<h4>Chapter 4: Chapter 4 Substitute Divine Statue</h4>


    Within the Dantian, there was the statue of a Daoist.


    Sitting on a lotus tform, ancient in years, its facial features blurred and unrecognizable, even the folds in its Daoist robe had been smoothed out.


    It appeared quite ordinary, no different from ancient relics found in deste wilderness, but atop its head and on each shoulder, there was a cluster of blue ghostly fire.


    This object was the very culprit behind his transmigration!


    Li Yan, in his previous life, often had to travel for work and made it a point to visit museums and antique markets, being an amateur enthusiast.


    Of course, he knew his limits, having some understanding, but he was not a professional, so he only looked and never purchased anything.


    This item, however, lying unassumingly on a stall, looking nothing more than a worn fake, somehow captivated him and he ended up buying it.


    Not long after, he awoke in this world after falling asleep.


    Over the years, he had been researching.


    The origins of this treasure were mysterious, but he had figured out its function, simr to a substitute doll.


    The three mes on the head and shoulders could perform life recement.


    Whenever he encountered a deadly cmity, a me would extinguish.


    This meant he had three more chances to be reborn.


    Another effect of the statue was injury swapping.


    Whether internal injuries, poisoning, or wounds from weapons, all could be transferred to the statue in the blink of an eye.


    Simply put, it was akin to a limited ability of Deadpool.


    Now on the neck of the statue, there was clearly a new small w mark.


    Li Yan dared to hunt the blind Old Three because he had this treasure as his security.


    Not only that, over the years as he trained in martial arts like a madman, unafraid of internal or external injuries, repeatedly pushing his body to the limits, he used this Substitute Divine Statue for injury swapping.


    As the saying goes, chronic illness turns a patient into a good doctor, his formidable control over his body was also umted through numerous minor and major injuries.


    And his pale skin was a side effect of swapping injuries.


    Now the statue appeared intact, but inside it was full of cracks.


    Li Yan knew that he needed to be careful with its use in the future, not to rely on it too much, otherwise if the statue umted too many injuries, a me might extinguish.


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    Of course, with his current mastery over his body, he could easily hover at his limits and the Ten Pan Gong were as familiar as breathing; he would not be injured at all.


    After warming up, Li Yan started to move again.


    His movements appeared routine, but every move was varied and unpredictable.


    All these were his family''s true styles ofbat, the Thirty-Six Cloud Hands, Nine-Style Legs, and Thirty-Six Grabs, with chopping as the essence and arrangement the form, including dispersed strikespiled into sequences.


    Real fighting techniques were far less morous than choreographed routines, but as the saying goes, theyman watches the show; the expert appreciates the skill. Li Yan''s seemingly simple and inelegant movements were actually filled with murderous intent.


    Initially, Hei Dan was considered the strongest among the vige youths of his age, so proud and cocky, but it was only by seeing Li Yan practicing boxing that he broke into a cold sweat, realizing that there were always people better than him.


    Each move he made was powerful and robust, stretching his body with cracking sounds.


    Hisrge tendons vibrated, and his muscles and bones resonated together.


    ording to the Martial Arts General Scripture, he had reached the peak of Hidden Energy.


    Do not underestimate this achievement. Being able to reach this level was beyond ordinary; in any pugilistic world escort agency, he would qualify to be paid.


    Moreover, Li Yan was only fourteen years old.


    The next step would involve the swelling of the Qi membrane, wrapping the sinews into a circle, and cultivating Hidden Energy.


    In this world, where martial arts thrived, Hidden Energy alone made one a third-rate expert in the pugilistic world, capable of leading a team on escort missions, and he could carve out a niche for himself just like his father had.


    Moreover, with Li Yan''s age, if some of the martial arts academies in Chang''an City knew of his prowess, they would surelye bearing gifts to recruit him, potentially making him a chief pir of their institution in the future.


    However, a discordant voice came from the courtyard.


    "Humph, what''s the use in practicing all this!"


    The voice was old, unmistakably Li Yan''s grandfather, Li Gui.


    The old man had, unbeknownst to anyone, returned to the courtyard leaning on a cane.


    After finishing his boxing, Li Yan smiled and said, "Grandpa, why so temperamental, it''s just a wild beast, are you worried I can''t handle it?"


    "What''s a wild beast?"


    Li Gui tapped off ashes from his cigarette onto his foot, his face still dark, "I should never have passed down the boxing skills. Practicing martial arts stirs up a murderous heart and invites trouble."


    "Your dad didn''t listen and went to be a desman, ended up dead. You are also troublesome, are you trying to cut off our Li family''s lineage!"


    Li Yan followed up with apensatory smile, without arguing.


    This world and his previous life had many simrities, yet were also different.


    For instance, martial arts concepts like "embracing the elixir to form Qi" and "reversing the innate" existed only in novels before, but in this world, they were real.


    Geographically, it was quite simr to his past world, but the historical dynasties were different.


    Now was the Great Xuan Dynasty, the ninth year of Yuangheng, with the nation established for one hundred years.


    One more difference was that personal martial prowess in this world was astonishing. Some famous grandmasters could snatch the head of a man from amidst ten thousand troops and daringly infiltrate the pce for assassination.


    In times of regime change, they upied regions and made the winds and clouds cry out.


    His grandfather had once been a fierce soldier in the army, practicing his martial arts to the peak of Hidden Energy, just a step away from Force Transformation, with a bright future ahead. It was during the quelling of rebellion at the Northern Border that he lost a leg.


