In this world of cultivation, strength was the law, and the strong reigned supreme—this was a rule that had persisted for countless generations… There were fifteen realms of cultivation, each bearing a solemn name: Novice Realm, Body Refinement Realm, Spirit Transformation Realm, Wu Zhe, Wu Shi, Wu Ling, Wu Wang, Wu Huang, Wu Zong, Wu Jun, Wu Zun, Ban Sheng, Wu Sheng, Wu Di, and the fabled Great Emperor… And yet, the Great Emperor Realm, in the span of countless millennia, had never been truly pierced, nor had anyone dared… It was a realm that existed only in legend, whispered among cultivators as the pinnacle of all ambition.
Even Wu Di were few and far between. In this world, only five had ever reached that height, and their clans together were known as the Five Great Families… the Ancient Dragon Clan, the Hun Clan, the Gu Clan, the Yan Clan, and the Xu Clan… Among them, the clan patriarchs had all been Wu Sheng, their presence commanding respect throughout the world…
But calamity struck. The Xu Clan's Wu Di inheritance and bloodline had yet to pass on… and the Xu Clan Wu Di ancestor, Xu Yuan, had vanished without a trace… Rumor said that he had fallen victim to the Soul Clan Wu Di, his soul stolen away… Whether he lived or died, none could say… The Hun Clan, famed for their boundless ambition and ruthless cruelty, were a family whose methods struck fear into all who opposed them… And so, for more than twenty years, even the elders of the other great families quietly admitted… Xu Yuan was lost, perhaps forever…
Without the Wu Di bloodline, the Xu Clan floundered. For ten long years, none could step into the Wu Sheng Realm… Their strongest, the clan head himself, was only a Wu Zun… The Hun Clan, ever merciless, seized this opportunity. Hun Ye, the Hun Clan ancestor, personally struck down the majority of the Xu Clan… Only a small branch remained within the Qingyun Empire, and even their leader was but a lowly Wu Shi…
Fortune, however, still lingered. A prodigy emerged… the Third Young Master, Xu Xuan… In only three years, he reached the Spirit Transformation Realm… Ordinary men would take six, perhaps eight years… But envy never rests. Five years ago, during the Qingyun Empire Clan Competition, the young heirs of the Hao and Yuan families, along with others, conspired to cripple Xu Xuan's dantian… From a celebrated prodigy, he became a laughingstock of the entire Empire… Even at Xinghe Academy, none could forget the tale of his fall, and all whispered of the boy's misfortune…
On this morning, a commotion arose within the Xu Clan hall… Trouble had arrived… A man in flowing blue robes, long hair cascading behind him, twirled a fan in his hand, standing at the center of the hall… Behind him were others in blue, dressed like elders of a Qingyun Empire sect… And at the front, seated with unshakable composure, was the Xu Clan patriarch, Xu Tian, adorned in purple robes…
"Xu Tian… My disciple merely wishes to spar with your so-called 'genius' Third Young Master… Why all this resistance?" sneered the sect elder, Han Yang, his voice mocking and sharp, a cruel smile on his lips…
Xu Tian's face was expressionless… "Elder Han Yang… There is no need for you to play your childish games…"
Han Yang laughed, loud and scornful… "Hahaha! Very well… Where is your useless son? Has he shrunk into cowardice these past few years?"
Xu Tian slammed his hands against the armrests, his voice thundering… "Do you truly expect me to thank you and the Hao family elders for destroying my son's dantian?! I will never allow him to participate under such circumstances!"
Xu Xuan sat among the clan, fists clenched, eyes burning with rage… He watched as his father defended him, while others mocked their family openly… Slowly, he rose to his feet… "Who allowed you to endanger my father?!"
Every gaze in the hall turned to Xu Xuan… Yet he did not falter… Stepping forward with courage, he declared, "I accept this spar!"
"Xuan'er!"
"Father… Please, trust me."
