Chapter 3470 — The Side Effects of Qi Gathering Pills

This Qi Gathering Pill from Kang Jingming was indeed slightly different from the ones before, but after carefully analyzing its scent, Wei Zhao confirmed that it was, without a doubt, the smell of a Qi Gathering Pill!

Of course, he could not rule out the possibility that Kang Jingming had poisoned the pill. But they were all Heaven Rank experts now; poisoning was the sort of trick that belonged to the intelligence level of Yellow Rank or Mystic Rank cultivators. A Heaven Rank expert could force any toxins out of their body—that was common knowledge. As a Heaven Rank expert himself, Kang Jingming could not possibly be unaware of this.

So it was a thankless task he would hardly bother with. Even if Wei Zhao did expel the poison, he would hardly be grateful to Kang Jingming for it—at most, the poison would cost Wei Zhao a bit of effort and change nothing.

"The quality is decent enough. Thanks, then. All right, I'm going to take the pill now—you can get lost." Wei Zhao was not particularly polite to Kang Jingming. After all, this Qi Gathering Pill was something he was owed, and Kang Jingming had dragged his feet for so long before finally handing it over.

"Fine, then I'll be off!" Kang Jingming could not wait to get away. If Wei Zhao swallowed the pill right in front of him and then dropped dead, some things would be hard to explain. But if he left, then even if Wei Zhao died, it would have nothing to do with him—who could say how the man had died?

"Bye-bye." Wei Zhao waved his hand, though he was somewhat puzzled inside. Kang Jingming really had changed his ways this time—coming all this way just to deliver a pill to him? That was truly bizarre!

From what Wei Zhao knew of Kang Jingming, there had to be something fishy about this. But exactly what was fishy, he could not say. So Wei Zhao once again examined the Qi Gathering Pill in his hand closely. Could it be a fake?

But it did not look like one! Wei Zhao shook his head, turned, and went back into the villa, preparing to take the pill. In any case, even if it was fake, it could hardly do him any real harm—Wei Zhao was not afraid.

After confirming that Kang Jingming had left, Wei Zhao began his journey of leveling up and breaking through.

Drawing on his previous experience, Wei Zhao readied the Qi Gathering Pill and placed it beside him. Then he sat cross-legged and calmed his mind.

Afterward, Wei Zhao picked up the Qi Gathering Pill, put it into his mouth, and swallowed it straight down into his belly!

In an instant, a warm current surged from his abdomen through his whole body, followed by a scorching sensation as though every meridian in his body were being set on fire!

That was right—this was exactly the reaction that followed taking a Qi Gathering Pill. Wei Zhao relaxed slightly. It seemed Kang Jingming had not cheated him after all; this really was a Qi Gathering Pill.

Since Wei Zhao had taken Qi Gathering Pills many times before, he was thoroughly familiar with the sensation. So he did not deliberately resist it, but let nature take its course, gritting his teeth and enduring.

The burning sensation grew stronger and stronger, until Wei Zhao felt as though he himself were about to catch fire. Yet the more painful it was, the more it resembled the feeling of his previous breakthroughs—and the more reassured Wei Zhao felt. If he felt nothing at all, that would mean Kang Jingming's pill was ineffective!

Gradually, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth in the air began to gather toward Wei Zhao, swirling above his head and forming a tiny, barely visible vortex!

The convergence of this spiritual energy meant that Wei Zhao was not far from his breakthrough. This energy resonated with the true qi inside his body, and now it raced through him faster and faster, while Wei Zhao felt his own body temperature rising higher and higher!

Suddenly, Wei Zhao caught the smell of something burning, and he could not help but smile bitterly! He had forgotten to take off his clothes again. How many sets had he burned through by now—why could he never remember? Soon his clothes had crumbled into charred scraps and fallen away piece by piece.

"Boom—"

A tremendous crash followed, as the true qi energy within Wei Zhao's meridians erupted in that instant!

It felt as though a bomb of true qi had detonated inside his body, and then an endless, surging medicinal power was unleashed all at once, spreading throughout his entire body and continuously transforming into the purest true qi, which merged into every meridian.

Breakthrough!

In that moment, Wei Zhao had become a late-stage Heaven Rank expert! From the mid-stage to the late stage felt like a qualitative leap! The feeling gratified him immensely. Above Heaven Rank, the higher one climbed, the harder breakthroughs became—but with the help of Qi Gathering Pills, Wei Zhao had risen all the way, enjoying a unique advantage.

Wei Zhao was just about to stretch his limbs when he was startled to discover that the true qi inside his body was still rising! Though the intensity was not as violent as at the moment of breakthrough, the rate of increase was the same as when he had first taken the pill—it was as if he had swallowed another Foundation Establishment Golden Pill!

What was going on? Wei Zhao was somewhat stunned. How could this Qi Gathering Pill break through one level and then, seemingly, not be finished—as if it wanted him to break through again? But how was that possible? Even the Qi Gathering Pills Zhang Lifeng had refined back then had never produced such a wondrous effect—and yet Kang Jingming's did?

But he could not deny it: the true qi inside Wei Zhao's body was indeed still rising, as though it meant to carry him through the next breakthrough. This sensation filled Wei Zhao with both shock and joy. He quickly sat cross-legged and resumed circulating the Xuanyuan Dragon Taming Art to regulate the flow of true qi within his body!

Only, what happened next was rather strange! Wei Zhao felt that the true qi inside him was indeed still rising—but it was not coming from the residual medicinal power of the Qi Gathering Pill within his body. It was coming from outside his body!

The spiritual energy of heaven and earth that had been above his head was now being drawn into the meridians of Wei Zhao's body and transformed into his own true qi! And the reason Wei Zhao felt no sign of stopping was precisely because of this.

But the spiritual energy above his head was very limited. Bingtang had said before that the spiritual energy of heaven and earth in the natural world was pitifully scarce these days, especially in the cities. The energy above Wei Zhao's head had only been automatically gathered there during his breakthrough, so once it was absorbed, there was simply no more!

And once the spiritual energy was gone, Wei Zhao suddenly felt an indescribable discomfort! It was like a person deprived of oxygen—the air around him was no longer enough to sustain his breathing, and yet to stay alive he had to gasp for breath with all his might!

That was exactly how Wei Zhao felt now. His body needed the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, but there was not enough of it around him, which left him in utter agony, as though he were suffocating, every meridian in his body twitching and contracting! (To be continued)