As soon as the medicinal liquid entered his stomach, Long Chen immediately used his mind to guide the medicine to spread throughout his limbs.
Normally, when a martial artist absorbs medicinal properties, the medicine is channeled to the Dantian before being distributed throughout the body. However, Long Chen did not have a Spiritual Root and his Dantian was empty, so he could not store energy.
Therefore, he could only disperse the medicinal properties to every cell in his body. Although he only used ordinary herbs, after being concocted by Long Chen, the herbs could produce extremely potent effects.
As the medicinal properties flowed into his body, countless pores slowly opened. Each cell, like a person on the verge of suffocation, greedily absorbed the Spiritual Qi from heaven and earth.
“Boom!”
A muffled boom sounded from within Long Chen’s body. His previously blocked meridians instantly opened. Long Chen could only stifle his groans.
Others cultivated by using Qi from the Dantian to slowly and gradually open their meridians, without the slightest pain.
But Long Chen could not do that. He had to rely on external energy, which was like seawater flooding a riverbed. Not everyone could endure such fierce power.
“It hurts so much… Fine, I will remember this pain!” Long Chen gritted his teeth. If it weren’t for someone stealing his Spiritual Root, how could he possibly use such a crazy method?
“Bang, bang, bang…”
A series of explosions sounded inside Long Chen’s body as his meridians opened one by one. Every time a meridian opened, Long Chen had to endure excruciating pain.
When all the meridians in his body had opened, Long Chen almost fainted. It took him a full hour to recover.
Now that the pain had passed, Long Chen felt that all the pores in his body had opened. With every breath he took, the invisible Spiritual Qi from heaven and earth was slowly absorbed.
“Good, my meridians are opened. I can finally cultivate.”
Long Chen felt his body. Now that his meridians were opened, he could naturally absorb Spiritual Qi through his pores to nourish and strengthen his body.
Even though he had just opened his meridians, his body was now filled with strength after being transformed by the Spiritual Qi.
“Whoosh!”
Long Chen threw a punch, accompanied by the howling sound of the wind. A smile appeared on his lips. The pain he had suffered just now was not in vain.
Ordinary people practicing cultivation must first enter the Qi Sensing Realm. After being able to sense Spiritual Qi, only then could they enter the Qi Gathering Realm.
Meanwhile, Long Chen took an unconventional approach, forging a different path. He used the medicinal properties to open his pores and forcibly drew Spiritual Qi from heaven and earth to break through his meridians. In short, he had directly entered the Qi Gathering Realm.
However, this Qi Gathering Realm only referred to the physical strength of Long Chen’s body, which had been nourished to reach the level of the Qi Gathering Realm. Because he didn’t have a Dantian to condense a Qi vortex, he wasn’t truly in the Qi Gathering Realm yet.
“Although my meridians have been forcibly opened, my Dantian cannot store True Qi. I won’t be able to last long in a fight. This is still not enough.”
Long Chen searched through his memories and suddenly found the only memory of a martial art technique among countless alchemy techniques—the Nine Star Tyrant Body Art.
To Long Chen’s surprise, the Nine Star Tyrant Body Art seemed specifically designed for him. This secret technique unlocked the hidden treasures within the human body. This technique did not rely on the Dantian, but rather on the Nine Stars.
The Nine Stars are the nine hidden treasures within the human body. Opening these nine treasures is equivalent to opening nine Dantians. Reading up to this point made Long Chen almost jump for joy.
However, as he read further, Long Chen’s heart instantly turned ice-cold. Apparently, to practice the Nine Star Tyrant Body Art, he needed to consume countless medicinal pills.
Just to form the first star—the Wind Palace Star—he needed a massive amount of energy. If he solely relied on absorbing external energy, he would never be able to form it, not even in a hundred years.
To form the first star, he had to use medicinal pills, and in extremely large quantities at that. Otherwise, it would be impossible for him to practice this technique.
However, the Long Family was currently facing financial difficulties and had absolutely no funds to buy medicinal pills. Moreover, the pill he consumed earlier could not even be called a medicinal pill.
“I have to find a way to make money.”
Long Chen pondered for a moment, changed his clothes, and then left his room. It was already past noon. The vast noble estate appeared quiet and deserted, with only a handful of people seen passing by.
Long Chen’s father, the Far-Conquering Noble, was always assigned to the border regions. For years, Long Chen and his mother had always received poor treatment from the people in the imperial capital. Despite holding a noble title, they lived in impoverished conditions. In the entire estate, there were only a dozen servants and laborers, because they could not afford to hire more people.
It could be said that among all the noble families, the Long Family was the poorest. And Long Chen was the most useless among all the noble heirs.
The Fengming Empire highly revered martial arts. Everyone practiced martial arts, but Long Chen had a unique physique that made him unable to cultivate. This made him the laughingstock of many.