"Just you? I am a Body Refiner… but… very well… I will accept your challenge… Seeing you so frail, six years shall suffice as the contract," said Yang Chen, eldest son of the Yuan family, a cruel smirk tugging at his lips… "Even sixty years would not be enough for you to reach the Novice Realm…"
With a wave of his hand, Yang Chen dismissed them… "Since your goal is met, Third Young Master… Safe travels."
The two left arrogantly, leaving whispers and murmurs in their wake… Xu Tian motioned for the clan to continue their affairs, while stepping close to Xu Xuan…
"Xuan'er… Your dantian is gone… Six years… no, even twenty… will not be enough."
"Father… How can we know it is impossible if we do not try?"
Xu Tian hesitated… "But—"
"Father… Do you not trust me?" Xu Xuan lowered his head… "I have no confidence… yet seeing you imperiled for me… I cannot remain idle."
Xu Tian's expression softened… "With such a heart, even if you fail… I am proud."
Later, standing atop a cliff and gazing at the distant Beast Forest… Xu Xuan asked, "Teacher… What are the chances my dantian can be repaired?"
From the ring he had found years ago, a gray-haired old man in white robes materialized… A soul body… Bowing his head, he whispered, "Repair a dantian… Even in the ancient secret realms, I have never heard of such a method…"
This was Xu Xuan's teacher… Yuan Heng… Trapped in the soul body within the ring… For years, he had guided Xu Xuan… Once a talented alchemist, exiled by his clan… Though Xu Xuan's dantian had been destroyed… Yuan Heng still took him as disciple, teaching him the art of pill refinement… Believing that one day… Xu Xuan would rise above his tragic fate and forge his own name…
He sighed… "Do not worry… I will try my best to find a pill or method to repair your dantian…"
Hours passed as Yuan Heng instructed him in alchemy… Without cultivation, Xu Xuan could not refine even a first-grade pill… Yet he refused to waste the opportunity… Yuan Heng, though possessing only a humble first-grade furnace, guided him patiently…
"Teacher… May I watch how you refine the pill?"
"You brat… Fine… I will show you," Yuan Heng said with a faint smile…
Watching his master, Xu Xuan felt his own weakness… Yuan Heng's hands waved over the flames, the furnace trembled… The pill formed… Xu Xuan, timid yet curious, asked, "Teacher… May I try?"
After a pause… Yuan Heng laughed and allowed it… "Wave your hands… control the furnace…"
Xu Xuan obeyed… The flames wavered… Yuan Heng tried to guide him… But Xu Xuan insisted, "I refuse to believe I cannot do it!"
"Brat… Do not force it!"
An incense stick's time passed… Still no change… Yet seeing Xu Xuan's effort, Yuan Heng could not stop him…
"Sometimes—"
"Teacher? What is this?"
The furnace continued to shake… Yet suddenly, the flames stabilized… Yuan Heng leaned closer… "Brat… You did this?!"
Xu Xuan nodded… Yuan Heng laughed heartily… "Unbelievable… A boy without cultivation, a destroyed dantian, not yet seventeen… able to control flames perfectly! Even many Second-Grade Alchemists cannot do this… Incredible… Incredible… Hahaha~~!"
At that moment, a spark flashed… Less than a second… Caught by Yuan Heng too late…
"Danger… Be careful!!"
Before he finished… The furnace exploded violently… Xu Xuan, defenseless, was thrown several steps back… On the seventh step, his foot slipped over the cliff… He fell… Yuan Heng leaped after him…
Xu Xuan plunged into a small river… Sinking to the bottom… His head struck a small stone… It shattered… Not into dust… But a surge of energy flowed into his forehead… A purple mark appeared… Then vanished… Before Yuan Heng could notice…
Rushing, Yuan Heng lifted him to the surface… Jumped back up the cliff… Placing Xu Xuan on a rock… Stabilizing his breathing, he said…
"With Master here… No harm shall come to you, Xu Xuan…"