The village chief remained calm, smiling gently.
"Even before his spirit embryo awakened, his vital energy cultivation was already stronger than that of ordinary spirit-embryo–realm warriors—nearly matching my own in my prime. Now that it has awakened, he will only grow stronger. Mu'er has worked hard for many years, and with the countless portions of Four-Spirit blood you've all used to nourish him, this level of achievement isn't surprising."
The apothecary was still deeply shaken and murmured,"But… even deeper than yours back then. You were—"
"I'm nothing more than a crippled old man," the village chief cut him off with a laugh."You can't use me to measure today's youth. What worries me now is that Mu'er's vital energy has no attributes at all. How can it be made to display its power? Let's go over—don't keep them waiting."
The apothecary's heart trembled slightly.
Vital energy could only unleash its power because it possessed attributes. Without attributes, Qin Mu's vital energy naturally couldn't display any strength.
Even though he had awakened his spirit embryo, even though his cultivation far surpassed that of ordinary people—if it couldn't be used, it was ultimately meaningless.
The two arrived by the bonfire.
The deaf man pulled out his iron ear, rinsed it in wine, then reinserted it. He poured the remaining wine onto the fire, which flared up fiercely.
Laughing, he said,"Village chief, we tested it earlier. Mu'er has awakened the Tyrant Body, but he can't unleash the power of Tyrant Body vital energy. You're the most knowledgeable among us—you must know how to bring out its strength, right?"
At that moment, the apothecary felt the old man beside him grow three times heavier in his mind.
The village chief looked up pitifully at the apothecary. The apothecary turned his head away and clinked cups with Grandpa Ma, pretending nothing was happening.
"Well," the village chief asked, "is Mu'er's Tyrant Body vital energy strong?"
The deaf man understood immediately and praised him,"Strong! His vital energy is extremely resilient—very hard to disperse!"
The others nodded in agreement.
When Qin Mu had fought Senior Brother Qu of the Five of Lijiang, they had already noticed how extraordinary his vital energy was. When channeled into a small wooden stick, even Qu's treasured sword couldn't cut it. That alone proved how tough Qin Mu's vital energy was.
The village chief continued,"Then is his vital energy abundant?"
The deaf man replied,"Terrifyingly abundant! At his realm, my vital energy cultivation wasn't even close to his!"
Everyone agreed. Qin Mu's vital energy was absurdly thick—so thick it felt as though he'd been cultivating for decades, even though his spirit embryo had only just awakened.
The village chief guided them patiently,"Since his vital energy is so resilient and so abundant, why can't it display any power?"
This time, the deaf man didn't answer. Instead, he slapped his thigh.
"That's right! Village chief—why can't it?"
The village chief nearly suffocated, feeling as though the deaf man had stabbed him twice in the chest. Fortunately, the mute suddenly grew excited, waving his arms wildly and shouting incoherently.
"He's right!" the deaf man suddenly realized."Mu'er's vital energy is resilient and abundant, yet powerless. That means the problem isn't Mu'er's Tyrant Body vital energy—it's our cultivation methods. They don't suit him! The problem lies with us!"
The village chief finally relaxed—only for the deaf man to add,"So here's the question: how do we unleash the power of Tyrant Body vital energy? None of us know. Village chief, you're well-traveled—what's your insight?"
The village chief wanted nothing more than to grow two extra arms and strangle him.
Still, he did know why Qin Mu couldn't bring out his power—even if he didn't know how to fix it.
The vital energy of the Four Great Spirit Bodies each had distinct traits.
White Tiger vital energy possessed metallic properties—it could transform into weapons, boasting tremendous offense and defense. Forming claws, it could rip enemies apart; forming shields, it could block attacks.
Azure Dragon vital energy carried lightning attributes, granting control over thunder, along with some healing properties.
Vermilion Bird vital energy possessed fire attributes—violent and domineering. Both the apothecary and the mute blacksmith belonged to this type; the apothecary's alchemy and the blacksmith's forge relied on it.
Then there was Black Tortoise vital energy, focused on defense and water control, taking on watery properties when used.
Qin Mu's vital energy had none of these traits. As a result, its power couldn't be unleashed. Though his cultivation was strong, it barely translated into combat strength.
Knowing the cause, however, didn't mean knowing the solution.
"Mu'er," the village chief asked, "what does your spirit embryo look like?"
Qin Mu described the strange spirit embryo within his Spirit Embryo Divine Treasury.
