In the middle of the night, Ye Wuchen awoke from his coma, finding himself lying on a soft bed.
“The jade pendant...”
Ye Wuchen seemed to recall something and turned his head to look at his waist.
The jade pendant that had been hanging from his waist was now gone, as if to tell Ye Wuchen that everything he experienced before falling into a coma was not a dream.
“Could it be the Soul Palace?”
Before falling unconscious, he had personally seen the jade pendant merge into his glabella, and the glabella was where the Soul Palace was located.
He abruptly closed his eyes, and his consciousness entered his Soul Palace.
Inside the Soul Palace, a phantom of Ye Wuchen, formed by his consciousness, appeared in this silent space.
Beneath his feet, a three-inch-tall verdant sapling was rooted in this barren land.
The sapling was entirely green, and faint, ethereal light flickered on its branches and leaves.
If one looked closely, they would discover that some of the sapling’s leaves seemed to be engraved with mysterious runes, appearing exceptionally enigmatic.
And the moment Ye Wuchen saw this sapling, a look of profound shock appeared on his face.
He couldn't help but recall what his mother had said when she gave him a jade pendant when he was a child.
“Little Chen, take this jade pendant. This is a gift from your mother. In the future, it will grow into an ancient tree that reaches the heavens, protecting you in place of your father and mother.”
...
“Be good, Little Chen, don’t be afraid. Your father and mother will protect you, and the ancient tree will also protect you.”
...
“Hang it on your waist, and when the time is right, it will naturally sprout tender shoots. When that happens, you must take good care of it.”
Scenes from the past flashed through Ye Wuchen’s mind.
“So, what Mother said was true...”
Ye Wuchen looked at his empty waist, and a warm current surged within him.
However, just then, the lowest tender leaf of the sapling beneath Ye Wuchen’s feet began to emit a dazzling light.
Before long, a white ball of light emerged from the tender leaf and then merged into Ye Wuchen’s body.
Immediately, Ye Wuchen felt as if his Physical Body and Meridians were being cut by countless blunt knives.
He couldn't help but let out a muffled groan, a look of pain appearing on his face.
Ye Wuchen gritted his teeth, and beads of sweat as large as beans rolled down his forehead and cheeks, finally dripping onto the ground.
An hour later, the pain gradually subsided, and Ye Wuchen collapsed onto the ground, looking extremely exhausted.
But the smile on his face was exceptionally bright.
At this moment, his skin appeared smooth as jade, emitting a faint luster, and his Meridians and bones also became tougher.
Furthermore, what Ye Wuchen didn't notice was that a very small portion of his blood had turned a faint golden color, appearing exceptionally noble.
“Tempering the Physical Body, cleansing the bone marrow and purifying the blood!”
Cleansing the bone marrow and purifying the blood was a process required in the latter three stages of Body Refining.
And now, Ye Wuchen had already achieved it at the beginning of Body Refining, which would bring many benefits to his Martial Dao path.
At this moment, the verdant color on that tender leaf slowly dimmed.
Finally, as if withered, it fell to the ground and was covered by soil.
Looking at the sapling beneath his feet again, Ye Wuchen felt only profound shock within him.
The Martial Soul was the most important thing for a Martial Artist; the higher the Realm, the greater the assistance the Martial Soul provided to the Martial Artist.
Under normal circumstances, in the Body Tempering Realm, the existence of a Martial Soul would at most make a Martial Artist’s Qi and Blood power more vigorous, and there would be no other use beyond that.
But Ye Wuchen had never heard of any Martial Soul that could provide such great help at the beginning of a Martial Artist’s Cultivation.
He knew that his Martial Soul would definitely become even stronger in the future.
Because his mother had once said that the jade pendant would grow into a towering ancient tree.
And this sapling now was most likely just in its Childhood .
In the future, it would definitely become stronger and stronger, just like him.
“Mother, I have received the gift from you and Father. Rest assured, I will definitely grow up. No matter where you are, I will find you.”
After secretly making up his mind, Ye Wuchen closed his eyes and returned his consciousness to reality.
When he opened his eyes again, his eyes were still pale white; this was irreversible damage.
But the brilliance contained within them was so dazzling.
Ye Wuchen’s eyes had gone blind because the appearance of the Tenth meridian caused Qi and Blood power to flow backward, oppressing the Acupoints of his eyes.
Therefore, as soon as the Tenth meridian was broken open, Ye Wuchen’s eyes were already able to see.
Getting up from the bed, he looked out the window.
The scenes that were once deeply hidden in his mind now slowly began to appear before his eyes.
He had expected to be overjoyed, but Ye Wuchen found that his heart was much calmer than he had imagined.
“Being blind for four years, I’ve indeed seen through many things I couldn’t before.”
Just as Ye Wuchen was sighing, Ye Xiyue’s voice came from outside.
“Young Master, I’m coming in.”
The door was pushed open, and Ye Xiyue’s figure walked in.
