Half an hour passed, then an hour passed…
His legs and feet grew numb from sitting, his back ached, and fine beads of sweat even appeared on his forehead, but inside his body, it remained empty, a dead silence!
Let alone sensing Spiritual Qi, he couldn't even feel a trace of cool breeze or a hint of warm current!
It was as if all his efforts were just him futilely clawing at the air.
A strong wave of frustration and irritation washed over him. Cultivating Immortality… was it really so difficult?
Was his so-called “mediocre” Aptitude so poor that he couldn't even touch the threshold?
“Senior…”
Chen Lin couldn't help but call out in his heart, with a hint of unconcealed frustration and grievance,
“Didn't you say my Aptitude was good enough to start?
Why… why can't I grasp the key? Is this Qi Guiding Technique… perhaps fake?”
He truly couldn't understand. He had the scroll in hand, and he had tried the method by following the instructions, yet his body had no reaction.
“Hmph!”
A clear sneer pierced into Chen Lin's mind, carrying undisguised mockery and disdain.
“Boy, what do you take Immortal Dao Longevity for?”
“Is it like village children playing with mud?
Or an old farmer weeding in the fields?
This is a heaven-reaching path that steals Yin and Yang and seizes creation!
How can it be a child's play that you, after sitting on a cold bed for a few hours, expect to ascend to heaven in one step?!”
Chen Lin was choked speechless by the merciless reprimand, his face flushed, yet he couldn't refute it.
“Your whole family got incredibly lucky, killing and plundering to obtain this most rudimentary Qi guiding method; it's already a sign of great fortune from your ancestors!
That you could gain recognition from my Refining Demon Furnace is an immense Opportunity that you accumulated through your past and present lives, and the explosion of your ancestral graves in both realms!”
The Refining Demon Furnace's voice suddenly rose, carrying an angry tone of disappointment, as if it were scolding iron for not becoming steel,
“It's only been half a day, with a slight setback, and you're already as mournful as if your parents died?
With such a Heart-Nature, you should give up the idea of Cultivating Immortality sooner rather than later!”
Its tone was chilling, imbued with the indifference of ten thousand years:
“Honestly, live as a hunter, marry, have children, and lead a mediocre life.
When your lifespan is exhausted, I will naturally be able to break the blood pact and find another host.
It saves me from being disgraced by a good-for-nothing like you, tarnishing the name of my Ancient Divine Artifact!”
Good-for-nothing… mediocre life… find another host…
These words were like a red-hot branding iron, searing fiercely into Chen Lin's heart!
The ruthlessness of killing an Immortal and seizing treasure last night, his father's silent expectation, his elder brother's saved eggs, Yun Niang's timid gaze…
And the Cauldron imprint on his chest, representing infinite possibilities…
Was all of this to be reduced to nothing because of his half-day failure, to once again fall into that hopeless, impoverished Reincarnation?
No! Absolutely not!
Intense unwillingness erupted in his chest like a volcano!
He was muddled in his previous life; how could he repeat the same mistakes in this life?
The Immortal path was right before his eyes; even if he had to crawl on his knees, he would climb up!
“Senior, please calm down! Senior, please calm down!”
Chen Lin immediately begged for mercy in his heart, his tone extremely humble, with a fawning flattery,
“This junior knows his mistake! This junior was just… just a bit impatient, just venting!
You, an elder, are magnanimous; don't bother with this junior!”
He racked his brains, pouring out all the flattering words he could think of:
“You are an Ancient Divine Artifact!
An existence that has endured countless calamities and remains indestructible!
You swallow the universe and awe all heavens!
What great storms haven't you seen?
This junior's meager Dao cultivation is not even as good as an ant in your eyes; it's not worth getting angry over my foolishness and needlessly damaging your supreme, heaven-shaking majesty, isn't that right?”
In the depths of his consciousness, the Refining Demon Furnace seemed to fall silent for a moment.
Chen Lin seemed to feel that ancient existence “looking” at his thick-skinned flattery with an extremely strange gaze.
“Hmph, glib-tongued, you do have some small cleverness.”
The Refining Demon Furnace's voice seemed to soften slightly, its cold indifference receding a bit,
“Forget it… seeing as you bear my imprint… I'll help you out.”
Chen Lin's heart was ecstatic, and he held his breath.
“The Spiritual Qi in this world of yours is pitifully thin.
And this Qi Guiding Technique is crude and inferior. If you want to sense and guide Qi by yourself, with your Aptitude, don't even think about it without three to five years of painstaking effort.”
The Refining Demon Furnace hit the nail on the head, pointing out the crucial issue.
Three to five years? Chen Lin's heart instantly sank.
They had just killed an Immortal; who knew if the Immortal's fellow disciples would track them down?
How could they have so much time to slowly grind?
“However…”
The Refining Demon Furnace's tone shifted, carrying a hint of condescension,
“Of all things in Heaven and Earth, living beings are paramount.