In stark contrast to Long Chen, his father, Long Tianxiao, was an incredibly strong figure who guarded the borders strictly. Despite being incredibly fierce, not even the barbarian tribes could breach the Fengming Empire’s borders.
Long Tianxiao was the military god of his generation in the Fengming Empire, while Long Chen was just a piece of trash who couldn’t even reach the Qi Sensing Realm. People couldn’t help but sneer, thinking “a tiger father begot a dog son.”
Although countless people mocked him, Long Chen did not care. But a few days ago, Zhou Yaoyang, the son of the Barbarian Noble, mocked that Long Chen was not Long Tianxiao’s biological son.
Long Chen was instantly furious at that time. Zhou Yaoyang’s words were a clear insult to his mother, implying that his mother was unfaithful. Overcome by anger, Long Chen challenged him to a duel.
However, the opponent was a martial arts expert at the seventh layer of the Qi Gathering Realm, while he was just an ordinary person who couldn’t even sense Qi. It was no different from humiliating himself.
That was why in the end, Long Chen was beaten until he fainted and was sent back to the Long Family. Instantly, Long Chen became the laughingstock of the entire imperial capital.
After leaving his residence, Long Chen hurried toward the Hundred Herbs Pavilion in the imperial capital. That place sold various precious medicinal herbs. He needed to find out the prices of the herbs.
On his way, many people saw him and began pointing fingers behind his back. Long Chen was already used to this.
At the same time, he smiled coldly in his heart. His father was suppressing the border regions and had made extraordinary contributions to the Fengming Empire.
But what did he get in return? The mother and son were bullied and insulted in the imperial capital, and he was even almost beaten to death. Was this his reward? A group of people protected by his father were actually rolling their eyes at him. Was this what they called a reward?
Long Chen quickened his pace. Even though he wasn’t afraid of such gazes, he still felt slightly uncomfortable. But right at that moment, his path was blocked by someone.
“Wow, isn’t this Young Master Long Chen? I heard you were beaten so badly that your own mother couldn’t recognize you. How come you are wandering around today?”
In front of Long Chen stood a 16 or 17-year-old youth dressed in luxurious clothes. Accompanied by two bodyguards, he looked at Long Chen with a mocking expression.
This person was also a descendant of a noble family named Li Hao. However, his noble title was not very high and his status was incomparable to Long Chen’s. But, in the Fengming Empire, noble titles and status were not the main thing; strength was what mattered most.
Li Hao happened to stand right in the middle of the road. If Long Chen wanted to pass, he had to walk around him.
If it were the old Long Chen, he might have turned around and left. But today, Long Chen looked at Li Hao, shook his head, and sighed:
“People say a good dog won’t block the way. It seems you are not a good dog.”
“Long Chen, it seems the lesson the other day wasn’t enough for you. Do you want to be beaten half to death again and thrown out of the arena?” Li Hao’s expression instantly changed, before he then spat out a sneer.
“That’s why I said you are a dog, you are only fit to eat shit beside Zhou Yaoyang,” said Long Chen while shaking his head. He didn’t want to waste time with this kind of person. He had important business and intended to walk past him.
“Long Chen, you’re courting death!”
Li Hao instantly flew into a rage. He didn’t expect the usually cowardly Long Chen to dare act this tough, completely disregarding him. He stretched out his arms to block Long Chen.
Long Chen frowned. Just as he was about to speak, suddenly a figure approached and cursed at Li Hao, “Li Hao, you are the one courting death! Who do you think you are, daring to threaten my brother?!”
The man who arrived was extremely tall and heavily built. He looked to be about 18 or 19 years old, but his height reached nine feet, taller than both of them. His aura was very intimidating.
“Shi Feng, this is none of your business. You better not interfere,” snapped Li Hao at Shi Feng, looking fierce on the outside but actually scared on the inside.
Shi Feng was also the heir to a noble title. His status was equal to Li Hao’s, but Shi Feng was a martial arts expert at the eighth layer of the Qi Gathering Realm, while Li Hao had only reached the third layer.
Furthermore, Shi Feng was born with divine strength. There were rarely people at the same level who could match him. Li Hao didn’t have the guts to challenge Shi Feng.
“Brother Long Chen, I heard you were beaten by that bastard Zhou Yaoyang. I will avenge you,” Shi Feng said to Long Chen with an angry expression.
Long Chen looked at the large man in front of him and felt a warmth in his heart. Shi Feng was the only person in the entire capital who treated him like a brother.
“It’s alright, I will avenge myself, don’t worry.” Long Chen smiled faintly and patted Shi Feng’s shoulder.
Hearing Long Chen’s words, Shi Feng thought Long Chen might feel a bit embarrassed, so he didn’t bring up the matter again.
