Late at night.
Sun Wudao's eyes were red and his skinny body was kneeling on the ground. In front of him lay a freshly dug but untidy grave. The bloody streaks on Wu Yu's body had been washed clean and he was lain on a grass mat, peacefully lying inside the grave.
"Wu Yu, although we were strangers that met by chance, that too is fate. I will henceforth leave to you a gift from my ancestor which has been passed down for hundreds of years. It is no more than a piece of scrap metal, but my father has always told me to continue to pass it down. I have never had a wife or a child and thus I will gift to you the Milky Way Suppressing Godly Metal Treasure. When you arrive at the Yellow Springs, with this piece of scrap metal, you will at least own yet another memory..."
After which, Sun Wudao removed the red string necklace that held the metal in place, looped the necklace around Wu Yu's neck, and letting it rest on his chest. After kowtowing thrice, he filled the grave up and marked it with a wooden tombstone: "Grave of Dong Yue Wu Kingdom's Crown Prince, Wu Yu"
Dong Yue Wu Kingdom's Crown Prince, with his limited life, shone brilliantly.
Sun Wudao had only known of Wu Yu's mortal title when they chatted while lying on the azure rock.
"Your Uncle Sun will guard your grave for seven days and seven nights."
It was said that after Su Yanli had heard of this situation, she even scolded Situ Jin. She let Sun Wudao bury Wu Yu and ensured that he would take those days off.
At night, Sun Wudao leaned against a tree trunk, staring at the starry sky.
Ke.
At this moment, the tombstone for Wu Yu fell down.
"What is going on?" Sun Wudao remembered that he had firmly implanted the tombstone into the ground.
Huo!
All of a sudden, a hand stretched out from within the grave.
Sun Wudao was so shocked he took three steps back, his face pale white as he stumbled and fell onto the ground.
The grave was turning over right in front of his very eyes. Another hand burst out of the ground, pushing the soil away.
The rosy-faced and vigorous Wu Yu began to climb out of the grave. He stared at Sun Wudao with wide eyes and spoke in an embarrassed tone, "Uncle Sun, I haven’t died. Why did you bury me in this grave? I almost suffocated to death for real!"
He didn’t know whether to laugh or to cry.
However, the injuries from the previous beating still remained. When he tried to move his body previously, it was with great pain that he was able to do so.
"You didn’t die?" Sun Wudao was quite shocked. He knew that Wu Yu's injuries were very serious, yet he really did not die! This was a miracle
"Of course. You can't take my life with just a few whip lashes." Wu Yu felt as though he had just slept for a bit.
"That’s good." Sun Wudao stood up and let out a rare smile.
"Come. Lets go drink to celebrate the fact that you did not die!"
Sun Wudao had kept a gourd of wine hidden for countless decades. Although he had poured half of it onto Wu Yu's grave, there was still half remaining. They would not return home until they were drunk.
After drinking, the two of them lied down on top of the black earth, staring at the skies.
"Wu Yu, do you hate Situ Jin?" Sun Wudao asked.
"I hate him. I want to kill him," Wu Yu replied frankly. The attitude of those immortals was appalling. They treated the servants like grass. Their lives weren’t even equal to those Immortal Cranes.
"You cannot hate them. You are not allowed to hate them. Mortals cannot challenge immortals. Wu Yu, please promise this," Sun Wudao spoke with a solemn tone.
Wu Yu did not know how to answer.
"They are geniuses of the heavens. They were born to rule over us. We are just mortals, just ants. They can easily squish us to death. Thus, we definitely cannot hate them. The more we hate them, the less likely we will be to live on."
"Okay."
Sun Wudao had taken care of him when he had fainted for many days. Even today, he had tried to shelter him from the other servants, and when he was made a scapegoat, he also tried to take his place. All these acts of kindness had already been engraved onto Wu Yu's heart. Thus, Wu Yu did not want to let him worry about him anymore.
"I was at the cusp of becoming an immortal during that year. If I had succeeded, then I would not have had this regret my entire life..." Sun Wudao said as he stared at the skies, sighing sorrowfully.
This was his life's greatest regret.
However, this was also Wu Yu's current regret. He could empathize with this feeling. He was extremely close to being an immortal as well!
"Where is the Milky Way Suppressing Godly Metal Treasure?" Sun Wudao said as he stared at Wu Yu's chest with much astonishment. Wu Yu then realised that although the red string was still around his neck, the small piece of metal that it was strung to was gone.
