Chapter 5

Lu Ping was startled and hastily turned around, only to see a stout man in black standing under a nearby tree, eating dates and sneering.

Seeing this, Lu Ping secretly let out a sigh of relief.

The man was named Li Quanfu, an inner guard who watched over the back courtyard with him. To others, Li Quanfu might be a middle-aged man with a peculiar temper and an odd appearance, but to Lu Ping, Li Quanfu was very capable, though he didn't know why he was content to be a family's inner guard.

Li Quanfu usually spoke in a sharp and sarcastic manner, and he was quite snobbish, but he was relatively nice to Lu Ping.

"He is severely injured and is most likely already dead." Spitting out a date pit, Li Quanfu said in a mocking tone.

"L-Li, Li Brother, I, I..."

"Hmph, do you think I don't know anything? In these seven days, you've been secretly bringing him food. What did he give you that made you act like you were possessed?" Li Quanfu glared at Lu Ping, his high cheekbones showing his anger: "If I hadn't smoothed things over for you, do you think you could have kept it a secret from the other guards?"

"Ah... Thank you, Li Brother." The young man scratched his head, grateful.

"You, you, I really can't understand what you're thinking." Li Quanfu sighed deeply, pointing at the iron window and said, "Why go to such lengths to save a beast? Besides, you can't save him anyway."

"Master Chuan, he, he is not that kind of person." Lu Ping's face turned red.

"Not that kind of person?" Li Quanfu's voice suddenly rose, his cloudy eyes filled with intense sarcasm: "Even if he isn't, what benefit do you get from saving him? Damn, why can't you see it? I'm forty-eight this year, and I'm still a family's dog. Do you know why? If I hadn't helped the wrong person and offended the wrong people back then, you would have called me 'Lord Li' today!"

"I..."

"In a family, the most important thing is to learn to read people's expressions and judge the situation. Luo Chuan offended the Third Young Master, and he is bound to die. If others find out that you've been secretly bringing him food, and it gets to the Third Young Master's ears, will you still be alive? Even if you don't think about yourself, think about your little sister!"

"L-Li, Li Brother..."

"Starting today, if you dare to bring him food again, don't blame me for turning against you. Hmph!"

Kicking Lu Ping angrily, Li Quanfu wobbled out of the courtyard. Lu Ping hung his head and slowly followed behind Li Quanfu. As he left the courtyard, he looked back at the secret room, his eyes filled with complex emotions.

The courtyard was located in the deepest part of the mansion. Apart from the secret room, there was only snow and a bare old tree.

A strange fire fell from the old tree and transformed into a human form.

"Really, they are tired of living, these two little pests, daring to discuss the Third Young Master." Pang Guan's face was dark as he muttered to himself.

He closed his eyes, as if listening to something. After a while, he opened his eyes: "He's still alive! The little stutterer is a nuisance!"

Staring at the secret room, a murderous intent flashed in Pang Guan's eyes. He stood under the tree with his hands behind his back and said resentfully, "Well, I'll report to the Young Master first and come back to deal with these pests later."

Licking his lips, Pang Guan transformed into a strange fire and drifted away.

...

Luo Chuan, in the secret room, was unaware of what had happened in the courtyard.

At this moment, he was immersed in a wondrous state he had never experienced before.

At first, he could still hear his own breathing, but gradually, he could no longer hear it. Instead, he could hear the blood rushing through his veins, like a surging river. Later, the sound of the blood flow slowed, stopped, and finally disappeared.

Time slowed down and eventually stopped.

The entire world became quiet, leaving only Luo Chuan.

The "Emptiness" word!

Luo Chuan had a sudden realization, but he found that he couldn't open his eyes, speak, or escape from this "emptiness" world.

Did I fail after all?

Luo Chuan was enveloped by boundless emptiness, feeling lost and disappointed.

In the next moment, he felt himself falling rapidly into an endless dark abyss, then breaking apart, his weak body scattering into pieces, turning to dust in the wind.

...

Time passed quietly, and evening approached.

If there were a second person in the secret room, they would have seen a strange scene:

The young man lay on his side on the stone bed, curled up, half asleep, half awake, like a baby in amniotic fluid, peaceful and serene. He was in a mysterious closed state, with no breathing through his mouth or nose, only a slight rise and fall of his abdomen.

If the head of the mansion were present, he would be greatly surprised. Luo Chuan was clearly in the state that every half-step cultivator dreamed of: transforming postnatal breathing into prenatal breathing, also known as fetal breathing. Once fetal breathing is mastered, one no longer needs to breathe through the mouth and nose, and various spiritual senses are enhanced, marking the realm of a cultivator.

In addition to fetal breathing, a faint, pleasant fragrance emanated from Luo Chuan's body, neither too strong nor too weak, refreshing the mind.

Even his skin had become as white and ethereal as jade, as tender as a baby's. Although he had become several times thinner, it did not seem out of place. On the contrary, anyone who saw Luo Chuan would involuntarily think of the term "immortal and Daoist."

