The Sword Goddess Killed Me, So I Came Back For Revenge

Chapter 6

Right after her words, the Seventh’s Young Master’s laughter rang out.

“Even if you had two bottles of Bone Tempering Elixir , it would still be impossible to finish the marrow cleansing within two months. It took me a full year to complete it. Tenth’s Brother’s talent is much poorer than mine. It would take him more than a year just to have a chance of standing up again.”

Adrian did not turn back. His steps remained calm as he walked through the snow with Cora beside him. Inside his heart, his resolve was firm.

“You all should just wait and see. I will not let all of you down.”

They returned to the Outer Courtyard in silence. The place was still quiet, cold, and filled with fallen leaves. The moment they stepped inside the small house, Adrian could not wait any longer. He went straight into his room, closed the door, and sat down cross-legged on the hard wooden bed.

He placed the bottle of Bone Tempering Elixir  carefully beside him. Then he closed his eyes and focused on the white circular Divine Martial Mark on his brow.

He still did not know exactly what kind of mark it was. The High Elder had called it an unknown grade, and the Matriarch had dismissed it as nearly worthless. But Adrian could feel the faint warmth spreading from his forehead. As long as the Divine Martial Mark had opened, he could cultivate true qi.

The first step was to open a true qi pool beneath the Divine Martial Mark.

The true qi pool was the place where true qi gathered and was stored. The larger the pool, the more true qi a person could hold. As cultivation increased, the pool would slowly expand. For most beginners, opening the pool required the careful guidance of an experienced elder. Without proper direction, it was easy to damage the meridians or create an unstable foundation.

Adrian, however, had rich cultivation experience from his previous life. Opening a true qi pool was not a difficult task for him.

He sat quietly and guided the faint energy that had appeared after the mark opened. He directed it carefully downward, gathering it in the lower part of his body according to the methods he remembered. The process was slow and required full concentration, but his control remained steady.

Half an hour later, a small space quietly formed beneath the Divine Martial Mark.

The true qi pool had been successfully opened.

Most people needed at least a few days of careful effort before they could successfully open a true qi pool. Adrian had only spent half an hour.

Even so, the body was still extremely weak. It was already surprising that he had managed to open a pool at all. The amount of true qi the small pool could hold was pitifully limited. Opening the pool alone was not enough.

To let true qi truly flow through the body, a person also had to open the cultivation meridians. Only after completing this step could one move past the stage of a complete beginner and become a true Martial Artist.

The next important step was the body cleansing. 

Adrian picked up the small jade bottle that contained the Bone Tempering Elixir . He removed the stopper and carefully sniffed the contents to make sure it was genuine. The liquid gave off a faint, cool medicinal scent. Satisfied, he tilted the bottle and poured the entire contents into his mouth in one go.

The moment the Bone Tempering Elixir  entered his stomach, a wave of intense cold spread through his body. The cold lasted only a split second. Then it disappeared and was replaced by a boiling heat, as if a flame had ignited inside him.

The burning sensation raced through every meridian. It felt like the flame was forcing its way into the blocked pathways, trying to melt the impurities that had built up over years of weakness and illness.

Different cultivation techniques naturally opened different meridian routes. The more profound the technique, the more meridian paths it required, and the more complex and powerful those paths became. The Nine Heavens Scripture that Adrian had inherited from his previous life contained a total of fifty running meridians.

Of course, he did not need to open all of them right now. At this stage he only needed to open the first meridian. Successfully opening the first meridian was considered the completion of the initial body cleansing. Once that was done, he would officially step into the ranks of true Martial Artists.

Adrian’s eyes remained closed. They gave me two months and already decided I would fail. I will prove with my actions that I can finish the body flushing tonight.*

He drew on the rich cultivation experience from his previous life. Using the single thin strand of true qi that now existed inside the newly opened pool, he guided it with full concentration and forced it toward the first meridian. The energy moved like a sharp needle, carefully but firmly piercing through the blocked sections of the pathway.

Pain suddenly exploded inside his body. It was sharp and deep, as if someone was dragging a hot blade through his flesh and bones. Sweat instantly covered his forehead. His fingers dug into the wooden bed, and his breathing became heavy. The weak body trembled under the strain.

Adrian did not stop.

He continued to push the strand of true qi forward, using every bit of control he still remembered. Whenever the energy met a particularly stubborn blockage, he paused for a moment, adjusted the angle, and then forced it through again. The process was slow and painful, but progress was being made.

Outside the room, the Outer Courtyard remained quiet. Snow continued to fall lightly against the broken windows. Cora sat in the small outer hall, occasionally glancing toward her son’s closed door. She did not dare to disturb him. She only hoped that the single bottle  would at least help his body become a little stronger.

Inside the room, time passed without Adrian noticing.

The burning heat from the Bone Tempering Elixir  gradually mixed with the true qi he was controlling. The combination made the opening of the meridian slightly easier, but it also made the pain more intense. Every time a section of the pathway cleared, a wave of heat and sharp discomfort spread through his limbs.

Adrian’s face was pale, yet his expression stayed focused. In his previous life he had endured far worse during high-level breakthroughs. This level of pain was something he could tolerate.

Slowly, more than half of the first meridian opened.

The strand of true qi moved with a little more freedom. The small true qi pool began to feel slightly less empty as a faint circulation started to form. Impurities that had long settled in the blood and bones were being forced out little by little. Dark, sticky sweat appeared on Adrian’s skin, carrying a foul smell.

He knew this was a good sign. The cleansing was taking effect.

Adrian continued without rest. He refused to stop halfway. The Matriarch and the Seventh Young Master had already decided that even one year would not be enough for him. He intended to finish the most basic step in a single night.

The sharp pain returned in waves, but each wave also brought a small sense of progress. The first meridian was opening further. The connection between the true qi pool and the rest of the body was becoming clearer.

Adrian’s breathing grew steadier as he adapted to the pain. He adjusted the flow of true qi according to the early stages of the Nine Heavens Scripture, making the pathway as stable as possible. A poorly opened meridian could cause problems later. He would not allow any hidden flaws in the foundation of this new life.

After a long time, a soft cracking sensation echoed inside his body. The final major blockage in the first meridian gave way.

True qi suddenly flowed in a complete cycle through the newly opened path. The small pool under the Divine Martial Mark trembled slightly, and a weak but continuous circulation began.

Adrian’s eyes snapped open. Sweat covered his entire body, and his clothes were soaked. The air in the small room carried the heavy smell of expelled impurities. Yet his gaze was bright and clear.

He had done it. The first meridian was open. The initial marrow cleansing and pulse flushing had been completed.

In this weak body that everyone looked down on, Adrian had taken the first real step toward becoming a true Martial Artist in a single night.

The Seventh Young Master had needed four bottles of Bone Tempering Elixir  and a full year to reach the same step. Adrian had used only one bottle and finished it before the sun even rose.