After carefully reading it, Zhao Ya fell into deep thought.

Unlike other outer sect horizontal refining techniques such as the Golden Bell Shield and Iron Cloth Shirt, this Golden Body Technique takes a unique approach, cultivating both inner and outer elements, clearly not an ordinary item.

Moreover, Zhao Ya always felt that this Golden Body Technique seemed to have follow-up parts, but he didn't know where they were.

Even so, Zhao Ya was already very satisfied.

After all, what Zhao Ya lacked most now was this type of body refining technique.

Especially after entering the Third Realm, all the tendons, bones, and membranes throughout Zhao Ya's body had been refined, and to further develop and advance to the Fourth Realm, he must refine his skin until it becomes as tough as iron.

This is where the importance of a good horizontal refining skill comes into play.

This is also why Iron Refining Manor has been able to dominate Yunxiao County for so many years, maintaining its prestige even in these troubled times.

Because their family-passed-horizontal refining skills are very advanced, effectively accelerating the promotion from the Third to the Fourth Realm.

Don't underestimate this point. Martial Dao is like rowing against the current; you either advance or fall behind.

Even if the improvement is minor, over time, it will become a significant advantage.

Moreover, the skin refined through horizontal refining techniques becomes tougher, and its defense is stronger.

Simply put, those who advance to the Fourth Realm through horizontal refining techniques are naturally stronger than the standard Fourth Realm, equivalent to gaining an extra talent attribute.

No wonder Ma Ling would go to great lengths to keep this technique hidden closely; its value is indeed immeasurable.

Furthermore, Zhao Ya estimated that Ma Ling had not had this technique for long, otherwise, his strength would not merely be this.

But these are all unimportant now; the cultivation technique is already in Zhao Ya's hands, Ma Ling's painstaking efforts ultimately benefited another.

Zhao Ya packed up the Golden Body Technique.

By now, the sound of footsteps could faintly be heard coming from the distant forest.

He knew that the people from Cyan Bamboo Ridge had already searched nearby, so with a leap, he dived into the forest.

Since these thieves are determined not to give up, Zhao Ya doesn't mind playing with them for a bit.

Night falls.

The moonlight is hidden, and a violent wind roars.

The temperature in the mountains drops sharply, quickly reaching a level that ordinary people can barely endure.

Even the top predators wouldn't come out to hunt in this weather, preferring to stay hungry in their warm dens.

At this time, Deng Gui felt that his ears had become numb, but he didn't dare touch them, fearing they might fall off with a single touch.

The whistling cold wind felt like blades slicing his face, and every breath from his nostrils to his lungs was like torture.

Deng Gui learned for the first time that the saying "breath turning to ice" was no exaggeration.

Even with his Second Realm strength, unaffected by cold or heat, he was shivering from the cold.

The claim of being unaffected by cold or heat is just an expression; in this weather, even Huo Tianxiao wasn't enjoying it.

Yet, he refused to retreat, determinedly continuing the search.

In his view, if he felt uncomfortable in this weather, the enemy must feel worse.

Especially since the enemy included two delicate women, who probably couldn't last long.

With this belief, he kept encouraging his subordinates, urging them to perk up.

As long as they could capture Song Peiwan and the other two, there would be great rewards awaiting them, allowing them to choose gold, silver, and beauties at will.

These words had little impact, as no one was in the mood to think about rewards anymore.

Deng Gui thought that even a celestial beauty in front of him couldn't compare to the allure of a pot of hot wine.

Thinking of hot, steaming wine, Deng Gui couldn't help but drool, licking his lips.

But this lick caused trouble; his saliva instantly froze, cracking his lips.

"Damn, this ghost weather!"

Deng Gui couldn't help but curse, then stopped to tear a piece of garment to cover his face.

If he kept going, his nose and ears might really fall off.

As he lowered his head to fumble, he was completely unaware that a shadow was slowly approaching behind him.

The howling wind disrupted his hearing.

Until a strong hand suddenly covered his mouth from behind did Deng Gui realize he was being ambushed.

But before he could act, a blade had already sliced his throat.

Blood was shot out by the air escaping his trachea, but it froze mid-air and fell to the ground.

Deng Gui widened his eyes in terror, trying to struggle, but his strength faded with the blood.

He could only whimper with all his might, attempting to draw the attention of those ahead.

But these minor sounds were soon drowned by the wind.

Zhao Ya propped Deng Gui's body against a big tree nearby, mimicking the act of urination, then vanished into the darkness again.

The cold had some effect on Zhao Ya, but it wasn't significant.

With each heartbeat, the scorching Qi Blood, transformed by the Heart Devotion and Red Transformation Talent, flowed to every organ, resisting the external cold.

Zhao Ya increasingly felt the strength of these two talents he unlocked.

The Water and Valley Essence need not be mentioned; just the Heart Devotion and Red Transformation Talent alone was worth Zhao Ya's effort to unlock.

With a heart acting like an engine, Zhao Ya's environmental endurance was astounding, allowing him to stealthily kill even in such harsh conditions.

By then, someone noticed Deng Gui was lagging. Seeing him "relieving" by a tree, someone laughed.

"Old Gui, don't tell me you're stuck, pissing this long!"

As he approached intending to pat Deng Gui's shoulder,

a sharp blade flashed in an instant, piercing directly through the person's mouth, exiting from behind.

The person's eyes widened in disbelief, staring at the frosted young man in the shadows.

Thud!

The long blade pulled out, yet not much blood spurted out, and the lifeless body fell.

This commotion finally caught the attention of the Cyan Bamboo Ridge people.

When they arrived, Zhao Ya was long gone, leaving only two frozen corpses for Huo Tianxiao.

Huo Tianxiao crouched to examine briefly, then stood up with a sullen face.

With his Jianghu experience, he naturally understood what happened.

First, Deng Gui was ambushed from behind, his throat slit; then Lian San was stabbed through the head.

These two clean strikes were as simple as slaughtering chickens.

Even Huo Tianxiao couldn't suppress a shiver of fear.

This opponent could move freely in this freezing cold, even having the spare strength to ambush; clearly, his previous assessment was all wrong.

Huo Tianxiao finally considered retreating.

Better safe than sorry; losing face wasn't worth losing his life.

Besides, seeing everyone's expressions, even if Huo Tianxiao wanted to continue the hunt, likely no one would follow.

So, after a brief hesitation, Huo Tianxiao decisively commanded, "Retreat!"

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