Ye Zhengnan looked at Ding Ning and shook his head. “I cannot say.”

Ding Ning frowned slightly and then apologized. “Sorry, I am too tired, and even my thinking is affected.”

“No problem.”

Ye Zhengnan smiled self-deprecatingly and looked at Ding Ning. “In Changling, everyone fears the retribution of the empress.”

This was a daring thing to say. Ding Ning’s mind had originally been muddled, but when he heard this, his body shook slightly and his mind immediately cleared up.

“Your surname is Ye.”

Ding Ning looked at Ye Zhengnan’s features and asked in shock, “What is your relationship to Ye Zong?”

Ye Zhengnan stilled and looked shocked at Ding Ning. He said slowly, “You are really knowledgeable. He is my youngest uncle.”

“You are…” Ding Ning looked at him and stopped breathing.

Ye Zhengnan recovered his calm and said, “It does appear you have heard of many past events in Changling, and know some things about the Ye Family.”

Ding Ning lifted his head and pressed between his brows so he would be more clear-minded.

“What medicine did you bring?” he asked, looking gravely at the other.

Ye Zhengnan also grew serious and said, “Black Dragon Wood.”

Ding Ning’s eyebrows rose. “From overseas?”

Ye Zhengnan glanced at him and nodded.

Ding Ning took a deep breath and slowly exhaled in silence.

He seemed to have heard of the name of this medicine in the past, but in his memories, the medicine seemed to come from Jade Light Island. Jade Light Island was one of the cultivation places of the overseas cultivator Guo Dongjiang, who had died at Deer Mountain in the emperor of Qin’s trap.

He did not know what kind of quality the medicine’s power had, but since this medicine had appeared in front of him, this expressed the attitudes of some people overseas towards the emperor and empress of Qin.

“It’s almost time,” Ye Zhengnan said softly, as he looked silently at Ding Ning.

Then, his body started to tremble.

This trembling seemed to come from a bone-chilling cold from being rained on for a long time. His right hand reached out, trembling. As vital energy moved, threads of black medicinal energy came out of his palm. Also coming out of his palm were small drops of essence blood.

More black medicinal energy gathered in his hands like a burning black flame. Inside this black flame were many drops of blood.

These drops of blood were like pill medicines rolling through the black flame, quickly turning black and compressing into smaller crystal beads. Then the beads slowly gathered together.

Seeing this scene, Ye Zhengnan’s body trembled even more violently.

“I do not want your help,” Ding Ning looked at him and shook his head at this time, saying, “Regardless of which family you belong to, I do not want to owe you a favor.”

Ye Zhengnan stilled. But he did not stop his movements. He looked at Ding Ning and said, “No one will make you repay this favor.”

“This is not the same,” Ding Ning looked at him and said calmly, “Originally, this was my own battle. But if I accept your help, I will be pulled into more matters.”

Ye Zhengnan looked oddly at Ding Ning. “You think far into the future.”

Ding Ning’s expression remained unchanged. “Why should I not think?”

Ye Zhengnan frowned and said, “I only thought that you wanted to be the victor at any cost and not that you thought of what would happen after winning.”

Ding Ning nodded and said seriously, “Of course I do not think the same as you and will die after being first.”

Ye Zhengnan looked at the white speckles in Ding Ning’s hair and felt that Ding Ning’s words were laughable. But he was silent for a long moment and said, “Regardless of what you think, you should know what the Black Dragon Wood medicinal power has before making a decision.”

Ding Ning did not speak and silently agreed to listening about the astounding power the Black Dragon Wood had.

Ye Zhengnan nodded politely and said, “The Black Dragon Wood is a strange wood grown from the corpse bones of the overseas Black Blood Serpent. While it is a plant, its medicinal power seems to have inherited the vital energy of the Black Blood Serpent perfectly. It can merge with the vital energy of cultivators, quickly turning into large amounts of primal energies of the universe. It can greatly increase a cultivator’s attack power, and more importantly, it has an astounding ability to nourish the user’s body. Even if one is seriously injured, they can recover quickly.”

Pausing, Ye Zhengnan looked emotionally at Ding Ning and continued. “In the overseas legends, the Black Blood Serpent is also called the Undying Serpent. They say that if one cuts off its head, they will gain immortality. While this is an exaggeration, its astounding recovery abilities are an uncontested truth.”

