Creating a cultivation technique is difficult.
To create a technique that disregards innate talent and bone structure is even more challenging.
Xu Xi had no other martial arts to reference, no knowledgeable individuals to assist him. He could only rely on himself and the few techniques he brought from the real world.
Cultivation.
Martial practice.
More cultivation, more martial practice.
Xu Xi's life was monotonous and dull. In a courtyard occupied only by himself, he silently threw punches and stood in stances.
Only the scorching sun, the pale floor tiles, and the large tree in the courtyard bore witness to his daily routine and the countless drops of sweat he shed.
"Time is running out..."
After an unknown period, the figure that had been continuously throwing punches finally stopped, letting out a long sigh.
From the winter of last year to the summer of this year, the "Nourishing Origin Technique" had undergone several transformations, but none were what Xu Xi desired.
A technique that disregards innate talent and bone structure—can it truly be created by human hands?
Xu Xi knew the difficulty of deducing such a technique was immense, but he refused to give up. He couldn't bear to watch the familiar, vibrant faces around him fade away.
...
[Your heart warns you]
[A martial artist's intuition alerts you to an impending calamity]
[The next winter's demon tide will be even larger in scale, with demons of your level or even stronger appearing. These are beings that the people of Qingniu Town will struggle to resist]
[You reduce the time spent practicing punches, dedicating more time to deducing the technique]
[To your surprise, reducing your martial practice time hasn't slowed your strength growth. In fact, your blood flow seems to have accelerated slightly]
[This is because your entire being is devoted to your path]
[While deducing the "Nourishing Origin Technique," your martial conviction is firmer than ever]
[Smiling, you take another bite of the bitter and astringent vegetable bun, burying your head in the increasingly tattered pages of the "Nourishing Origin Technique," pondering where improvements can be made]
...
[Long hours of cultivation and martial practice have become a part of your daily life, but occasionally, you venture out]
[Sometimes, you head to the Ten Thousand Mountains to slay demons and temper yourself, distributing the excess flesh to the townsfolk]
[Other times, you stand atop a high place, overlooking the now quieter Qingniu Town, reminiscing about those who are no longer here]
[Outsiders arrive]
[They hurry about, searching for a fugitive as they did last year]
[This time, the officials search more thoroughly, not merely asking questions but entering every household to inspect]
[As expected, they find nothing]
[Ignoring the somewhat dilapidated Qingniu Town, ignoring the fact that half its population is gone, the officials quickly depart, fearing that staying too long will expose them to demon attacks]
[They ride away on their green-scaled horses, while you, a Xiantian martial artist, silently follow behind]
[You watch as they enter several more villages, finding nothing before cursing and returning to the border checkpoint]
[Faintly, you catch words like "disgusting" and "swine"]
[You gaze at the dark mass of troops stationed at the checkpoint]
[You gaze at the towering walls that guard against both demons and people]
[The burning fire in your heart and the flowing blood in your veins grow even hotter in silence]
...
When Xu Xi returns to Qingniu Town,
the sky darkens.
A light drizzle falls.
Raindrops strike the blackened walls, a mixture of human and demon blood that has, over time, formed stains that are difficult to remove.
No one thinks of cleaning them, for the future is too uncertain to see tomorrow.
Gradually, the rain grows heavier.
Xu Xi walks through the pouring rain, his protective aura shielding him from the water as he makes his way home.
"Perhaps the previous approach can be improved."
"The 'Nourishing Origin Technique' is of low quality, but that's precisely why it's suitable for improvement."
"Only by keeping the barrier low can we ensure everyone can learn it."
Xu Xi ponders as he walks.
He wants to complete the improvements to the "Nourishing Origin Technique" before winter arrives, despite the immense difficulty and the mental and physical toll it takes.
"Creak—"
Pushing open the heavy reddish-brown wooden door, Xu Xi enters his home.
He pauses for a moment.
In the spacious, clean courtyard, he sees the muddy ground being washed by the heavy rain. The mud and blood mix, gradually cleansed by the rain, revealing a figure that Xu Xi is not at all surprised to see.
"Sorry, sir..."
The girl, in a pitiful state, coughs up blood with a bitter smile. "I might not be able to pay you this time."
"It's fine. I'm a kind-hearted person."
