Chapter 1

In the Yongming Dynasty, in Dengzhou, there is Shuangmu City.

In the city lord's residence, in a secret room filled with stone spirits, a beautiful young girl was sitting in meditation, practicing her skills.

The door to the room opened, and the city lord walked in with a smile, followed by a spirited young man.

"Ruo Xue, my dear sister."

The young man quickly approached the girl, his face beaming with joy.

"Lu Chen, my dear brother, you're here."

Zhou Ruo Xue looked at the young man with affection, her voice gentle.

"You don't need to get up."

Lu Chen pressed his hand down, speaking softly.

He and Zhou Ruo Xue were deeply in love, having been together for three years.

He had made a promise to help Zhou Ruo Xue reach the True Essence Realm.

Today, Zhou Ruo Xue had broken through her limitations, reaching the Ninth Level of the Body Tempering Stage, just one step away from the True Essence Realm.

Upon hearing the news, he could not wait a moment longer and immediately rushed over to fulfill his promise!

Lu Chen took out a crystal-clear fruit, about the size of a thumb, resembling a large jade pearl.

"A thousand-year-old Dragon Essence Fruit!"

The eyes of City Lord Zhou He and Zhou Ruo Xue lit up. This was an extremely rare treasure, something that money couldn't buy.

The thousand-year-old Dragon Essence Fruit had the effect of catalyzing True Essence. If consumed at the Ninth Level of the Body Tempering Stage, it would directly break through to the True Essence Realm.

This fruit was a treasured heirloom of the Lu family, originally intended for Lu Chen.

But Lu Chen, for the sake of Zhou Ruo Xue, had not used it himself and had kept it until now.

"Ruo Xue, my dear sister, swallow it and break through to the Martial Master Realm today."

Lu Chen gently placed the fruit at Zhou Ruo Xue's lips.

Zhou Ruo Xue nodded, opened her small mouth, and swallowed the thousand-year-old Dragon Essence Fruit, then closed her eyes to refine it.

After a moment, Zhou Ruo Xue's aura suddenly surged, breaking through the barrier and advancing to the First Level of the True Essence Realm.

"Ha ha, Shuangmu City has gained another True Essence expert!"

Zhou He's face was filled with joy as he laughed heartily to the sky.

"Ruo Xue, my dear sister, congratulations."

Although everything was as expected, Lu Chen was still incredibly excited, "In a month, the three major martial sects of Dengzhou will hold their recruitment ceremony in Shuangmu City, which takes place every four years. With your current cultivation level matching mine, we will surely be chosen by the three major martial sects. At that time, we can go to Dengzhou together..."

He didn't finish his sentence.

Slap!

Zhou Ruo Xue suddenly struck Lu Chen's abdomen with all her strength.

Puff!

Lu Chen spat out a mouthful of blood, his eyes wide open, looking at Zhou Ruo Xue in disbelief.

"The one going to Dengzhou is not us, but me!"

Zhou Ruo Xue slowly stood up, her face cold, staring at Lu Chen as if he were an enemy, "The strongest of the three major martial sects in Dengzhou, the Purple Cloud Sect, has a tradition of only recruiting one person. Both of us are at the First Level of the True Essence Realm, but you are the number one genius of Shuangmu City, and you will be the biggest obstacle to my entry into the Purple Cloud Sect."

"You are the woman I love, and I can give you the spot in the Purple Cloud Sect."

"But I don't love you; I only love the thousand-year-old Dragon Essence Fruit in your hands."

"You... You and I have been in love for three years, and it was all a pretense!"

Lu Chen felt as if he had fallen into an ice cellar; at that moment, his heart was shattered.

"You are just from a small family, while I am the daughter of the city lord, destined to rise to the top and become a phoenix. You are not worthy of me."

Zhou Ruo Xue raised her head, looking at him with cold eyes, full of ridicule, "But I cannot let you stand in my way; you must die!"

"No way!"

Lu Chen roared in anger, channeling his spiritual energy, and bracing himself.

Being deceived and betrayed by the woman he loved, and being injured by her, was already hard for Lu Chen to accept.

But Lu Chen absolutely refused to be killed by this woman with a heart as venomous as a snake or a scorpion!

Boom!

A fist imprint broke through the air, striking Lu Chen's back hard.

Lu Chen was thrown out, crashing into the hard wall, and then fell to the ground, unable to move.

"Zhou He!"

Lu Chen gritted his teeth, glaring at the city lord who was smirking, his hatred overwhelming.

That punch was a sneak attack by Zhou He.

"The number one idiot of Shuangmu City, I'll send you on your way!"

