Chapter 2

"Isn't this the Lu Xu I saved a few days ago?"

A few days ago, he saw a severely injured middle-aged man in the city. At that time, a vicious dog was chasing and biting a little girl. The middle-aged man risked his life to save the girl. Zheng Shi Yi felt that this man had a good heart, so he brought him back.

He didn't expect this man to be a criminal wanted by the Qingtian Sect. Zheng Shi Yi quickly withdrew and turned to walk towards his room.

Seeing the direction he was heading, not towards the outside of the family, many people who were preparing to catch Lu Xu cast disdainful glances at Zheng Shi Yi, mocking him: "This guy is not only a waste but also a coward. He definitely won't dare to go with us to catch the wanted criminal!"

Zheng Shi Yi ignored them and hurried back to his room. The moment he locked the door, Lu Xu suddenly got up from the bed.

Looking at Zheng Shi Yi's hurried expression, he asked, "Seeing you so anxious, you must know something about me, right? If so, why don't you hand me over?"

No one could resist the reward offered by the Qingtian Sect.

Zheng Shi Yi shook his head and said, "You were in grave danger but still thought of saving others, showing a good heart. I, Zheng Shi Yi, although I want to join the Qingtian Sect, am not despicable enough to betray others!"

"Ha ha, I never thought that before I die, I would meet a principled young man like you. Since that's the case, I'll give you a great opportunity!"

Lu Xu, due to his excitement, spat out two mouthfuls of blood and had to swallow saliva repeatedly to stop coughing.

"You were alive, but now you're about to die?" Zheng Shi Yi looked at him in confusion.

Lu Xu explained, "During my escape, I was beaten to the point where my internal organs were destroyed. I'm still alive only because of a life-protecting spirit. I don't have much time left, so I'll get straight to the point."

"The thing I stole is the Qingtian Sect's most precious treasure, called the Supreme Rebirth Spirit Liquid, which drips from a Heavenly Green Vine..."

"This Heavenly Green Vine existed before the Qingtian Sect was founded. It stands straight and tall, reaching the sky, and is said to lead to the immortal realm, though no one has personally verified it. For thousands of years, the Qingtian Sect has had many strong individuals try to climb this vine, but they either fall halfway or die on it..."

"The thousand-year-old spirit liquid drips once every thousand years. Besides purifying the body and enhancing the cultivation speed and insight of practitioners, it can also help strong individuals break through bottlenecks!"

"Only the outstanding disciples who have the potential to become the leader of the Qingtian Sect are eligible to use it. It used to be emerald green, but this year it is golden yellow."

"If you take it directly, it won't have the desired effect and will cause immediate death. Therefore, it must be placed in the internal organs. Now, I will place it in your internal organs!"

Lu Xu placed a golden-yellow bracelet containing a drop of the liquid in front of Zheng Shi Yi and gestured for a while.

He then pressed Zheng Shi Yi's acupoints and used his fingers like knives to cut into Zheng Shi Yi's body, causing him to grimace in pain.

As Zheng Shi Yi's body was cut open, a golden rune appeared around him, protecting his body.

Lu Xu then placed the twelve portions of golden liquid into his internal organs and brain.

"Placing it in the heart enhances the body's recovery ability; placing it in the liver enhances detoxification; placing it in the lungs enhances breathing; placing it in the brain enhances insight; and so on..."

When everything was done, Zheng Shi Yi's cut body was completely healed without a trace.

At this moment, Zheng Shi Yi felt an incredibly powerful energy within him, and something was pulsating in his dantian.

The object resembled a transparent seed, floating in the center of his dantian. He could clearly feel a strong life force emanating from it.

Zheng Shi Yi recognized this feeling; it was the same as when he obtained his first martial soul, "Soul Seed! Could it be... I, Zheng Shi Yi, am really going to have a second martial soul?"

Those faces that once flattered him but turned vicious when his martial soul was taken away.

Those figures that once fawned over him but distanced themselves when his martial soul was taken away.

Those voices that once flattered him but turned to curses when his martial soul was taken away.

Continuously appeared before his eyes and echoed in his ears.

All of this was like a sharp knife, constantly stabbing his heart.

He was only thirteen, but fate had played a cruel joke on him before he reached this age.

It allowed that genius, Zheng Tian Yu, to take away his divine martial soul, turning him from a genius into a waste in everyone's eyes!

His pride and sharpness were worn down, but his fighting spirit was not. His mind became even stronger!

He always believed that he would regain his martial soul and become a genius again, making those who looked down on him, cursed him, and distanced themselves from him regret it!

