“Just call me Cripple.” The old man lowered his head to look at his broken right leg and the crutch in his hand, speaking calmly.
“How could that be?” Chen Qingyuan couldn’t possibly address a mysterious and unfathomable senior as “Cripple,” which would easily offend him.
“It doesn’t matter.” The old man didn’t mind the title and remained indifferent.
Next, the old man arranged a place for Chen Qingyuan to stay for a while. He was going out to prepare some things for Chen Qingyuan’s foundation reconstruction.
“I’m grateful for your help, senior,” Chen Qingyuan said with clasped fists.
“It’s my duty,” the old man replied with a bow, then turned and left.
In the messy courtyard, Chen Qingyuan looked around and noticed spiderwebs in the corner, dry leaves in the flower bed, and stone slabs laid on the yellow clay ground.
Following the stone path under his feet, Chen Qingyuan saw a woodshed with a lot of dry firewood stacked inside.
“Strange.” Chen Qingyuan mumbled to himself, “Why does the senior’s way of life seem no different from that of an ordinary mortal?”
After observing the surroundings, Chen Qingyuan noticed that everything in the courtyard was ordinary – wooden tables, chairs, and dust all over the ground.
After glancing at the woodshed, Chen Qingyuan walked towards the other side. Compared to the crude woodshed, he preferred to stroll in the garden, finding it pleasant and delightful.
Being a mortal now, Chen Qingyuan needed to go out daily to buy food. After living here for ten days, he became familiar with the nearby streets.
As the autumn wind blew and the chill set in, Chen Qingyuan decided to cook porridge to warm himself up.
Arriving at the woodshed, Chen Qingyuan prepared to light a fire. However, he noticed a broken sword among the firewood. Instantly intrigued, he examined it closely.
“This is…” The broken sword was about two feet long, covered in rust, and had a dark color, bearing the marks of time. Chen Qingyuan carefully observed it and found that this broken sword was not an ordinary item, but he couldn’t pinpoint exactly what was different about it.
Crouching down, Chen Qingyuan reached out and grabbed the black broken sword lying on the ground.
As his fingertips touched it, Chen Qingyuan’s body suddenly felt heavy, as if countless mountains were pressing on his chest, causing him to feel suffocated.
This sensation grew stronger, and cold sweat started to bead on Chen Qingyuan’s forehead.
Just as Chen Qingyuan was about to resort to using the hidden trump card from the forbidden area of Heavenly Abyss, a gentle breeze blew into the woodshed.
In an instant, the oppressive feeling from the black broken sword disappeared without a trace, and Chen Qingyuan retracted his hand, looking tense.
“Young man, I’m back,” the old man said as he entered the courtyard, holding an empty hand and leaning on the crutch.
Stepping out of the woodshed, Chen Qingyuan faced the old man and didn’t hide anything, saying straightforwardly, “I owe you thanks for your timely intervention just now. Otherwise, I would have been in trouble.”
“A broken sword couldn’t possibly harm you, young man,” the old man’s face was full of wrinkles as he smiled faintly.
“If this is considered a broken sword, then there would be no treasure swords left in the world.”
Although Chen Qingyuan had lost his cultivation, he could still sense the terror of the black broken sword.
“Young man, you jest,” the old man replied. If a single sword was already so powerful, one could only imagine the strength of the person possessing this sword.
“Did you find what you were looking for on this trip?” Chen Qingyuan didn’t delve further and changed the topic.
“Young man, rest assured, everything is in order,” the old man nodded slowly.
In the forbidden area of Heavenly Abyss, Chen Qingyuan had encountered a mysterious woman in red, whose origins and power were unfathomable. She severed his spiritual roots and scattered his cultivation. Then, she gave Chen Qingyuan a wooden plaque and instructed him to find this old man after leaving the forbidden area. With the wooden plaque, Chen Qingyuan could have his foundation reconstructed and reach a higher level of talent.
The old man opened a dusty and secluded secret chamber, revealing a bathtub made of ice stone, with cold air filling every corner of the room. He took out various medicinal herbs and necessary items and instructed Chen Qingyuan to take off his upper garment and sit cross-legged inside the ice tub.
Following the old man’s instructions, Chen Qingyuan sat in the ice tub, awaiting the process calmly.
“I recently heard about something. Dongyi Palace and Tianyu Sect are about to form an alliance through marriage. Do you know about this, young man?” The old man spoke hoarsely as he worked with the medicinal herbs.