Xu Xi shakes his head, stepping forward to help up Wu Yingxue, who can no longer move. "You can pay me back in installments later."
The girl is stunned, as if wanting to say something.
But her severe injuries cause her to faint immediately.
"Such heavy injuries—did you fight a Xiantian martial artist?" Xu Xi glances at the girl's wounds, using his protective aura to stop the bleeding before carrying her inside.
He treats her wounds, unblocks her blood flow, and bandages her up.
After finishing, Xu Xi waits for Wu Yingxue to wake up.
"In the past, I never heard of this child in the border regions. She must have truly returned to the Thirteen Prefectures of Great Qian."
"Is there a special passage that bypasses the border guards?"
"I can ask her later."
"If we truly can't hold out this winter, we can have everyone leave the border, so they don't die in Qingniu Town."
Xu Xi's eyes lower as he grips the girl's dragon-patterned spear.
He brings it closer.
Examining the wear on the spearhead.
And the various nicks and gaps along the shaft.
Besides being interested in how the girl entered and exited the border, Xu Xi is also curious about her experiences during her absence.
He wonders what she went through to once again attract the officials' search, and why this time it was more thorough and serious.
"Thankfully, the border is complex, or else this child wouldn't have had a chance to return."
Drip—
Drip—
Outside, the heavy rain continues to pour.
The pitter-patter of the rain sounds like a fast-paced performance, striking everything in its path.
Xu Xi practices the "Nourishing Origin Technique" while waiting for Wu Yingxue to wake up. The wait lasts until nightfall.
The rain stops, and the moon dims.
The heavily injured 17-year-old girl slowly regains consciousness.
"Thank you, Mr. Xu..." She lies on the bed, her eyes blankly staring at the ceiling, devoid of her usual alertness and liveliness, silent and still.
Xu Xi is familiar with this look; he has seen it in other girls before.
"Can you tell me what happened?"
Xu Xi asks.
...
[You have once again found the injured princess]
[This time, her injuries are more severe, her appearance more pitiful, and even her sturdy dragon-patterned spear shows multiple signs of wear]
[You suspect the girl faced enemies beyond the Xiantian level]
[You ask the awakened girl for the truth]
[After a long silence, tears stream silently down her cheeks. In a hoarse, dry voice, she tells you that both her parents are dead]
d intelligence to keep the plot moving, and sometimes even the protagonists are forced into absurdly dumb decisions. Why does the A-list celebrity heroine in urban romance novels ditch the top-tier movie star and become a lovestruck fool for a pockmarked male lead? Why do the leads in historical tragedy novels keep dancing between love and death, only for the blind healer to end up suffering the most? And Gu Wei never expected that after finally landing a villain role to stir up trouble, she’d pick the wrong gender! No choice now—she’ll just have to crush the protagonists as a girl!
to panic—he has a system. As long as an investment target dies, he can claim a reward. And since he is immortal, the one thing he has plenty of is time. ... Countless years later. “Immortal Emperor of Longevity? I invested in him.” “Supreme Celestial Venerable? I invested in him.” “Undying Empress? I invested in her.” “...” “Heh. Once they’ve all died, even the Heavenly Dao will have to kneel and call me Dad.”
his freshman year, Su Bai accidentally bound the "Indulgence Tycoon System." 【Sleeping in? Reward: +$1,000】 【Spent $288 at a street barbecue stall? Cashback: +$2,880】 【Dropped $14,396 on in-game skins? Special reward unlocked: A brand-new Porsche Panamera!】 Luxury cars, penthouses, corporate shares, financial empires… College life was all about living freely and doing whatever he pleased! … When the adorably naive academic genius faced family medical bills and financial struggles, Su Bai waved his hand dismissively: "Your future is on me." "Wuwu~ Big Brother is so good to me! I’ll become a scientist to repay you!" When the genius girl got bullied by a shady professor? Su Bai casually dropped a billion-dollar investment, forcing the university to grovel and beg for her return. A company’s funding chain collapsing? Su Bai smirked—cash was the one thing he’d never run out of. Years later, when people traced the rise of the AI prodigy beauty, who was the man behind her success? Not just that—Su Bai also became the tsundere campus belle’s unattainable dream, the contrast senior’s daily necessity, and the beautiful counselor’s emotional anchor…
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