    Moreover, having offended a superior at that time, despite years in the military, all he got was somend and a "Hundred Battle Valor" que awarded by the Ministry of War.


    It was the one hanging outside the door.


    The que "Hundred Battle Valor" is not something just anyone can earn. By using it, his father could have be an arrest officer in the county government, but instead, he chose to roam the pugilistic world as a desman, which always irked his grandfather, Li Gui.


    Of course, elders should be respected, but that doesn''t mean you have to listen to everything they say.


    Nowadays the world seemed fairly peaceful, but Grandfather wanted him to live a stable life as a farmer.


    Yet Li Yan knew; in any world, one must be strong.


    Having a knife and not using it ispletely different from having no knife at all.


    Seeing Li Gui still angry, Li Yan quickly shifted his gaze and sat on the doorstep, grinning, "Grandpa, tell me again about what happened on the ice fields?"


    Li Gui snorted, "You''ve heard it so many times, yet you still ask!"


    Although he said so, he still lit his big pipe, took a few puffs, and seemed lost in memories, "That cursed ce is really not fit for humans..."


    "At that time, a major general from the Northern Border rebelled and even colluded with foreign tribes to move south, and upon orders, under General Zhang''s lead, we ventured into the deep North ice fields, determined to exterminate the rebels..."


    "The ce was all ice and snow as far as the eye could see, in the dense forests no matter if it was tiger or bear, even the Evil Wolves were frighteningly big, the Blind Old Three you killed is nothingpared to them..."


    "What was most terrifying was the weather, a vast icy fog, nothing was visible beyond a dozen steps away, many froze to death on the way..."


    "Besides those fleeing rebel remnants, there were people in the woods, with white skin, red hair, and blue eyes, wearing animal-skin clothes, who ran upon seeing us."


    "ording to the Schr apanying us, they were Rashan Shamans from even further north, I had never expected there to be people in that ursed ce..."


    "As time went on, more and more people died, they kept having nightmares, awoke only to freeze into ice statues, smiling, it was rather chilling..."


    "Eventually, we caught up with the enemy, but as both sides shed, suddenly a blizzard struck; many oldrades died, and the remaining rebels froze to death. Only because we dug ice caves were we able to barely survive..."


    "Although I ended up with a disabled leg,pared to thoserades buried on the ice field, I consider myself lucky..."


    Listening to the old man, Li Yan remained silent.


    Geographically, this world was simr to his previous life, and ording to his grandfather, the ce they went to must have been Siberia.


    Only, it seemed even more dangerous than in his former life.


    He had heard these stories many times, and pestering Grandpa to tell them again was merely a way to divert attention.


    Although he vehemently scolded, Li Yan knew, the death of his father, a white-haired person sending off a ck-haired one, had caused his grandfather immense pain.


    Elderly people like to recall the past, and the icy journey was the biggest aplishment of Grandpa''s life. Talking more about it prevented him from dwelling on the sad memories.


    After a while, the old man finished his story but seemed confused again, apparently forgetting what he had just been talking about. His eyes dull and cloudy, he looked at Li Yan for a while, then suddenly said, "Yan boy..."


    "Grandpa, please go ahead."


    "Remember when you marry, find a woman with a big behind."


    "A big behind is a bit ugly."


    "What do you know, big behinds are good for birthing."


    "Alright, as you say..."


    Li Yan smiled slightly, but there was a trace of sorrow in his eyes.


    In the past two years, Grandpa had be increasingly forgetful, and his health was failing.


    When his father was alive, he would return a few times each year to tell him about the storms of the pugilistic world, the covert signals of the Spring Festival, and those bizarre and legendary tales.


    Though interesting, if possible, he would rather have stayed forever in their little mountain vige and have Grandpa live a few years more...


    ......


    At the entrance of the vige, the corpse of Blind Old Three hung from the old locust tree.


    The adults from Li Family Castle nced at it as they passed by then hurried along; after all, they had seen wolves often enough.


    When "Blind Old Three" was alive, no matter how fierce, once dead, all those stories would turn into jokes; ultimately, working in the fields was more important.


    However, the vige mischiefs had found some fun, picking up stones.


    "Hit Blind Old Three!"


    "Smash, kill it!"


    Apanied byughter, stones flew, and the corpse of Blind Old Three hanging from the tree was battered and swaying left and right...


    ......


    Night fell, and the moonlight was cold as water.


    Yet tonight was somewhat different from usual.


    No insects chirped, no birds sang, even the frogs in the ditches had shut their mouths.


    By the dirt road at the vige entrance, "Blind Old Three''s" body hung silently, tattered and torn after being ravaged, its filthy blood long since turned ck.


    From afar in the wheat fields, shadows rustled out, looking up under the moonlight, they were several smaller wolves.


    The vige chief, Li Huairen, was totally wrong.


    Wolves can coborate to hunt, and likewise, they can hunt their kind.


    The elders could scare off the wolf packs because Li Family Castle still had many living old soldiers, and hanging numerous wolf corpses provided sufficient deterrence.


    However, the scent of a lone wolf could attract nearby wolves.


    Yet, looking at "Blind Old Three''s" distant body, the pack of wolves circled a few times, clearly cautious and never approaching.


    Suddenly as if startled, they whined and scattered, burrowing into the wheat fields, disappearing into the night.


    Then a cold wind arose suddenly, the great locust tree rustled, and amidst the darkness, vague and menacing shapes seemed to sway like a ferocious beast...