Chapter 7: Bone Foundation Formed |
A long time passed.
Ning Qi let out a light breath, his eyes filled with determination.
No matter what secret the Great Yan Martial Saint had, he was confident that as long as he had enough time, surpassing him would be as easy as pie.
The hidden truth of Great Yan instead served as another reminder to him.
If one day, he became a Martial Saint and still saw no hope of immortality, then breaking through to ascend would also be a path. A broader world must surely have higher limits.
Ning Qi’s thoughts became even clearer.
“Martial Saints of the Great Yan Dynasty never cease... could it be they plan to rule this land forever?”
Ye Qinghe sneered:
“Not necessarily.”
Ning Qi could understand.
Martial sects relying on imperial authority—for two thousand years, that was long enough to breed countless conflicts, only they had always been suppressed.
All that was missing was a trigger—one that would shake the world.
“Senior Sister discovered demonic traces appearing intermittently across Qingzhou on this trip down the mountain. The Demonic Sect is no simple matter and might be related to the previous dynasty.”
“Not just that, even the martial sects across different provinces seem ambiguous in their stance. The Great Yan’s borders are also beginning to stir.”
“You have to know, it’s only been a hundred years since the last time a Great Yan Martial Saint made a move. If they hadn’t discovered something unusual back then, there’s no way they’d start a second probe this quickly.”
Ye Qinghe’s expression grew increasingly excited.
“Little Nine, do you think there’s already internal chaos in Great Yan? The Martial Saint’s lifespan nearly at its end? Or maybe... no new Martial Saint has been born?”
Ning Qi was a little surprised.
Fifth Senior Brother had also mentioned demonic traces upon returning from his training. Now Third Senior Sister saw them too—it seemed the Demonic Sect was making a big move.
Hearing Ye Qinghe’s speculation, he simply shrugged.
“Whatever the case, it’s not something we can get involved in anyway.”
He hadn’t even started training in martial arts yet.
Looking at such grand worldly matters, he did feel a bit insignificant.
Even if chaos truly erupted, all he could do was drift with the tide. Instead of wasting time thinking about this, it’d be better to spend it improving himself. With enough strength, everything else would fall into place.
“You’re right.”
Ye Qinghe muttered.
Then suddenly realized—she had just been schooled by a one-year-old kid. She couldn’t help but pinch Ning Qi’s cheeks hard.
“Such a precocious brat!”
Ning Qi ignored her.
He put back the Annals of Great Yan and took out another book on geomancy to read.
This left Ye Qinghe a little deflated. She couldn’t help scratching her hair in frustration and grumbled:
“Sometimes I really wonder—Little Nine, is there an old monster living inside you?”
Ning Qi paused for a moment, then continued reading.
“Ahhh, stop reading already! You need to strike a balance between work and rest. Little Nine, if you want to work hard, wait till you start martial arts. There’ll be plenty of suffering then. For now, enjoy this rare leisurely time.”
Ye Qinghe kept nagging.
Ning Qi responded:
“Is martial arts really that hard?”
Ye Qinghe perked up:
“Of course! To achieve anything in martial arts, talent isn’t enough. You also need to work hard and put in enough time.”
“Take your Eighth Senior Brother, for example. His talent is among the best even in Great Yan. But guess how long it took him just to temper his body.”
Ning Qi flipped the page, sparks of insight flickering through his mind. He absorbed the essence into his own geomantic framework. Even so, he still had the mental bandwidth to respond to Ye Qinghe.
“Five or six years?”
Ye Qinghe clicked her tongue and laughed:
“Looks like you haven’t realized the hardships ahead yet!”
“I’m telling you, from the age of seven to eighteen—a full eleven years! Qin Yun trained diligently day and night before he completed body tempering and stepped into the Inner Origin Realm!”
“It took that long?” That did surprise Ning Qi.
