Dragon Boat Secret Realm 4: Gaining a Legacy

Three days later.

A swollen, red hand emerged from the sea, grasping a jutting reef. Slowly, it dragged a body out of the water.

At first glance, it seemed human. Closer inspection revealed a figure so red and swollen—skin doubled in size—that it was almost terrifying.

This was Su Qing, who had been refining her body with jellyfish.

For three days, she swam with the jellyfish, adapting to their venom after consuming half a bottle of detox pills. But, drifting along, she wandered into the front ranks of the swarm and encountered their leader: a low-grade second-tier Overlord Jellyfish.

Its umbrella-like body alone was taller than a person, with tentacles stretching four to five meters.

At second-tier low-grade, equivalent to early Foundation Establishment, it had developed some intelligence. Spotting a human among its swarm, it turned back.

A jellyfish turning back, despite lacking facial features, was unnerving.

Fortunately, lacking a brain, it didn’t attack unless provoked. It extended a long, transparent tentacle, probing Su Qing to see if she was edible.

Her heart raced, hand on Manqing Sword’s hilt.

But the jellyfish didn’t strike. It concluded: edible, but too much trouble.

Not worth it.

Thus, Su Qing escaped. However, the second-tier venom hit hard, leaving her dizzy despite detox pills. When another current merged, she reluctantly parted ways, heading to an island to heal.

On shore, sunlight seared her stung skin, causing fiery pain and swelling.

She realized the wounds couldn’t handle light.

Thankfully, she’d absorbed ample spiritual qi in the current, with half her dantian’s reserves for healing.

She sought a shaded spot to recover quietly, but the venom ran deep, blackening her vision and weakening her limbs.

This Overlord Jellyfish was *seriously* toxic.

With no one around, she settled on the shore to heal.

After taking three detox pills, she meditated, guiding spiritual qi through her meridians. The water-attribute qi, filtered through her wood spirit root, became purer and gentler, ideal for healing.

After half a day and a thousand minor cycles, most of the venom was expelled. Her burning, swollen skin cooled.

She exhaled in relief.

Then, a foul, hot gust hit her face. Opening her eyes, she faced two rows of slobbering, gleaming teeth.

A gaping maw?

Manqing Sword flashed before her instantly.

It was a massive boar, three meters long, its head and mouth dominating, with sturdy limbs and dark brown bristles. Its stench was overpowering, its tusks like gleaming cleavers.

Su Qing sensed its aura: high-grade first-tier, late Qi Refining.

She almost laughed in frustration. This boar had likely stalked her, waiting because of her venomous state.

Now, seeing her mostly detoxed, it charged, aiming to swallow her whole.

Gripping her sword, she faced it, saying, “I’m still toxic. Eat me, and you’ll be poisoned.”

Unfazed, the boar lunged, mouth wide, engulfing her and her sword.

A second later, a deafening *boom* echoed, like an explosion. Shockwaves rippled, shaking the island’s trees.

As the blood mist cleared, no boar remained—only a pile of bones and flesh.

Newly awakened spirit beasts often had innate skills or deadly moves. Even a pig wasn’t to be underestimated. As it swallowed her, Su Qing triggered a purple qi in Manqing Sword, blasting it apart from within.

The boar’s strength lay in its hide. Its flesh was shredded, but the skin remained intact.

Had she attacked externally, its hide might’ve been impervious. @Infinite Good Reads, Only at Jinjiang Literature City

The air carried lingering heat and the scent of roasted meat, stirring her hunger.

This proved one thing: she was craving food.

After a moment’s thought, Su Qing climbed a dense tree, used a breath-concealing technique, and scanned for threats. Seeing none, she fended off scavenging vultures, descended, and approached the boar’s remains.

First, she claimed the hide—valuable for crafting or talisman materials. This large hide could fetch thirty spirit stones, offsetting her detox pill costs.

Next, she searched for the beast core. Unlike human dantians, beast cores were typically in the head, chest, or abdomen.

Soon, she found a smooth, golden pearl in its abdomen—the beast core.

Though small, from a high-grade first-tier beast, its gold-attribute qi was rich, especially for Su Qing, whose cultivation was lower.

Killing it so easily was a fluke.

She muttered, “So it’s a gold-attribute beast. No wonder it wanted me—my secondary root is gold.”

She collected the hide, core, sharp tusks, and some pig blood in a storage bottle, rich in spiritual qi and useful. Finally, she cut tender meat for her storage bag, erased her tracks, and moved deeper into the island.

As she left, vultures swooped in, devouring the remains.

…

Su Qing settled in a secluded cave.

With three years in the realm, she had no urgent tasks, free to cultivate and explore.