"It might have dropped into the grave, let’s go search."
The two of them searched for quite a while but couldn’t find anything. That little piece of metal had completely disappeared. Afterwards, as the two of them collapsed on the floor in tiredness, Sun Wudao let out a bitter smile. "Forget about it. It was a piece of scrap metal anyways. Even if we lost it, then so be it. After all, you’re still alive. That's what’s important."
Wu Yu was also exhausted after that search.
With the sky as his blanket and the ground as his bed, he fell asleep.
In his dreams, he dreamed of a gigantic pillar that stretched into the skies.
That gigantic pillar soared into the clouds, its tip directly stabbing into the heavens while its bottom was impaled into the bottomless earth. It looked both majestic and tyrannical. It was wreathed in immortal mist while the entire pillar shined with golden light. It was truly a shocking sight!
On it were several large words.
"Ruyi Jingu Bang!"
Each word, when read, weighed upon Wu Yu's head like a mountain.
It was truly mind-blowing. Too mind-blowing!
"What is this heavenly pillar? Just what is it?" Wu Yu could not tell if he was in a dream or reality.
Bang!
Immediately after, the five words on the pillar changed, transforming into countless smaller letters. When examined, it read, "Invincible Vajra Body. When fully cultivated, one will become exceptionally powerful, able to kill through all 8,000 heavenly palaces and wreck the 10,000 tiers of hell! One will possess a skull of copper and bones of steel, a body forged with a myriad of metals. The weapons of gods and immortals will cause no harm. The Heavenly Dao's immortals cannot vanquish you!"
Below these words could be seen a chant with over 10,000 words. However hard Wu Yu tried, he was only able to remember the first 1,000 words.
Invincible Vajra Body, first tier.
"I am the Heavenly Domain's Great Sage, the Heavenly Buddha Domain's Victorious Fighting Buddha! Fated one, accept my legacy and defy the heavens and destroy all that stand in your way!"
A boundless, tyrannical, and penetrating voice reverberated within Wu Yu's mind~
Pa!
Wu Yu was so frightened he was shocked awake. It turned out it was only a dream... The sky was already bright and the scorching sun had already risen near its zenith. Beside him was Sun Wudao slowly roasting a rabbit. He sprinkled some spices onto it as the delicious smell wafted in every direction. Seeing that Wu Yu had awoken, a pair of wrinkled hands passed over a bamboo pipe filled with hot water. "It's morning. Drink some water."
"I..."
Wu Yu was still feeling dazed by that stunning dream.
That giant, sky-reaching pillar, the Ruyi Jingu Bang, the Invincible Vajra Body, and those words that were spoken. They were too domineering. Too shocking. Wu Yu's mind was still reeling in shock.
He did not hear anything that Sun Wudao said.
"Uncle Sun, I'll head back first."
The place they were at was not too far from their wooden house. It was just a small hill away.
The reason why Wu Yu was so anxious to go was that he had suddenly realised that he could still remember the chant for the Invincible Vajra Body. Furthermore, it was an extremely clear recollection. It was firmly engraved within his mind and impossible to forget!
Although he had only been injured yesterday, Wu Yu now realized that he had completely recovered. As he was completely clothed, Sun Wudao could not see that he was no longer injured. As though he had changed to a new body, he was completely fine from head to toe. Although he could not confirm that the Spirit Severing Powder's effects had been reversed, all he had to do was test it out himself. Thus, Wu Yu wanted to rush off to find a quiet environment.
"Alright." Sun Wudao nodded.
Sun Wudao followed him in the end. Wu Yu first let his uncle rest before entering his own room, then he began to experiment with the chant. It was truly outrageous. He could clearly remember the unbelievably complex chant.
"Invincible Vajra Body's first tier. Those in the Body Refining Realm can practice it. It is the Heavenly Domain's strongest and most profound foundational Buddhist Gate of Enlightenment."
“The Heavenly Domain? Where is that? Great Sage, Heaven's Equal, Victorious Fighting Buddha... just who might that be?" Wu Yu felt extremely perplexed.
He knew that the world was vast. Just the Dong Yue Wu Kingdom alone was bordered by more than 10 other kingdoms. There was the Nan Shan Zhao Kingdom and the Bei Feng Su Kingdom! However, he didn’t know of any Heavenly Domain.
However, this was not important at the moment. What was important was that Wu Yu guessed that he had been reborn again and received good luck.
He was feeling extremely excited. This was unprecedented.