“Let’s go, accompany me for a walk,” said Long Chen with a smile. After speaking, he invited Shi Feng to leave.
Seeing the two of them completely ignoring him, Li Hao became furious and cursed, “Long Chen, you bastard, if you have the guts, fight me!”
Long Chen had just taken a step away when his expression instantly turned gloomy. His eyes were filled with murderous intent as he slowly turned his head.
“You want to challenge me?” Long Chen’s voice was as cold as ice shards, making people shudder.
Li Hao inevitably shuddered in horror. He felt there was something strange about Long Chen today, but he had already boasted. If he backed down now, he would become the laughingstock of the entire imperial capital.
Moreover, he had bullied Long Chen many times and acted entirely based on experience. He completely ignored the fear rising in his heart.
“That’s right, do you dare accept my challenge or not?” Li Hao shouted loudly.
“Of course. But, I want to add a wager,” answered Long Chen while thinking.
“Add a wager? Haha, your Long Family can barely eat, what do you even have to bet? Do you want to bet your estate, or if you lose, you will become my slave?” mocked Li Hao.
However, he didn’t realize that a cruel smirk appeared on the corner of Long Chen’s lips; a rather cunning smile.
“Brother Shi, may I borrow your precious broadsword?” asked Long Chen.
“Take it.”
Although Shi Feng was somewhat reluctant, he still handed over his long broadsword.
Long Chen nodded and silently noted his kindness. He said to Li Hao, “This precious broadsword might not be a top-grade item, but it’s worth eight thousand gold coins. Now let’s just say it’s worth five thousand gold coins. If you win, you can take it. If you lose, give me five thousand gold coins. How about it?”
Li Hao’s heart was moved. The broadsword in Shi Feng’s hand was made of fine steel by a renowned craftsman. The broadsword was clearly worth eight thousand gold coins.
That idiot Long Chen actually dared to use this item as a wager; his heart was already cheering with joy.
But from his mouth came a sneer, “I don’t know if someone will refuse to admit it if he ends up losing later?”
“Rest assured, I, Shi Feng, always keep my word,” Shi Feng retorted coldly.
“Alright, then let’s go to the arena and sign an agreement. If I can’t beat you until your teeth fall out today, my name isn’t Li Hao,” said Li Hao happily and enthusiastically.
Long Chen’s face looked calm, but there was a dark glint in his eyes. Li Hao was merely Zhou Yaoyang’s pet dog; he was absolutely nothing to Long Chen. But what were they actually planning by constantly targeting him?
No matter what their plans were, they would definitely be exposed in the end. Long Chen and the others went straight to the arena outside the imperial capital.
Long Chen couldn’t hide his surprise and joy. Based on his chaotic memories, he knew that the power of the Divine Soul was extremely precious; especially for an alchemist, it was the most important thing.
Huge profit, huge profit. Whether it was the Alchemy God being reborn, or the merging of the Alchemy God’s memories, for him this was a massive advantage.
If it was the first, he got another chance at life. As for the second, it meant he possessed the soul of a peerless expert. How awesome was that?
However, after carefully inspecting his body, Long Chen’s expression changed:
“The Spiritual Root is sucked dry, a piece of the Spiritual Bone in my chest is also missing, it seems it was forcibly dug out, and there’s a hole in my heart? Who is so cruel? Spiritual Root, Spiritual Bone, Spiritual Blood, all of them have been robbed. No wonder I cannot cultivate!” Long Chen’s heart was filled with anger.
Right now his soul power was very strong and he could already look inside his body, so he immediately discovered the secret of why he became a loser.
The Spiritual Root was a cluster of Qi roots located in the Dantian, which was the root of cultivation. Without a Spiritual Root, it was impossible to sense the Spiritual Qi of heaven and earth, let alone absorb it for cultivation.
Spiritual Blood was a drop of innate blood that a person carried at birth. Basically everyone had it, only most cultivators were unaware of it.
The Spiritual Bone was located in a person’s chest, in a slightly protruding spot. Normal people did not have a Spiritual Bone. Even among cultivators, it was a one in ten thousand ratio; it was a mark of top-tier genius.
And on Long Chen’s chest, where the Spiritual Bone was supposed to be, there was clearly a missing piece, which was blatantly the scar of being forcibly dug out by someone.
Long Chen’s expression turned very ugly. If it weren’t for the merging of these memories, he still wouldn’t have known that his body had been intentionally ruined by someone.
Logically, even though these three things were very precious, once they left the human body, they all became useless. If they wanted to harm him, why go through all this trouble? A method like this truly made him feel that he’d be better off dead than alive.
But no matter how angry he was, those three things were already gone now, so anger was meaningless.
“I’d better not find out who did it.”