“I know,” Chen Qingyuan nodded lightly.
“Do you need me to do anything?” This time, the old man had thoroughly investigated Chen Qingyuan’s background during his trip. In addition, he had also gone to the border of the forbidden area of Heavenly Abyss.
“No need,” Chen Qingyuan shook his head. “The karmic ties have been severed, and there’s no need for the senior to bother.”
“That’s good, then,” the old man placed various precious herbs into the ice tub. His cloudy eyes seemed to see through all worldly affairs.
Chen Qingyuan looked at the herbs in astonishment. “A trace of Red Yun, Eight-Cornered Mysterious Leaf, White Moon Vine…”
With just a casual glance, he recognized them as extremely precious medicinal herbs that were rarely found in the world. There were also a few extremely rare herbs that Chen Qingyuan couldn’t name, but their value was undoubtedly higher.
“Young man, the process of rebuilding your foundation might be a bit painful,” the old man kindly reminded.
“If the senior is willing to help, I can endure it,” Chen Qingyuan nodded heavily, mentally preparing himself.
Then, a vast and surging Spiritual energy began to flow within the old man’s body, and the floor of the secret chamber shimmered with light, revealing an ancient array pattern.
Following that, the old man slapped his right palm on the ice tub and activated the large array with his left palm.
Hum—
Above the secret chamber, it seemed as if countless stars had appeared, forming a vast and boundless starry sea. In an instant, Chen Qingyuan felt his head spinning, and his body was immobilized, unable to move.
As time passed, Chen Qingyuan even felt his soul leaving his body, as if being cut by numerous small knives, causing him extreme pain. He couldn’t help but let out a muffled groan.
Gritting his teeth, Chen Qingyuan was drenched in sweat. The pain intensified, gradually making him falter.
The old man didn’t stop, looking on coldly at Chen Qingyuan enduring the torment.
An entire hour passed, and Chen Qingyuan’s face contorted in pain, his skin torn open, and his flesh a bloody mess. If one were to observe closely, they could see his internal organs through the gaping wounds.
A golden light appeared on Chen Qingyuan’s chest, seemingly like a seed.
“The timing is right.”
The old man’s expression changed, quickly moving on to the next step.
Thick cold energy enveloped Chen Qingyuan, and his blood merged with the medicinal herbs, creating a dense and crimson mixture that sent shivers down the spine.
“Now!”
The old man formed hand seals, and a black box appeared before him.
Carefully opening the box, he revealed a piece of bone inside.
It was about a foot long, black like charcoal.
“He can endure it, right?”
The old man glanced at Chen Qingyuan, who had fainted from the pain, and slowly shifted his gaze to the black bone inside the box, murmuring to himself.
According to the old man’s knowledge, this black bone was a Dao bone left behind by an ancient being who fell in a world-shattering battle.
Not long ago, following the instructions of the red-clothed girl, the old man brought the black bone from the Forbidden Zone of Heavenly Abyss.
Reshaping the foundation was not difficult; the challenge was to integrate the black bone into Chen Qingyuan’s body.
“Can it really be done?”
At first, the old man was hesitant and didn’t know what to do.
Later, the red-clothed girl communicated with him, telling the old man to operate the Dao array. Once a golden seed appeared at Chen Qingyuan’s chest, he could take out the black bone, and everything would follow its course.
After a moment, the black bone floated up.
With a “clatter,” the outer layer of the black bone separated, revealing a pure golden color with ancient runes engraved on it, bearing the marks of the passage of time.
The old man’s pupils contracted, his whole body tense, watching as the black bone fell onto Chen Qingyuan.
Slowly, the black bone directly merged into Chen Qingyuan’s body, leaving no trace. No matter how the old man tried to probe, he couldn’t detect it.
“Truly an extraordinary person.”
At first, there was some mutual rejection between Chen Qingyuan and the black bone, but this phenomenon quickly disappeared, and they seamlessly merged into one.
*********************
Several days later, Chen Qingyuan woke up. The old man had been guarding him, afraid of any mishap.
“My body…” Chen Qingyuan felt no pain and found his body extremely light, with no injuries.
In the next moment, Chen Qingyuan sensed the spiritual energy between heaven and earth. His expression changed, and he quickly checked his body’s condition.
“Golden Physique?”
Chen Qingyuan was astonished and delighted. He looked up and exchanged a glance with the old man, both understanding that the process of reshaping his foundation was successful. With Golden Physique, Chen Qingyuan’s cultivation and potential had reached a new height.