Night fell once more.
In the forest, the sound of insects never ceased. Around the campfire, goblins chattered noisily, tearing at food with blood splattering everywhere.
Yet Ye Xuan still sat cross-legged in the corner, unmoving like a boulder.
Last night, his legs had cramped, his back unable to stay upright.
But now, he could sit firmly, breath steady, heartbeat like the deep pounding of a drum.
"This body… finally begins to obey my will."
Ye Xuan nodded silently to himself.
---
At dawn, the tribe was driven into the forest to carry stones as training.
The goblins who had mocked him the night before deliberately tossed even larger, heavier rocks beside him.
"Come on, trash, pick it up!"
"If you can't even carry a stone, you really are the weakest F-!"
Ye Xuan said nothing. He simply lowered his head and lifted the stone larger than his own body.
His bones felt as though they would snap apart, veins bulged, and sweat ran down his face.
But he did not retreat.
Step by step, gritting his teeth, he carried the stone to its destination and set it down.
"This—this is impossible!"
The goblins froze in shock.
The waste who had once fled from a baby's cry could now lift a stone even E-ranked goblins refused to touch?
Ye Xuan ignored them. Instead, he closed his eyes and adjusted his breathing, turning the ache into fuel for his blood to circulate.
His chest gradually expanded, his meridians faintly warmed.
It was as if a slumbering power was being awakened, little by little.
---
By dusk, one goblin could no longer contain himself. He charged at Ye Xuan with a sharp stone shard in hand.
"Trash, kneel before me!"
Ye Xuan slowly opened his eyes, gaze cold as ice.
As the goblin lunged, he twisted his body, stomping the ground, waist and hips exploding with force—
Bang!
The goblin was kicked flying, slammed hard against a tree, foaming at the mouth as he fainted.
Silence fell.
Every goblin's eyes widened in disbelief.
The F- waste… had just kicked a clansman flying with a single strike?
But Ye Xuan was unmoved. He simply sat back down cross-legged, closing his eyes once more.
"The mortal body has now stabilized."
"Next… it is time to prepare for alchemy."
His gaze pierced through the forest, landing on the faint outline of distant mountains.
There, the herbs he needed grew.
And one day—
he would climb his way up, step by step.