Long Chen gritted his teeth; this was truly too cruel and vicious. He previously had a Spiritual Bone; even if he thought about it with his knees, he was definitely an absolute genius.
But now, because of this despicable bastard, he had become a piece of trash who couldn’t cultivate, bullied by anyone, and had to suffer various scorns.
Just when Long Chen’s anger became unbearable, the bedroom door was slowly pushed open, and a pretty girl who looked to be thirteen or fourteen years old walked in. It was Long Chen’s personal maid, named Bao’er.
“Young Master, it’s time to take your medicine.”
“Medicine? What medicine are you holding in your hand?” Long Chen’s nose twitched slightly as he asked.
“This is a Tiger Bone Pill that Madam obtained at a very high price. This pill can heal the Young Master’s external injuries very quickly,” answered Bao’er.
After saying that, she opened the delicate small box in her hand, revealing the pill inside, and said, “Rumor has it, this pill was made by Grandmaster Yun Qi, an Alchemist, and its medicinal effects are very strong. Young Master, let Bao’er help you take it.”
Long Chen stared at the object in her hand with a strange expression. A thing like this could be called a Pill? Its shape was irregularly dented, not round at all; it looked more like a meatball.
Putting its shape aside, my goodness, its color was pitch black without any luster at all. If it weren’t for faintly emitting a medicinal scent, Long Chen would even suspect that this was goat dropping.
After looking at it for a while, Long Chen sighed. Wasting more than eighty percent of a medicinal pill’s efficacy, this “Grandmaster” was truly pathetic. Long Chen was curious how he managed to do it? Just how messed up was it to reach such a terrible level.
Pills are divided into five tiers: Low Tier, Mid Tier, High Tier, Supreme Tier, and Perfect Tier. And this pill in his hand clearly didn’t belong to any of those five tiers. Long Chen realized that this was completely just a defective product, this was a trash pill. Usually, an alchemist would never sell this kind of pill because they wouldn’t want to bear the shame. Normally they would melt it into medicinal liquid, or directly throw it away.
“Young Master, don’t daydream anymore. Madam sold all her jewelry for this precious pill, take it quickly,” urged Bao’er.
Long Chen’s heart couldn’t help but ache. In his memories, his mother loved him dearly. Her level of affection had reached the stage of spoiling; basically whatever he wanted, his mother never refused.
For his sake, his mother had poured out all her heart and mind. In her youth, Madam Long was an incredibly beautiful woman. Now she was only in her thirties, but just by looking at the deep wrinkles at the corners of her eyes, it was clear she had sacrificed too much for Long Chen.
Looking at the pill in his hand, even though it was a defective product, the ingredients were pretty good. Although eighty percent of it was impurities, the pill was still capable of healing his injuries without a problem.
After taking the pill, Long Chen ordered Bao’er not to leak the news of his condition to anyone, including his mother.
Although Bao’er felt a bit confused, based on her trust in Long Chen, she nodded obediently.
After taking the medicine, although Long Chen couldn’t use his cultivation base to absorb the medicinal properties, he used his strong soul power to guide the properties to the injured areas, and the recovery effect became extremely fast.
The next day, Long Chen slowly opened his eyes. A smile appeared at the corner of his mouth as he stretched his muscles and bones.
Good, even though the pill was lacking, the quality of the medicinal ingredients itself was very good. Besides the back of his head, most of his injuries had recovered. This was more than enough to treat external injuries. He then walked slowly to the mirror.
Staring at the youth with sword-like eyebrows and sharp eyes, who looked very handsome in the mirror, Long Chen said in a deep voice, “Starting today, I, Long Chen, am no longer the Long Chen of the past. I will rise.”
Although his body was still a bit weak, he had no problem walking. Long Chen stepped out of his room; outside, the morning sun had risen.
Long Chen thought for a moment for half a shichen (one hour), called Bao’er, and wrote down a series of medicinal herb names for her, then told her to go buy the medicine.
However, Bao’er looked awkward. Long Chen’s heart jolted; he instantly understood that the Long Family was currently facing financial difficulties, and Bao’er couldn’t withdraw money from the accountant.
Otherwise, his mother wouldn’t have gone as far as selling her jewelry, which was a precious dowry treasure from her marriage. The Long Family had truly fallen into extreme poverty now.
Reaching into his pocket, there were still over eighty silver coins inside. Although it wasn’t much, it was enough to buy these medicines.
Bao’er worked very nimbly; in less than a shichen she had bought the medicinal herbs. Long Chen immediately took action, mixing the herbs in different proportions, and putting them into a clay pot to boil.
Three shichens later, the thick medicinal liquid was emitting a herbal aroma. Long Chen looked at this bowl of cheap medicine and a smile appeared on his lips.
“My rise, Long Chen, will begin from this bowl of medicinal soup.”
