenly—

“Boom! Boom!!”

The sound of a great drum echoed beside his ear. The source was his own heart, pounding like a drumbeat. This sudden change startled Lin Fan immensely.

He halted the breathing technique and carefully examined his body. The wound on his left chest had already healed and formed a scab. Lin Fan was even more astonished.

His injuries should have taken at least a hundred days to heal, yet now the scab had formed... Once the scab fell away, the wound would be fully recovered.

“Sure enough, entering another realm allows the True Martial Mountain’s breathing technique to unleash its true power... It seems I only need a few days to recover!”

Filled with excitement, Lin Fan checked again and found that the pounding heartbeat caused no adverse effects, so he relaxed.

Only one thing remained—

“Hunger! I’m unbearably hungry!”

Lin Fan’s stomach growled relentlessly, his gut protesting to his brain. He could only smile wryly and bear the hunger until mealtime.

At noon, Qi Lingshan brought a bowl of plain porridge and two steamed buns to feed Lin Fan.

“Senior sister, I can feed myself!”

Lin Fan was still wrapped in bandages, and only he knew how much his injuries had improved. Qi Lingshan shot him a sharp glance and lightly chided, “Lie down! Your wounds haven’t fully healed. Don’t move about recklessly.”

“All right...” Lin Fan had no choice but to obediently lie down and accept her care.

“Pfft...”

Qin Fen, lying nearby on a wooden plank, burst into laughter.

Lin Fan glared at him, and Qin Fen quickly quieted down.

As the food entered his stomach, the hunger ebbed away like a receding tide. The food was broken down by gastric acid into energy and nutrients, flowing into every limb and bone. Lin Fan’s body felt warm, as if sitting by a hearth, and his strength somewhat restored.

This meant his wounds were nearing recovery.

After consuming the two buns and porridge, Lin Fan felt as if he had only filled a tenth of his hunger. It wasn’t that he hadn’t eaten enough; rather, his body’s functions had become stronger, demanding more energy.

“Senior sister... I heard you’re studying the Golden Crow Blood Phoenix’s body? That’s a legendary divine beast!”

“Yes!” Qi Lingshan nodded. Seeing Lin Fan still hungry, she offered him one of her own buns.

Lin Fan stared wide-eyed. “Senior sister, that’s your lunch! I’m already full—I can’t eat more.”

“I’m not very hungry... You’re still recovering, so eat more.”

Qi Lingshan insisted and pressed the bun into Lin Fan’s hands.

Lin Fan was moved and speechless.

Compared to Huang Dongshan’s treachery, Qi Lingshan’s sincerity and kindness were even more precious.

“I’m analyzing the Golden Crow’s fresh blood, trying to break down the energy within it and dilute it so it might be consumable. That way, we might resolve the food shortage.”

Qi Lingshan explained plainly to ensure Lin Fan understood.

In ancient times, humans lived primitively, relying on hunting wild beasts to sustain their bodies. Qi Lingshan was working on analyzing the Golden Crow’s corpse to solve the crisis aboard the ancient ship.

“Any progress?” Lin Fan asked.

“Yes! I’ve managed to break down the energy in a single drop of fresh blood to just one percent. Perhaps that’s within the human body’s tolerance.”

Qi Lingshan’s expression turned hesitant. “But...”

“But what?”

Lin Fan was surprised. Reducing it to one percent was a major breakthrough—they might truly solve the food problem.

“But we still need someone to test it on!”

At that moment, a clear, melodious female voice sounded.

Lin Fan looked up to see a young woman in a white coat entering gracefully. She appeared about twenty years old, her face lightly made up, clearly fond of beauty. Even on this ancient ship, she maintained her elegance.

Qin Fen’s eyes widened; another stunning beauty had appeared.

“Dr. Fan?” Lin Fan hesitated, recalling the senior sister mentioning her earlier.

“Junior brother?” Fan Yijun teased. Her lively, spirited nature shone through. Since Qi Lingshan called him junior brother, she followed suit with a playful “little junior brother!”

“Little junior brother, think about how much Senior Sister Qi has done for you—tsk tsk, truly touching!”

“She even gave you her own food! You do know that at the academy, Senior Sister Qi is known as the Ice Beauty, right? That means she’s to be admired from afar, never to be approached lightly!”

“More touching than the legend of Lady White Snake and Xu Xian. So, what are you going to do to repay her?”

Fan Yijun’s tone was teasing and full of meaning, chattering non-stop upon meeting him.

“Uh...” Lin Fan was at a loss for words. Fan Yijun spoke the truth, though exaggerated.

“Shut up, Yijun!”

Qi Lingshan shot her a glance. The two were close friends and had reunited during this mission, so they could joke with each other freely.

“Senior sister, you’re planning to use people for experiments?”

Seeing this, Lin Fan shifted the topic.