Chapter 3

After Liu Qingcheng left, Chu Yan finally let out a sigh of relief. Then he raised his head to gaze at the starry sky. There were countless stars in the heavens, but Chu Yan stared at only one.

That star was very bright, as if it were the most dazzling among the countless stars, known as the Celestial King. Chu Yan had always kept this star in his heart, like a brand, constantly reminding himself.

"Mother, I will come to save you soon."

Chu Yan left the guest room and walked alone to the center of the Liu family's reception hall.

In front of the reception hall stood a pair of stone lions, each holding a pearl in its mouth, looking very majestic. Chu Yan now stood between the two stone lions, his head lowered, counting the tiles under his feet.

"Mother once said that this pair of stone lions faces the Star of Glory. By circulating my energy, taking ten steps north, then ten steps east, and finally to the third sycamore tree on the left, the star array can be broken. I'll give it a try."

Chu Yan recalled the steps Qin Ruomeng had taught him and began to circulate his energy from the two stone lions.

If anyone had seen Chu Yan at this moment, they would have been greatly surprised. After he circulated his energy, his first step left a deep footprint on the ground. These tiles were all high-quality glazed tiles, capable of withstanding attacks from any expert below the Dusty Realm, yet Chu Yan, who was only at the first level of the Mortal Dust Realm, could leave a footprint?

This was just the beginning. On the second step, the tile shattered, and a piece of glazed tile was completely crushed.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Following that, each step Chu Yan took broke a tile. Of course, Chu Yan was not in good shape either. He was drenched in sweat, his clothes soaked through, and he was bearing a weight of thousands of pounds.

It was hard to imagine how Chu Yan, at the first level of the Mortal Dust Realm with only one star in his life body, could withstand the immense pressure of the Star of Glory array, but he managed to endure it. Although at the tenth step, his knees bent, and he fell to his knees, the tile beneath him cracked.

"The Star of Glory array is indeed powerful!" Chu Yan clenched his fists, feeling pain but still smiling with excitement.

As the pressure from the Star of Glory array increased, a flame rose in Chu Yan's dantian. The flame grew hotter with the pressure, turning Chu Yan's body red, as if he were a man of fire.

After resting for a while, Chu Yan stood up at the tenth step, took a deep breath, and took ten more steps east. He glanced to his left and saw three sycamore trees, focusing on the third one and smiling.

"It's right under this tree." Chu Yan stood up again, enduring the immense pressure, and the tiles cracked one by one as he finally reached the third sycamore tree.

Under the sycamore tree, Chu Yan smiled excitedly, rubbed his hands, and infused all his energy into the tree.

"Rumble!"

The soil under the tree suddenly churned, as if a hidden dragon were rising. A golden nether stone floated up from the soil.

Holding the golden nether stone, Chu Yan could not suppress his excitement. He licked his cracked lips and gently felt the power of the nether stone, as if a tiny spirit snake were wriggling inside him.

Chu Yan closed his eyes and meditated, sensing the power moving through his body. Soon, he was in a dark, chaotic space filled with yin energy, with countless talismans floating in the sky and a nine-story mystic tower at the center, bound by thousands of black chains.

Chu Yan had been to this space before, but it had always been pitch black, and the cold had pierced his bones. He had also stood before the nine-story mystic tower before, but no matter what power he used, he could not open the stone door of the tower. This time was different; the power of the nether stone was like a key, able to unlock the seal of the nine-story mystic tower.

"All these years, all the energy I cultivated, the stars in my life body, and the bloodline in my body have been suppressed by this nine-story mystic tower. Now, I can finally open it." Chu Yan's hands glowed with light. He raised his hand, spread his fingers, and slowly pressed the nether stone onto the nine-story mystic tower.

"Rumble!"

A loud noise came from inside Chu Yan's body, and the heavy chains began to shake, as if a fierce dragon were awakening. Then, with a crack, the first chain broke, and the wind grew stronger. One chain after another shattered into pieces, and the dark nine-story mystic tower suddenly burst into a bright light.

Chu Yan watched the changes in the nine-story mystic tower and became more excited. The wind turned golden, and the stone door of the nine-story mystic tower finally opened a crack. However, this also brought immense pressure to Chu Yan's body, a pain that no ordinary person could understand. His skin split, and the impure blood in his body was forcibly expelled.