All powerful beasts, within their flesh, blood, and vital essence, contain a trace of Innate blood Qi essence. This is the Origin power of living beings, far superior to this thin and Clutter Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi.
Especially large fierce beasts, with their vigorous Qi and blood, their heart's essence blood is an excellent primer for guiding Qi and Body Tempering!”
Chen Lin's eyes suddenly lit up: “Senior's meaning is…”
“Tell your father to go into the mountains.”
The Refining Demon Furnace's voice was decisive,
“Hunt a big fellow back! Bears, tigers, leopards, giant pythons… the fiercer it is, the stronger the Origin power contained in its heart's essence blood!
I can help you refine and purify its essence blood into the purest ‘Blood Origin Essence,’ and use this to break through the vital points and forcibly guide Qi into your body!
Although the Foundation will be slightly unstable, it is the fastest way to break through the door right now!”
“Good! Good! This is great!”
Chen Lin almost jumped up, so excited he was incoherent,
“Senior, you truly are… truly have a Wisdom Eye, and your calculations are flawless!
Generous and kind-hearted, with ancient virtues!
As expected of an Ancient Divine Artifact, with a grand demeanor that benefits all living beings!
My admiration for you…”
“Enough!”
The Refining Demon Furnace impatiently interrupted his meaningless flattery,
“Stop with the nonsense! Go arrange it quickly!
I have just awakened, and my remaining power is not much. I need to use powerful beast blood to stimulate the furnace fire before I can help you!”
“Yes! Yes! This junior will go now!”
Chen Lin, as if he had received an imperial decree, scrambled up from the earthen bed, disregarding the soreness in his legs and feet, pulled open the door bolt, and rushed out.
In the courtyard, his father, Chen Dashan, was squatting under the eaves, sharpening his old soldier's long saber with a whetstone, making a “ho ho” sound.
The blade was gleaming, reflecting the gray-white sky, exuding a chilling aura.
His eldest brother, Chen Shisheng, was nearby, organizing ropes for hunting and several sharpened hard wooden spears.
His second brother, Chen Qingfeng, was holding a few pieces of dry jerky, teasing Hu Wa.
“Dad!”
Chen Lin rushed to Chen Dashan in a few steps, slightly out of breath, but his eyes were unusually bright.
Chen Dashan stopped sharpening his knife, lifted his eyelids, and his hawk-like gaze fell on Chen Lin's face. He didn't speak, waiting for him to continue.
“Dad, that… that Qi Guiding Technique, I've been pondering it.”
Chen Lin licked his somewhat dry lips, organizing his words, trying not to expose the existence of the Refining Demon Furnace,
“It says… guiding Qi into the body requires… requires the essence blood of a powerful fierce beast as a guide, to stimulate Qi and blood, only then… only then can one sense the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi faster!”
He tried to make his eyes appear firm and full of longing,
“You see… could it be…”
He didn't finish his sentence, but the meaning was clear.
Chen Dashan's fingers, holding the hilt of the saber, tightened slightly, and the blade made a faint scraping sound on the whetstone.
He looked at Chen Lin, then at Chen Shisheng and Chen Qingfeng, who were listening with pricked ears.
“Fierce beast essence blood?”
Chen Qingfeng's eyes darted, and he immediately interjected,
“Third brother, are you saying… the heart blood of big fellows like black bears or tigers?”
Chen Lin nodded vigorously: “Yes! The bigger the better! The fiercer the better!”
Chen Shisheng frowned slightly, with caution:
“Third brother, is this… reliable? Those big fellows are not easy to deal with; the risk is too great.”
He subconsciously looked at his father.
Chen Dashan remained silent, his rough fingers slowly stroking the cold blade, his eyes sharp as knives, as if weighing the value and risk of the prey.
After a few breaths, he suddenly plunged the long saber into the dirt beside the whetstone, making a soft “plop” sound.
“Eldest,”
Chen Dashan stood up, his burly figure like an iron tower rising from the ground,
“Take your gear and come with me into Old Bear Ridge.”
His voice was not loud, but it carried an unquestionable decisiveness.
“Dad! I'm going too!”
Chen Qingfeng immediately jumped up, his face full of excitement.
“You stay.”
Chen Dashan didn't even look at him,
“Guard the house well, and look after your eldest sister-in-law, Yun Niang, and Hu Wa.”
He glanced at Chen Lin, “Third brother, you stay home and continue… pondering your things.”
Chen Qingfeng wanted to argue, but Chen Shisheng pulled him back and gave him a look.
Chen Qingfeng pouted sullenly and said nothing more.
Chen Shisheng quickly slung the ropes and spears over his back, and checked the machete and hunting fork tucked into his waist again.
Chen Dashan picked up his gleaming long saber, and from the corner of the wall, took a well-maintained, oiled hard wooden bow and a quiver of feathered arrows.
The father and son didn't say another word of nonsense, like two taciturn leopards, they pushed open the courtyard gate and strode into the vast, misty mountains outside the village.