Zhou Ruo Xue raised her hand mercilessly, but was stopped by Zhou He: "Wait, he cannot die in the city lord's residence, or it will damage my reputation."

"It's fine not to kill him; I'll dig out his dantian and martial veins, making him a cripple."

"Very well!"

Under Zhou He's watchful eye, Zhou Ruo Xue acted, cruelly digging out Lu Chen's dantian and a crystal-clear martial vein.

In the secret room, Lu Chen's heart-wrenching screams and a roar of anger echoed.

"If I don't die, I will destroy your entire family!"

Not long after, Zhou He and his daughter left the secret room, leaving behind the unconscious Lu Chen.

Suddenly, the space trembled slightly.

Pop!

A mysterious black sphere broke through the void, suddenly appearing.

Then, a pair of large hands appeared, tearing through the void.

Someone was about to emerge from the void!

The black sphere seemed to be in a panic, colliding with Lu Chen and merging into his body.

Hiss!

The void was torn open.

A terrifyingly powerful old man in golden armor stepped out of the void.

The old man in golden armor looked at Lu Chen, his eyes filled with disappointment, and he sighed to the sky.

"The treasure I have been chasing for a hundred years has been obtained by this young man while he was lying down. Truly, what is fated to be will be, and what is not fated to be cannot be forced."

"This treasure is no ordinary thing. With its help, this young man will achieve something truly terrifying, far surpassing any prodigy in the mortal world!"

The old man in golden armor suddenly thought of something, his eyes becoming intensely passionate, "Yes, such a prodigious and extraordinary talent, since he has a connection with me, must become my true disciple!"

"Hmm?"

The old man in golden armor rubbed his old eyes, and after seeing Lu Chen's condition, his anger flared, "His dantian has been dug out, and his martial veins destroyed; he is a cripple!"

"The treasure actually chose a cripple, instead of me. Truly vexing!"

"Whoever crippled my true disciple is even more vexing!"

The old man in golden armor vented his anger, then calmed down, thinking of something: "Yes, the treasure has a spirit, choosing a cripple... no, choosing my true disciple, must have a reason!"

"The path of martial arts is perilous, and the journey is fraught with difficulties. If you cannot turn a cripple into a legend, you are not worthy of being my true disciple!"

The old man in golden armor leaned close to Lu Chen, whispering, "This treasure is the Chaos Pearl, which contains strange power. You must unlock this power to change your fate."

At that moment, footsteps were heard outside the door.

The old man in golden armor had intended to save Lu Chen, but sensing no murderous intent from the newcomers, he retreated into the void.

Several guards entered the secret room, lifted Lu Chen, and carried him out of the city lord's residence, heading straight for the Lu family.

Along the way, they attracted the attention and inquiries of many people.

The guards, tired of explaining, said that Lu Chen had dared to intrude into the city lord's secret room and had his dantian and martial veins destroyed by the city lord.

In no time, the news that Lu Chen had become a cripple spread throughout Shuangmu City!

The guards carried Lu Chen to the Lu family, dropped him at the door, and left.

Above the Lu family, the old man in golden armor was hidden in the clouds, his divine sense extending, instantly covering trillions of miles...

In the Eastern Wasteland Domain, at the Xuantian Dao Sect's main hall, the sect leader was discussing matters with a group of elders.

Suddenly, a divine sense flew in, scanning the sect leader's forehead.

A stern voice echoed in the sect leader's ear: "Go to Shuangmu City and find a young man named Lu Chen. Recruit him into our sect. He is currently a cripple, so first arrange for him to cultivate in a branch of the sect. Once his cultivation reaches the required level, bring him to the Dao Sect."

The sect leader's body trembled, and he quickly bowed, responding with his divine sense: "I will follow the old ancestor's instructions!"

The divine sense disappeared, and the sect leader couldn't help but sigh.

The old ancestor had been traveling for hundreds of years, unseen. Now, his divine sense had returned, but for such a trivial matter, he didn't even care about the state of the sect. The old ancestor's nature had never changed.

Moreover, a cripple cannot cultivate!

The Xuantian Dao Sect was a major sect, only accepting geniuses and prodigies.

If they accepted a cripple, wouldn't they be laughed at by the world?

Thinking of this, the sect leader couldn't help but worry.

"What's wrong, Sect Leader?"

The elders, who hadn't sensed the divine sense, were surprised by the sect leader's strange behavior.

"Elders, we have a major task to do. Who can tell me where Shuangmu City is?"

The sect leader regained his composure, his face serious.

Regardless of whether it's one cripple or a hundred, they must be accepted.

