Ancient Prodigy

"Fusheng, do you feel as though the energy in your qi sea has formed something like a fetal membrane, enveloping your body and root bones?" Old Huang asked.

When he saw Chen Fusheng nod, Old Huang murmured, "So the legend was true. Cough, cough... It really was true!"

"What legend?" Chen Fusheng knew that Old Huang's cultivation had once reached the peak of the Star Guiding Realm, but he had lost all his cultivation along with his strange illness.

"You once asked me why the Furnace Contemplation Method wasn't called the Furnace Meditation Method, didn't you? I'll answer you now. The Meditation Method condensed energy through mental power, whereas the Contemplation Method condensed energy through the physical body!"

"Since you successfully guided the stars, it means you relied purely on your physical body to contemplate the energy of Heaven and Earth. You've overturned the common knowledge accepted by all cultivators!"

"What? How is that possible..." Chen Fusheng was utterly stunned. Wouldn't that mean that one could cultivate without mental power? That one could eat well, dress warmly, and earn money to buy medicine?

"Your grandfather didn't believe it either before, but you really did it. The Meditation Method could only store energy in the qi sea, while the Contemplation Method cultivated the physical body and root bones! That was the crucial difference between the two."

Old Huang continued, "As long as you keep cultivating, your physical foundation will grow stronger and stronger. In the future, your physical body will be the root system of your growth!"

"The physical body is the cultivation talent? Mental power isn't important anymore? Then... who exactly wrote this Contemplation Method?" Chen Fusheng still found it inconceivable.

"It originated from an Ancient Prodigy. He once had no mental power for cultivation either, yet with nothing but a mortal body, he created the Furnace Contemplation Method, an earth-shaking supreme technique!"

"He could create a cultivation method himself?" Chen Fusheng stared dumbfoundedly.

"It sounds inconceivable. It was said that the Ancient Prodigy spent five hundred years creating five miraculous arts. On the day he completed them, his first breath of awakening shook Heaven and Earth, threw the universe into turmoil, and made the All Worlds Star Palace tremble."

Old Huang marveled. A mere mortal had not only groped his way toward a cultivation method, but had also reached an indescribably lofty height. How could that not make people tremble with shock, shiver with fear, and bow in awe?

What truly stood peerless beneath Heaven was that the Ancient Prodigy had carved out a second path of cultivation.

Meditation and contemplation—what a monumental achievement that was!

"I have a grand vow in my heart: to reopen the profound yellow of the universe, seal the All Worlds Star Palace, Establish a Heart for Heaven and Earth, establish destiny for mortals, and let every living being beneath Heaven stand as a resplendent giant star in the sky!"

Old Huang suddenly recited words once spoken by the Ancient Prodigy.

Establish destiny for mortals?

Chen Fusheng's head buzzed. His fate had been rewritten by the Ancient Prodigy!

"Seal the Star Palace? Had the Star Palace in the Inner Courtyard been sealed before?" He was even more shaken.

The Star Palace had been built by drawing upon the power of the stars. It hung high in the firmament and possessed supreme authority over the star masters of the world. The people who lived within it were all lofty star officials!

Old Huang couldn't help smiling. "Fusheng, do you know how vast the Abyss Realm is? This region of ours belongs to the Tian Yuan Kingdom. There are more than ten Star Palaces in the Tian Yuan Kingdom, but across the boundless Abyss Realm, there may be ten thousand kingdoms."

Chen Fusheng couldn't imagine how vast that territory was. Old Huang had never told him about any of this before.

"Fusheng, I have to warn you. The Contemplation Method is a forbidden chapter. If the Star Palace Enforcers discover that you're cultivating it, they'll beat you to death!" Old Huang's expression turned grim as he warned him.

"What? Why?" Chen Fusheng's body trembled.

"You'll have to seek the more precise answer yourself. Enough, Fusheng. I'm tired. Go cultivate."

Old Huang sighed. How could those terrifying star masters, who stood high above all others, tolerate mortals disrupting the order and standing alongside them?

He had once learned that the Ancient Prodigy had spread his teachings throughout the world, but had been regarded as an evil heretic, and all the scriptures he left behind had been burned.

He guessed that the Ancient Prodigy had spoken those words after being obstructed by all sides.

In truth, Old Huang had once believed the legend to be nothing but empty nonsense. How could a mortal possibly defy Heaven and change his fate?

Until he met Chen Fusheng...

Ten years ago, while venturing into the Cold Abyss Forbidden Zone in search of treasure, he had found a child by the roadside. In the child's arms was this Furnace Contemplation Method!

By examining the diagrams and paper, he had confirmed that it had been passed down from ancient times.

"I wonder who Fusheng's birth parents are. Perhaps this child was destined to walk this path."

Old Huang sighed. "The Cold Abyss Poison has begun devouring the last of my life. I probably won't live to see the day Fusheng becomes a powerful cultivator. I don't know how many setbacks he'll face in the future. I only hope this child can endure them."

Chen Fusheng's mind was a little muddled. First, he pasted paper over the window, then carried the decocted medicine inside.

When he came to the courtyard, the cold wind cleared his head somewhat.

"If the Star Palace Enforcers discover that I'm cultivating the Forbidden Path, Grandpa and I will both die. But if I don't cultivate, I'll spend my whole life as a servant, and Grandpa will continue suffering. Why shouldn't I cultivate?"