Before long, Chu Yan under the sycamore tree had become a blood-soaked man.

"As long as I endure this last step, I will transform. All the pain I endured over the past ten years will be worth it. Chu Yan, hold on, you must hold on."

Chu Yan let out a hoarse roar, his eyes turning red.

Chu Yan remained like this for a long time until the sky brightened, and the Chu family members gradually woke up.

Outside the Chu family meeting hall, many disciples gathered, whispering in small groups.

"Look, who is that? Why is he covered in blood?"

"I've seen him before. He seems to be Qingcheng's fiancé, but why is he here?"

"Ah? He's Chu Yan? Oh my, why is he in such a mess? Is he dead?"

"Better if he is. Then Qingcheng won't have to marry this beggar. Hmph, it would ruin Qingcheng's reputation."

"Hey! He moved! He's not dead!" A few little girls said hesitantly.

At this moment, Chu Yan's eyelids twitched, and he gradually regained his senses. Then he suddenly opened his eyes.

He seemed to ignore the people around him, jumping up from the ground. This jump was significant, and he leaped more than a meter high. When he landed, he quickly meditated and saw a bright nine-story mystic tower in his dantian, with all the chains and seals shattered. He was overjoyed: "Did I succeed?"

"Did I really succeed?"

Chu Yan was extremely excited. He ignored the strange looks from the people around him and rushed toward a nearby, slender figure, shouting excitedly: "I succeeded! I succeeded! Ha ha, I finally succeeded!"

"Chu Sir is crazy! Chu Sir is crazy!" Everyone screamed and ran away.

Chu Yan didn't care that they were running away. He knew that from today on, he was no longer a waste but an awakened genius. The nine-story mystic tower contained the secrets of the universe, and now that he had unlocked the seal, he would soon ascend to the heavens and save his mother.

However, he suddenly paused and looked down to see a little girl in his arms: "Why didn't you run?"

"Master, I am the maid assigned to you by Lord Liu... I have nowhere to run." The little girl said, feeling wronged. If she weren't his maid, she would have run too.

"A maid assigned to me?" Chu Yan was taken aback but then smiled and nodded: "That's good. I just awakened, and I have many things to do, so I do need someone to help me."

However, Chu Yan then looked at the little girl. She was thin and wore ragged clothes, which seemed to match his own beggar-like appearance, making him frown.

"Why are you dressed so poorly? The servants of other young masters and misses, though not in gold and silver, are at least clean. Why are your clothes full of holes?"

"Master, Baor is an orphan, and the Liu family has been taking care of me. Having one set of clothes is already good." Baor lowered her head, not daring to look at Chu Yan.

Chu Yan's eyes flashed with sympathy, not because he was overly compassionate, but because Baor's situation was similar to his own.

"Since you are with me, your appearance must change. My maid must live more nobly than the misses in the Liu family. Go to the accounting office and ask for fifty taels of silver. Buy some clothes for us and some herbs for me."

"Can I buy them myself?" Baor looked at Chu Yan doubtfully. The servants received clothes from the Liu family annually and were not allowed to buy their own, so she could only admire the clothes she liked from a distance.

"Of course! And buy something beautiful. Forget it, you probably don't know what beautiful means. Did you see what Liu Qingcheng wore yesterday? Buy something like that. If the money isn't enough, ask for more."

Baor felt a sweet warmth in her heart. She suddenly realized that this "waste" of a master was not as evil as she had imagined and was even a bit kind and approachable.

"Yes, Master!"

Baor agreed, and Chu Yan took out paper and pen, writing down some herb names. He had just unlocked the nine-story mystic tower and needed to replenish his body.

However, as he wrote the herb names, Chu Yan frowned, noticing the foul smell from his body. He looked down and saw himself covered in blood and filth.

"No wonder everyone ran away. I really do stink."

Chu Yan laughed to himself but was very excited because he knew the blood and filth were impurities from his body. Now that they were expelled, he was like a dragon shedding its skin, about to become a true dragon.

"Baor, I need to bathe. Fill the tub with water for me before you leave."

Chu Yan called out, and Baor did as he asked.

Looking at the large wooden tub filled with warm water, Chu Yan smiled. From this tub of water, he would begin a new chapter in his life.