Otherwise, the old ancestor's anger would be more than he could bear.

"Do we have such a city in the Eastern Wasteland Domain?"

"The Eastern Wasteland Domain has thousands of empires and hundreds of thousands of dynasties. Each dynasty has many states, and each state has many cities. It's hard to find."

"Quick, get the maps!"

The elders were in a frenzy, taking action.

Soon, several large boxes were brought in, containing thousands of maps.

The sect leader and the elders were immersed in a sea of maps.

Six hours later, the location of Shuangmu City was finally found!

"It turns out to be a small city in the Yongming Dynasty. Quickly check if there is a branch of the Xuantian Dao Sect there."

The sect leader gave the order, and the external affairs elder did not dare to delay, rushing to the external affairs hall.

Six hours later, the external affairs elder returned in a hurry.

"Reporting to the Sect Leader, we have a branch in the capital of the Yongming Dynasty. It is a small branch of the Xuantian Dao Sect, belonging to the 108th branch, with the branch leader named Zhu Fei Chen."

"I want to see this person."

"I will immediately notify the branch and summon him..."

"Don't summon him, it's too slow. Just bring him here directly."

"Ah!"

At the Lu family.

Lu Chen lay in bed, unconscious, but his divine sense was gradually becoming clear.

He had heard a vague voice, but he only remembered two sentences: Chaos Pearl, containing strange power.

When his divine sense fully awakened, he discovered an unusual object in his mind!

A small, unremarkable black sphere was growing larger.

Chaos Pearl?

Before Lu Chen could be surprised, the Chaos Pearl changed again.

A terrifying soul power erupted from the Chaos Pearl, instantly merging with his mind.

A vast, incomplete memory flowed out of the Chaos Pearl, instantly being absorbed by his mind.

Lu Chen immediately realized that this was some kind of inheritance!

In the vast, incomplete memory, Lu Chen found a complete set of alchemy knowledge, containing countless alchemy techniques and knowledge of countless medicinal herbs, treasures, and rare beasts.

In addition to the alchemy knowledge, there was a set of ancient rune knowledge.

Finally, there was a martial technique: the Nine Dragons Convergence Technique!

Lu Chen was delighted to discover that this martial technique was a secret skill, opening hidden human potentials without cultivating the dantian, as if tailor-made for him!

But when he read further, Lu Chen's heart sank.

The Nine Dragons Convergence Technique did not cultivate the dantian but the nine dragons!

The so-called dragons were the human body's dragon veins, which were awakened martial veins!

Lu Chen's martial veins had been removed; how could he cultivate?

Suddenly, the Chaos Pearl trembled and sank into his mind.

It passed through his skull, neck, and chest...

Until it stopped at the dantian.

A nine-colored light shot out from the Chaos Pearl, piercing the position where the martial veins had been removed, and washing over it repeatedly.

Until a martial vein formed in the colorful light, and the eight colors dissipated, leaving only a red light.

The martial vein glowed red, like a fiery dragon rising, fierce and domineering!

This was...

The first dragon vein required by the Nine Dragons Convergence Technique: the Fire Dragon Vein!

Lu Chen was both surprised and delighted; his crippled vein had been reborn, and the Fire Dragon had appeared.

The Fire Dragon Vein was far superior to the previous delicate martial vein!

"I want to cultivate!"

Lu Chen woke up in excitement.

Sitting up, he looked around, realizing he was in his own room.

His body still hurt, but his wounds had been bandaged.

"I won't waste time; let's see if I can cultivate."

Lu Chen endured the pain, sat in meditation, and began the Nine Dragons Convergence Technique, absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, then guiding the spiritual energy to the Fire Dragon Vein.

The Fire Dragon Vein, upon touching the spiritual energy, absorbed it like a dry riverbed encountering rain, instantly draining it.

In a moment, the Fire Dragon Vein glowed red, and without waiting for Lu Chen to absorb more, it began to draw in external spiritual energy on its own.

The Fire Dragon Vein's absorption was extremely domineering, like a primordial dragon devouring the sky and earth.

In a few breaths, the spiritual energy in the room was completely drained.

The Fire Dragon Vein did not stop there but became even more frenzied, creating terrifying suction.

Bang!

The doors and windows were shattered by the suction!

A large amount of spiritual energy rushed in from outside, still not satisfying the Fire Dragon Vein's appetite.

As the suction increased, the spiritual energy of the entire Shuangmu City rushed toward the Lu family.

Countless martial artists were alerted, rushing toward the Lu family.

Above the Lu family, the spiritual energy gathered, forming a dragon of spiritual energy that dove down!