“And that’s your Eighth Senior Brother we’re talking about—someone with exceptional talent. For others, it could take even longer. In Great Yan, those under thirty are still considered the younger generation. Anyone who can reach the Inner Origin Realm by twenty is a once-in-a-generation prodigy.”
“Even though you’re definitely a genius, Little Nine, taking ten years to temper your body would be perfectly normal.”
“Now you see? There’ll be plenty of suffering ahead. No need to rush it now. What’s that saying again—if you’re willing to suffer, there’ll be endless suffering to endure. So, how about it? Want to go play? I always regret that my carefree childhood only lasted eight short years.”
Faced with Ye Qinghe’s chatter and expectant gaze.
Ning Qi gave a faint glance and replied.
“Oh.”
He didn’t think he’d need that long.
The world of geniuses was something ordinary people couldn’t comprehend.
Ye Qinghe immediately lost it, feeling like all her words were wasted.
After that.
No matter how she tried to chat with him, Ning Qi didn’t respond. He was already fully immersed in his own world of comprehension.
Ye Qinghe sighed and sprawled out on the courtyard rattan chair. At some point, she dozed off and fell sound asleep.
Ning Qi glanced at Ye Qinghe and smiled slightly.
Third Senior Sister acted loud and brash, but deep down she was afraid he’d feel lonely.
But he wasn’t lonely at all.
With full-level comprehension, every second brought rewards. That feeling was incredibly satisfying—it’s just that most people would never get to experience it.
...
Time passed quietly.
Life on Zhenwu Mountain was quite pleasant. Compared to his last life, confined to a hospital bed and unable to move, this life was simply too wonderful.
Though his body was small, at least he could move freely. He also had a loving Master and doting Senior Brothers and Sisters. Ning Qi was content.
In the blink of an eye.
It had already been two and a half years since that discussion on immortality with Daoist Longshan.
Ning Qi was now three years old.
During those two and a half years, his Senior Brothers and Sisters had cared for him deeply. Every time they returned from a trip down the mountain, they’d bring back a bunch of things for him. Knowing he liked collecting classics, they’d consciously search and bring some back. In their free time, they’d play with him too.
As for his Master, Daoist Longshan, he patiently taught Ning Qi with no reservations. Aside from forbidding early exposure to martial arts, he held nothing back—enough to make the other disciples a little jealous.
In addition.
Ning Qi noticed that a few times, his Master went down the mountain, seemingly in search of the murderer who slaughtered Xue Mei Manor three years ago—but the search didn’t seem to go smoothly.
Daoist Longshan never brought up the past with Ning Qi. Maybe he hoped Ning Qi could grow up carefree, without being clouded by hatred. But what he didn’t know was that Ning Qi remembered everything from that day with perfect clarity.
Ning Qi wasn’t in a hurry.
He needed time to grow.
When the time came, he would handle it himself.
In these three years, he had shown enough brilliance to make Daoist Longshan and Luo Wentian anticipate just how dazzling Ning Qi would be once he began his martial journey.
They had estimated more than once when Ning Qi’s Bone Foundation would form.
Most believed it would happen around the age of six.
But what they didn’t know was—Ning Qi’s internal changes were growing more intense by the day.
Morning.
Ning Qi woke up.
His expression was both expectant and calm. Everything was going exactly as he’d predicted.
As usual, he began circulating the Innate Bone-Nourishing Technique.
The last strands of barely perceptible innate spiritual radiance within him dispersed completely into every corner of his body with the final circulation.
It felt like some mysterious force from the heavens and earth surged into his body.
In that instant.
Ning Qi’s body trembled slightly. A sense of unprecedented fulfillment rose in his heart, like something once incomplete inside him had finally become whole. He even vaguely felt a new connection between himself and the world—something he’d never experienced before.
There were no earth-shattering phenomena. Ning Qi opened his eyes, joy blooming on his face.
Two and a half years.
Nine hundred days and nights of cultivation.
His Bone Foundation had finally, completely formed!