Ding Ning thought for a moment. “In other words, if I accept the medicinal power you have brought, even if someone cuts me in the following competition, I may not die and may quickly recover?”

Ye Zhengnan nodded without hesitation and said, “Being stabbed once or twice is not a problem and the medicinal power can be maintained for numerous years.”

Being stabbed once or twice naturally did not include serious injuries that destroyed the meridians or the organs, not to mention having one’s head cut off. But being able to completely recover from being stabbed in any part of the body to the point it would not affect future battles was astounding.

There were many amazing spirit medicines overseas. This was why the Qin Dynasty’s metal ships tirelessly searched and did business overseas.

But even among the spirit medicines overseas, the Black Dragon Wood was one of the most amazing.

Ye Zhengnan thought there was no need to argue with Ding Ning. In terms of medicinal power, he thought that no cultivator who was participating in the Min Mountain Sword Trials could refuse the temptation of this spirit medicine.

He waited for Ding Ning to become excited and consent. Unexpectedly, Ding Ning’s expression remained calm.

“I do not need the Black Dragon Wood.”

Ding Ning looked at him and quietly shook his head, refusing. “I do not want to be stabbed, and I have successfully passed the event just now. So, even without the Black Dragon Wood, I will win.”

Ye Zhengnan was stunned for a long time. Then his eyes widened and he looked at Ding Ning like the other was unreasonable. He said, “You feel that you will definitely be first? You do not even have realm four cultivation. Do you know what kind of opponents you will encounter next?”

“Before the Min Mountain Sword Trials started, who thought that I would be first, or first in each event? Yet. I was first in all previous events.”

Ding Ning looked at Ye Zhengnan and said slowly, “Since I have confidence, I cannot accept your life.”

Ye Zhengnan froze completely, even the medicinal power stopped oozing out of his body.

“You should know that I will not change my mind,” Ding Ning looked at Ye Zhengnan and said calmly.

“I do not understand your thinking.” Ye Zhengnan inhaled deeply to try to calm himself down. “You should know, whether you accept or not, I am fated to die.”

Ding Ning looked at the roiling black medicinal energy and narrowed his eyes. He sensed the movements of the invisible little silkworms in his body and shook his head. “Maybe not.”

Ye Zhengnan struggled to swallow and suppressed the anger he felt. HE said coldly, “You do not understand the power of the Black Dragon Wood at all. If I do not use my vital energy to activate the power of the Black Dragon Wood, the medicinal power would be a powerful poison that I cannot withstand at all and will quickly die from. But I used my energies to nurture it, and my vital energies are not enough. In the end, I will die, my organs poisoned.”

“You should use the medicine that you have created,” Ding Ning shook his head and said, looking at him.

Ye Zhengnan smiled angrily. “Will a starving person live by eating their own flesh?”

He felt that Ding Ning’s words were laughable.

“I have never seen the Black Dragon Wood before, but I have some knowledge of the Black Dragon Serpent. Since you say that the Black Dragon Wood has inherited the traits of the Black Blood Serpent’s vital energy, the power can naturally nurture your energies.”

Ding Ning looked at his furious expression and said, “Honeybees feed on the honey they make. No one ever said that they cannot use the pill medicines that people make with their own vital energies.”

“Even more importantly, this is the Min Mountain Sword Sect.”

Ding Ning looked up at the peak reaching into the clouds and said softly, “The Min Mountain Sword Sect will not easily let any student die. If they have the power to save you, they will. These are the rules of the sword trials. If you are willing to do as I say, you are likely to survive.”

Hearing Ding Ning’s calm tone, Ye Zhengnan still found it absurd. Yet, he couldn’t help but ponder over Ding Ning’s words and the plausibility.

“If you really want me to help you, then do as I say and do not persist in your thinking. Let me rest.”

Ding Ning’s voice reached his ears.

“I will let you see me win.”

Ye Zhengnan remained silent.

“You have no other choice.” Ding Ning looked at him and closed his eyes. “You can only believe me unless you really want to die a meaningless death.”

Translator Ramblings: Medicine in blood. Maybe this unknown faction thinks that Ding Ning is a vampire.