At dusk, a ray of sunset passed through the iron window and brushed against the young man's face.

Seemingly sensing something, the young man's brows furrowed slightly.

Luo Chuan felt his existence again. Not only could he feel himself, but he could also feel things outside himself.

Although his eyes were closed, the changes in the sky outside the iron window, the grass and trees, and every movement and stillness were clearly perceived in his heart, mysterious and wondrous. However, he could not leave the "emptiness" world, and he was anxious and helpless.

Nine deaths for one life! I have experienced nine deaths, where is that one life?

Luo Chuan roared in his heart.

Could it be that the "Nine Deaths for One Life Technique" is truly untrainable? Just a joke by the ancients? No! This technique can be practiced!

Luo Chuan was unwilling to accept this.

He clearly sensed that thread of life, but he could not find it.

As the evening twilight faded, the sky grew darker.

This moment of day and night transition was also the time when the yin and yang of heaven and earth intersected. Many immortals and Daoists had enlightened and broken through their limitations at this time, achieving the path of enlightenment.

In the midst of this, Luo Chuan sensed a thread of life.

He "looked" and saw a green sprout growing in the thick snow at the base of the withered tree in the courtyard. Sprouting in deep winter, this was a violation of the natural laws of heaven and earth, yet it happened before Luo Chuan's eyes in a miraculous way.

His heart was deeply moved as he stared at the sprout struggling to grow despite the cold and snow. A sense of unprecedented emotion welled up in his heart, gradually turning into a profound realization.

Nine deaths for one life!

That thread of life is not something to wait for, but something to strive for!

Just like that sprout under the snow, knowing the cold and the ice, it still pushes through against the natural order!

Life, as long as you have enough belief, will never be cut off.

In a moment of enlightenment, Luo Chuan's mind was suddenly clear, and the will to live rose within him, like a fierce tiger emerging or a raging flood, quickly filling his heart.

"Whoosh!"

Luo Chuan heard a long-lost sound, the sound of blood flowing lightly through his veins. Soon, the circulation of his inner breath, the exchange of air through his pores, and the sound of breathing through his mouth and nose became clear.

In an instant, Luo Chuan felt a warmth in his abdomen, as if a flame had ignited in his lower dantian. A clear, fragrant, and jade-like liquid also flowed from the root of his tongue.

True fire meets true water, and the great medicine of the human body is formed!

"Boom!"

The innate true fire and true water collided, though not fused, they tightly intertwined, forming a water-fire vortex above Luo Chuan's dantian.

A warm, comfortable feeling spread from the water-fire vortex throughout his body, making Luo Chuan feel light and as if he could fly, and he couldn't help but hum in contentment.

This feeling was familiar yet distant.

Luo Chuan was delighted to know that he had found life in death. In a sense, the old him had died, and the new him was like a newborn baby.

A newborn baby has a pure constitution, heightened senses, and infinite potential!

"I have exchanged nine deaths for one life, not only transforming my body but also obtaining the great medicine within my body, the innate true fire and true water."

At this moment, Luo Chuan gradually understood the true essence of the "Nine Deaths for One Life Technique."

As the sky darkened, the secret room was pitch black. Suddenly, a bolt of lightning cut through the darkness.

This bolt of lightning came from Luo Chuan's eyes, emitting a faint electric glow, a sign that usually only appeared in the half-step cultivator realm, now symbolizing the convergence of true fire and true water within Luo Chuan.

Moonlight entered the secret room, enveloping Luo Chuan. His hair, which had fallen out, began to grow back at a visible speed, and his emaciated body gradually became fuller and more robust.

All of this was due to the rapid rotation of the water-fire vortex, which stimulated his blood and essence, activating the latent energy deep within Luo Chuan's body, repairing and strengthening his physical form.

His muscles trembled, his blood surged, and his organs emitted a "rumbling" sound, indicating that they were experiencing unprecedented activity.

Luo Chuan knew he was in the first stage of the foundation-building process, the initial stage of foundation-building, where the true fire and true water were first developing his potential.

After an unknown amount of time, the rotation of the water-fire vortex became fuller, and Luo Chuan felt an indescribable sense of fullness and expansion within his body.

His eyes shone with a piercing light, and he exhaled a long breath, hearing the whistling of the air, like the bellows in a blacksmith's shop.

His arms felt filled with infinite strength, and without thinking, Luo Chuan punched the stone bed.

He had never imagined that his punch could be so fast, leaving a trail of afterimages in the air, striking the stone bed in an instant, not much slower than Pang Guan's speed in the Qingyun Hall. The power in his punch was also terrifying, far exceeding Luo Chuan's expectations.

"Crack!"

Luo Chuan had already reined in his strength when his fist touched the stone bed, but even so, a crack appeared on the side of the bed, quickly spreading in all directions.

With a "boom," the half-foot-thick stone bed shattered into pieces.