However, he wanted to confirm what had happened.
He began to practice the Dong Yue Wu Kingdom's martial art. After a moment, he realised he could utilize it!
If not for the fact that he was afraid of drawing attention to himself, he would have screamed out excitedly.
This meant that he had completely recovered from the harm caused by the Spirit Severing Powder! Although he had to start cultivating from the beginning, he still had the hope of cultivating to even greater heights! He was no longer worried that he would not be able to join a sect. He would definitely gain an opportunity within 100 years if he worked hard!
"I, Wu Yu, have suffered in silence. Yet now I have finally been reborn!"
This sentence belied untold bitterness and regret.
"Ruyi Jingu Bang, the Milky Way Suppressing Godly Metal Treasure, this legacy. All of this has come from Sun Wudao's little pendant! This was something that belonged to Uncle Sun. I want to share this with him and we can both cultivate the Invincible Vajra Body together!"
Wu Yu wanted to find Sun Wudao immediately to share the news.
Yet, right as he had that thought, he experienced a head-splitting pain!
"Ugh! I can't believe my good fortune! It seems that this legacy does not want me to share this knowledge with Uncle Sun. It doesn't want to be spread." Wu Yu was speechless over this fact. It was clearly something that belonged to Sun Wudao, yet he could not even return it.
He calmed himself down.
"Uncle Sun is already 100 years old. He is quite old and it is unlikely that he can continue to cultivate, even with the use of miracle medicines..."
His train of thought stopped here as he gave up on trying to find a way to let Sun Wudao learn this cultivation technique.
"However, his dream was always to enter a sect and become a Heavenly Sword Sect disciple! If I can achieve this on his behalf, he will definitely be very happy. He may not live for much longer, and I don’t want him to have any regrets. From today onward, I have to make use of the remaining month's time and enter this immortal sect! I must definitely do so!"
Sun Wudao had previously chatted with Wu Yu about the dreams he had in his youth whilst they lied on the azure stone. That year, he had just missed it by a step, and it was his deepest regret.
Wu Yu felt an incredibly strong desire in his heart to become an immortal!
He would become an immortal!
He had to have his vengeance and repay his kingdom!
The Dong Yue Wu Kingdom belonged to him. It was something his ancestors had left to him! He would realize the dream of a 10,000-year kingdom!
At this point, Wu Yu also remembered what Sun Wudao had previously told him about cultivation.
"The Sky Realm's 10 tiers are similar to the immortals' Mortal Body Refining Realms. It is also simply known as the Body Refining Realms.
"Within the Body Refining Realms, there are 10 tiers. They are split into these tiers: Forging Muscles, Polishing Tendons, Refining Bones, Strengthening Viscera, Blood Changing, Opening Meridians, Spirit Congealing, Body Rebirth, Immortal Transformation, and Spirit Ascension. The first tier, Forging Muscles, is as its name suggests: to train and develop one's muscles. When the tier has reached its completion, one gains the strength of a warhorse!
“The second tier is Polishing Tendons. It requires one to continuously refine and strengthen one's tendons. Once it has reached completion, one's combat ability would soar and one would possess strength equal to five warhorses!
“After which, one will refine the bones and internal organs and then undergo the heaven-defying Blood Changing. This is followed by opening one's meridians starting with the Ren and Du before opening all the rest. Next, one will concentrate their spirit and let it combine with one's fleshly body to undergo bodily rebirth. Lastly, one will reach the tier of Immortal Transformation, where they will prepare themselves for immortality and finally ascend! With the strength of one's spirit aiding them, upon reaching Spirit Ascension, one would have the strength of 2,000 warhorses!
“At that point in time, a single individual would be able to fight off 1,000 soldiers. All of the Martial Gods in the mortal world at the 10th tier of the Sky Realm are at this tier!
“However, the Spirit Ascension realm is only the beginning of the path of the Immortal Dao!
“After the Body Refining Realm comes the Qi Condensation Realm. It is said that one will gather and refine some kind of energy within them and lay down the roots of immortality. Heavenly Immortal Hao Tian and all of the core disciples, like Su Yanli, are at this realm. They already possess the strength to overturn rivers and seas. There is nothing they cannot do!
“However, there is an even stronger realm above the Qi Condensation Realms. The Sect Leader is an example of it. He is a Jindan Immortal!”
Upon thinking of that man, Wu Yu's gaze became heated. If he could become his disciple, he would be able to soar through the heavens!