Everyone around the bonfire froze, exchanging looks.
A humanoid spirit embryo?
This was the first time any of them had ever heard of such a thing!
Qin Mu was puzzled."Grandma Si, Grandpa Ma… aren't your spirit embryos shaped like yourselves as children?"
Grandma Si shook her head and sighed."No. No wonder you're a Tyrant Body—even your spirit embryo is different. Mine is a White Tiger spirit embryo—a little white tiger."
"My spirit embryo is an Azure Dragon," said Grandpa Ma.
"My spirit embryo is a Black Tortoise," said the blind man.
The mute gestured wildly, indicating his spirit embryo was a Vermilion Bird.
The village chief narrowed his eyes in deep thought.
The Four Great Spirit Bodies were heaven-blessed. Their Spirit Embryo Divine Treasuries were naturally open—awakening the spirit embryo was enough to become a martial artist. Though their spirit embryos differed slightly, they always fell into one of the four categories.
Some spirit bodies weren't exactly White Tiger, Azure Dragon, Vermilion Bird, or Black Tortoise—but still belonged within those classifications.
Thus, the Four Great Spirit Bodies' vital energies possessed four corresponding attributes.
Qin Mu's spirit embryo, however, was humanoid—without attributes. That was why it was difficult to awaken, and why its power was so hard to unleash.
The village chief sank into deep contemplation, searching for a way to stimulate the Tyrant Body's power. Even with his brilliance, he couldn't produce an answer on the spot.
Seeing his expression, Grandma Si immediately understood and laughed."You know Mu'er is a Tyrant Body—but you don't know how a Tyrant Body should be cultivated, do you?"
The village chief's face reddened slightly as he nodded.
Disappointment spread among the villagers.
The blind man murmured,"You're the most knowledgeable among us. If even you don't know the Tyrant Body's cultivation method, then won't Mu'er's Tyrant Body go to waste?"
Silence fell over the bonfire.
Suddenly, the butcher spoke."Tyrant Body cultivation methods… were created by people, right?"
Everyone turned to look at him, confused.
The butcher grinned savagely."If Tyrant Body methods were created by people, then if others can create them, why can't we? And even if we can't—Mu'er can create his own! I don't submit to anyone. My pig-slaughtering blade art was self-created. If you're all scared by this little difficulty, then I'll look down on you! Mu'er—don't let me look down on you!"
Qin Mu nodded fiercely, hot blood surging through him.
"Grandpa Butcher, don't worry! I will never disappoint your expectations!"
The butcher burst into laughter and slapped his shoulder hard. The others laughed as well, the heaviness instantly gone.
Seeing this, the knot in the village chief's heart finally loosened, and he laughed heartily.
"I lied to them, telling them Mu'er was a Tyrant Body—to give them the courage to keep living. I became obsessed with how to maintain that lie… never realizing that they already had motivation. I was the only one still trapped by it."
The knot unraveled completely. Qin Mu's arrival had given the villagers of Crippled Elder Village a reason to live—and had given him a reason to keep striving.
The apothecary glanced at him and smiled. It had been a long time since the village chief had laughed like this.
"I think," the butcher said grimly, his face lit by the fire, "only by forcing the Tyrant Body to its absolute limit can its power truly be revealed."
His expression grew even fiercer."No madness, no survival! The Tyrant Body is stronger than spirit bodies—its vital energy must be stronger too. That means the conditions to unleash it are harsher. Only by reaching the extreme can its power be forced out!"
The cripple nodded."Mu'er's iron shoes need to be thicker. More iron ingots tied on—force him to run faster."
The blind man tapped his bamboo cane."His cultivation has been too easy before. From now on, it must double—to draw out his potential."
Grandpa Ma added,"Exactly. If we're forcing out his potential, then we must also work twice as hard."
The mute gestured excitedly, shouting incomprehensibly.
Qin Mu was deeply moved—and also felt a growing sense of dread.
The grandparents cared about him so much that he was genuinely touched…but why did every sentence they spoke include the words 'force out'?
The apothecary narrowed his eyes and joined in."Supplement him! Keep supplementing! Until his vital energy becomes so resilient that it can finally unleash power! The Great Ruins are full of rare beasts and exotic herbs. I can brew spirit pills and divine medicines. My herb garden outside the village has everything! Enough to supplement him until he can pinch his skin and squeeze out spirit liquid!"
"Apothecary, you're really going all out!" everyone laughed.