“Young Master, why are you standing by the window?” Ye Xiyue looked at Ye Wuchen by the window and asked, puzzled.
Ye Wuchen turned around, his eyes fixed on Ye Xiyue.
“Little Yue, after four years, you’ve become so beautiful,” Ye Wuchen said with a faint smile.
Hearing Ye Wuchen’s words, Ye Xiyue was stunned for a moment.
Then she rubbed her eyes, her bright, watery eyes staring intently at Ye Wuchen.
“Young Master, you... you can see?”
Ye Xiyue stammered for a moment; she even suspected that her Young Master was teasing her.
Ye Wuchen saw his maid’s expression, which was as if she had seen a ghost, and couldn’t help but tease her:
“What, your Young Master can see, shouldn’t you be happy?”
Slowly recovering from her shock, the girl’s face broke into an extremely brilliant smile.
“Happy... Little Yue is really happy.”
As she smiled, tears began to well up in her eyes, and then flowed uncontrollably from her eye sockets.
Ye Wuchen looked at the girl who suddenly burst into tears, and it was Ye Wuchen who was stunned instead.
He quickly reacted, a look of heartache appearing in his eyes.
Over the years, this little girl had suffered.
He could ignore the rumors, but Ye Xiyue cared; she didn't like people slandering her Young Master behind his back.
Ye Wuchen took a step forward, gently wiping away Ye Xiyue’s tears with his left hand, and slowly patting her back with his right hand.
“Alright, stop crying. Why are you crying over such a happy thing? If others see you, they’ll think I’m bullying you,” Ye Wuchen teased.
Hearing this, Ye Xiyue finally stopped her tears, then hastily wiped away the remaining tear stains.
“Come, accompany me to the backyard.”
Seeing Ye Xiyue stop crying, Ye Wuchen directly pulled her towards the backyard.
“Young Master, it’s so late, why are we going to the backyard?” Ye Xiyue was a little puzzled, but she still followed him.
“Cultivate,” Ye Wuchen said with a smile.
That ball of light not only tempered Ye Wuchen’s body but also left a Cultivation Technique in Ye Wuchen’s mind.
Its name was—Star Forging Body Technique!
After a Martial Artist Awakens their Martial Soul, they need to temper their Physical Body, refine their tendons and bones, and wash away Impurities by absorbing Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi.
This is to create a flawless Physical Body, which is the first Realm of Martial Dao, the Body Tempering Realm.
The Body Tempering Realm is divided into nine stages: the first three temper the Physical Body, the middle three temper the tendons and bones, and the last three remove Impurities.
Once all the Impurities in the body are removed, one can use Spiritual Qi to open the Acupoints on the nine Meridians.
Then, store the Spiritual Qi in the Acupoints to use those Divine Ability techniques. This Realm is called the Tongqiao Realm.
After that, it is the Lingxi Realm.
After the Acupoints reach Perfection, the overflowing Spiritual Qi will flow into the Meridians. With the various Acupoints as bridges, the Spiritual Qi will gather into streams. This is the Lingxi Realm.
Above the Lingxi Realm are the experts of the Gathering Sea Realm, but this is not something Ye Wuchen needs to consider right now.
In the night sky, stars twinkled. Ye Wuchen looked up directly at the myriad stars, an unparalleled confidence in his eyes.
Ye Wuchen sat cross-legged on the ground. Using the method described in the Star Forging Body Technique, he quickly sensed the power of the stars.
The power of the stars transformed into specks of starlight, raining down from the sky, covering Ye Wuchen’s Physical Body, and then merging into his body.
Ye Xiyue looked at the young man enveloped in starlight beneath the courtyard, her eyes revealing a hint of infatuation.
At this moment, Ye Wuchen, under the illumination of the starlight, appeared exceptionally noble, inspiring a sense of awe in people’s hearts.
Unbeknownst to them, the night dissipated, and dawn arrived.
As the starlight faded, Ye Wuchen stopped Cultivating.
He slowly opened his eyes, and a hint of starlight actually shot out from his pupils.
“Star Forging Body Technique is indeed formidable. It allowed me to break through three Realms in a single night,” Ye Wuchen muttered to himself.
For ordinary people, let alone three Realms in one day, breaking through one Realm in half a month was already considered fast.
Ye Wuchen’s speed was simply that of a Prodigy.
At this moment, he felt his entire body filled with power.
He walked to the rockery in the courtyard, circulated the Qi and Blood power within his body, and then punched the huge rock.
In an instant, the huge rock shattered, and a large hole appeared in Ye Wuchen’s line of sight where his fist had landed.
Feeling the power displayed in this punch, Ye Wuchen said with great satisfaction:
“Not bad. The power of this punch, even an ordinary Body Tempering Fifth Realm Martial Artist probably wouldn’t be able to block it.”
But just then, a very abrupt voice came from outside the courtyard.
“Ye Wuchen, get out here!”