No rush.

She placed warning talismans twenty meters out, alerting her to approaching humans or beasts. A low-grade first-tier defensive array at the cave’s mouth, costing five hundred spirit stones, added protection.

With these safeguards, she could cultivate more at ease.

First, she absorbed the boar’s core. Though not rare, keeping it risked loss; consuming it made it hers.

She’d never eaten a core but knew the process. High-tier cores required gradual absorption to avoid beastly traits or deviation. Low-tier cores, close to her level, were simpler.

Swallow and done.

She did so. The golden core shot to her dantian, its light like sharp blades slashing her meridians.

A thorny rose.

She understood—it could refine her body.

Mobilizing her dantian’s qi, she chased and contained the core’s energy. Gold and green lights clashed, cutting and restructuring.

After countless cycles of pursuit, the gold qi, once wild, merged tamely into her dantian under her qi’s guidance.

As it settled, waves of pleasure coursed through her, like electricity. Her gold spirit root seemed brighter.

A faint buzz in her ears marked the core’s absorption. Her eyes opened, faintly glowing gold.

Since reaching Qi Refining Layer 3, she now sensed Layer 4’s boundary.

A few more cores might push her through. Early Qi Refining layers were easier, but past Layer 6, progress slowed for those with lesser talent, sometimes taking decades. Many stalled at Great Perfection, unable to advance.

Relying on cores, though, made cultivation shaky. With no lifespan pressure, Su Qing wasn’t rushed.

More importantly, absorbing the core unexpectedly gave her the boar’s legacy.

Or rather, a fragment of its memories.

A pig’s brain held little, but Su Qing gleaned key details:

1. It loved meat but enjoyed tender grass roots, especially spring ones—sweeter than meat. It fought rival boars for a favorite slope’s roots.

2. It fancied a sow, hoping to discuss lineage continuation, but she rejected and beat it, leaving it heartbroken, especially since it couldn’t win.

3. Driven by a faint bloodline instinct, it daily rammed a hard cliff wall three hundred times per body part and ground its teeth three hundred times to stay in peak condition. Perhaps becoming a boar king required such effort.

4. A mud pool on the island was its favorite rolling spot. After ramming cliffs or fighting, soaking there healed wounds remarkably fast. @Infinite Good Reads, Only at Jinjiang Literature City

…

In a fleeting moment, Su Qing lived a boar’s life on this island. Its vibrant existence now gone, she felt a pang of melancholy.

Melancholically, she took out marinated pork, charcoal, and a grill, melancholically lit a fire, and melancholically roasted the meat, flipping it, brushing oil, honey, salt, and spices.

The aroma wafted, and she melancholically resisted drooling.

Tearing into the meat, she savored its crispy exterior, juicy interior, smoky flavor, and honeyed sweetness dancing on her tongue. She sighed:

This pig was *damn* tasty.

Delicious, addictive.

Her melancholy vanished as her stomach filled.

The meat’s texture was chewy and firm—befitting a body-refining beast. Its memories revealed it cultivated through cliff-ramming destruction and mud pool recovery.

This gave her an idea.

She’d planned to continue jellyfish refining and investigate the current’s spiritual qi, but low detox pill stocks risked trouble with the Overlord Jellyfish.

The mud pool, likely detoxifying, could solve this. The boar’s memories showed it healed bee stings by soaking. She’d check tomorrow.

If it worked, she’d stay, focusing on body refinement and gathering herbs for sect tasks. @Infinite Good Reads, Only at Jinjiang Literature City

She took a tightly sealed bottle of poison powder, meant for traps. Previously, a speck had swollen and burned her skin, eased only by herbs. Post-jellyfish refining, she tolerated it better—slight pain, mere redness.

If she had a system panel, it’d flash: *Poison Resistance +1+1+1…*

It worked. She resolved to let the jellyfish sting her more.

Opening the sect’s task list, she checked for island-relevant tasks and noticed new lines:

*[Evil cultivators detected, 8-10, late Qi Refining to mid-Foundation Establishment.]*

*[Task: Kill Qi Refining evil cultivator, 500 points.]*

*[Task: Kill Foundation Establishment evil cultivator, 1,500 points.]*

She realized these were likely the group that slipped in at the gate. Sword Sect included them as tasks with high points, probably to stir competition. Evil cultivators were tricky, far harder than a late Qi Refining boar.

She’d focus on caution and survival.

Stowing the list, she checked her map, compass, and needle. They only gave direction, not her exact location. No matter—she’d stay, use the island’s resources, and later head south.

At dawn, she erased her cave’s traces and stealthily moved toward the mud pool.