I might have been vulnerable once, but! I will eventually become invincible!

He never expected that this day would come so soon, and he would regain his martial soul!

He now had the support to rise again!

The joy of regaining what was lost and the heat from the spirit liquid merging with his body made him feel as if he had endless strength, which he needed to release immediately.

"Cough, cough."

Zheng Shi Yi suddenly heard Lu Xu's coughing and remembered that Lu Xu must have consumed a lot of life-protecting spirit when he cut open his body and placed the thousand-year-old spirit liquid inside.

He turned around and found that Lu Xu indeed looked much older than before, and his body was trembling for some unknown reason.

"Before..." Zheng Shi Yi was about to speak, but Lu Xu interrupted him, "I don't have much time left. After I'm gone, you must do two things for me!"

Zheng Shi Yi nodded silently.

Lu Xu said in a hoarse voice, "First, although our sect was destroyed, I know that our sect leader's son managed to escape."

"If you find him, he can help you find the legacy of our sect, allowing you to quickly reach the strength to challenge the Qingtian Sect. But if you can't find him, it's fine."

"I wanted to teach you some of our sect's techniques, but I'm afraid that if you use them, others might discover them and cause unnecessary trouble."

Zheng Shi Yi nodded and asked, "What's the second thing?"

"The second thing," Lu Xu rubbed his chin and waved his hand, "I don't have much time left. Carry me to the river, and we'll talk as we walk."

Zheng Shi Yi nodded and carried Lu Xu to the river he pointed to.

When they reached the riverbank, Lu Xu said to Zheng Shi Yi, "In life, one hopes to leave something behind. The second thing I want you to do is to build a small temple and place my statue in it after I die. I have a secret technique that might allow me to come back to life..."

He pointed to a small, dilapidated house near the river.

But at that moment, he suddenly saw something familiar in the sky in the direction of the Qingtian Sect—it was the Heavenly Green Vine!

The higher it went, the more clouds and mist surrounded it, making it impossible to see its end.

He strained his eyes, and in that instant, he saw the clouds and mist suddenly scatter, revealing a golden monkey!

In the vast starry sky... there was a monkey! A huge monkey! It could even hold the sun and moon in its hands!

It had golden fur, more dazzling than gold!

It was entangled by the Heavenly Green Vine and struggled continuously.

Each struggle shook the sky as if it were about to collapse, causing blue lightning to pour down to the ground.

Its screams were earth-shattering, and each howl made the stars and moon in the vast sky tremble...

Its power could shatter the heavens, and its roar could move the sun and moon!

Despite this, it could not break free from the Heavenly Green Vine. The more it struggled, the tighter the vine bound it.

He could faintly see blood flowing from where it was bound, and the blood was not red but golden!

The golden liquid was even more dazzling than its fur.

It flowed down the branches of the Heavenly Green Vine, slowly gathering, and finally, with a "plop," a drop fell.

"That is... that is..."

The drop of golden liquid made Lu Xu suddenly realize something, and he screamed. As the scream echoed, he slowly lost his breath.

Zheng Shi Yi was looking at the direction he pointed to and, hearing the scream, turned to look at him.

At that moment, his finger pointed to the sky, his face full of excitement, but unfortunately, he had no breath left.

Zheng Shi Yi looked in the direction he pointed but saw nothing.

Shaking his head, Zheng Shi Yi buried him at the spot he pointed to.

Looking at the dark night, Zheng Shi Yi clenched his fists. His internal organs were filled with the spirit liquid, and a powerful energy was surging through his body.

This was the best time for him to cultivate, and he must seize this opportunity.

He sat cross-legged and began to practice the Qi Cultivation Technique. The spirit energy in his internal organs continuously flowed into his blood vessels, bones, and even every cell.

He could clearly feel that under the nourishment of the spirit energy, his blood vessels, bones, meridians, and heart were undergoing a tremendous transformation. His meridians became wider and stronger, and his heartbeat echoed through his chest like a drum, powerful and steady. The flowing blood sounded like a stream, gushing continuously.

The spirit energy in the air swirled into his body, and black impurities were washed out with sweat.

In his dantian, there was a wheel about the size of a bowl, with a ring of spirit energy gathered on it.

One ring of spirit energy represented the First Qi Wheel, two rings represented the Second Qi Wheel, and so on, up to the Ninth Qi Wheel.

Reaching the peak of the Ninth Qi Wheel and breaking through would lead to the Qi Spring Realm!

Since his martial soul was taken away, the spirit energy entering the wheel could no longer gather on it.

This time, however, the spirit energy gathered on the wheel, increasing more and more!