Once he had thought it through, he sat down on the ground, closed his eyes, faced Heaven with his Five Hearts, and drew the energy of Heaven and Earth into his body. His body soon grew warm.

"My physical body feels stronger. Hmm? The Star Chart Heavenly Pillar isn't actively absorbing energy?"

Chen Fusheng tried guiding the energy toward the Star Chart Heavenly Pillar. After the pillar finished absorbing it, densely packed beast-shaped carvings appeared around its base.

There was an Evil Tiger Pouncing, an Explosive Ape Chest Beating, a Spirit Snake Breath, a Flood Dragon Turning the Sea, a Qilin Gazing at the Moon, a ferocious bird spreading its wings, a Horse Tramples the Sky, a Dragon Snake Rising from Land...

As Chen Fusheng studied the carvings, he suddenly heard grand syllables.

"The Furnace Contemplation Method observes the ways of flying birds and ferocious beasts. After one hundred and eight years of study, it recorded more than five hundred diagrams of strange beasts and simplified them into one hundred and eight postures. If one can use the Furnace Contemplation Method to establish the foundation of the physical body, one can pull up mountains by force and use the physical body to communicate with the stars above, plundering the power of the stars to temper the shell of the body..."

Pull up mountains by force? According to his understanding, that required the Other Shore Domain of the Second Realm.

After the nine levels of the Star Guiding Realm, mental power used the Meditation Method to wander through the starry sky, sailing toward the Other Shore of destiny. There, one searched the boundless heavens for one's Natal Star and resonated with it. Thus, it was called the Other Shore Realm.

A star master of the Other Shore Realm could absorb matter from his Natal Star and give birth to it within his qi sea, thereby gaining powerful combat strength!

Yet everyone knew that ninety-nine percent of star masters could gain the recognition of only a single Natal Star.

Then, according to the inheritance of the Star Chart Heavenly Pillar, he would be able to draw upon the power of the stars to temper his physical body in the Other Shore Domain.

"So these carvings are the original root system of the Contemplation Method. Doesn't that mean I can follow these carvings and continue along the path the Ancient Prodigy first walked?"

Chen Fusheng communicated with the Evil Tiger Diagram and suddenly felt as though he had become a mighty, terrifying tiger. His body tensed, his limbs pressed against the ground like tiger claws, and he arched his body, eyes flashing with ferocity, before launching himself into a pouncing strike!

"Bang!"

Chen Fusheng failed to control his strength and slammed into the wall, falling with blood streaming from his battered head.

"Ah, my mother..."

He clutched his head and rolled across the ground. If his physique hadn't grown stronger, his brains might have spilled out. His limbs were racked with tearing pain, and his spine felt as though it had exploded.

"I just observed the Evil Tiger Diagram, and I became an evil tiger too. But I didn't have the corresponding strength to leap and pounce."

"Still, these carvings let me move like an evil tiger in the mountains, allowing me to uncover the flaws in my own physique."

Chen Fusheng endured the pain and guided the energy from his qi sea to nourish the wound on his brow bone. Soon, a cool sensation spread through it.

"The wound is already scabbing... Becoming a cultivator really is convenient. When I'm injured, I don't need to buy medicine to treat it."

Just as he thought this, he discovered that the tearing wound would be difficult to recover from in a short time.

Instead, the Evil Tiger Diagram on the pillar suddenly released a stream of golden energy. It nourished his body with a tingling sensation that soon became exceptionally comfortable. His internal injuries healed completely, and even his sinews and bones became somewhat sturdier.

Apart from these changes, the other parts of his body remained at their original level.

"So this energy can also aid my cultivation of the Evil Tiger Diagram and nourish my sinews and bones."

However, Chen Fusheng discovered that after the Evil Tiger Diagram released its energy, it had grown dim. It was waiting for him to replenish it with energy before the carving would shine and radiate heat once more.

While studying it, he discovered that he could choose a single carving to charge.

Chen Fusheng continued gathering energy until dawn. Facing the rosy morning clouds, he communicated with the dazzling Evil Tiger Diagram. As his spine gradually tensed, strength filled his limbs as they pressed against the ground.

Chen Fusheng resisted the urge to leap and pounce, comprehending the mysteries of the carving. His body sometimes leaned forward, sometimes leaned back, and sometimes twisted.

After only a few dozen breaths, his strength was exhausted. Yet, nourished by the energy of the carving, an indescribable force burst from his sinews and bones, filling his limbs with power.

Moreover, he found that his hearing and sense of smell had improved significantly. He truly moved like a tiger hunting for food, sometimes crawling low and sometimes leaping forward in a pounce.

"The true mystery of the Evil Tiger Diagram lies in the explosive power of the human body. Force the movement from the rear legs, let the great spine drive the body, and launch a fierce forward pounce!"

Chen Fusheng's movements grew broader. He bounded up and down the courtyard, immersed in cultivation, and could even distinguish directions by the wind—though only within a radius of three zhang.

After bitterly training all morning, the Evil Tiger Diagram dimmed completely.

Chen Fusheng returned to normal and stood up somewhat awkwardly. Once he straightened his back, his entire bearing had become much more fierce and robust.

He clenched his fists. As his bones rubbed together, they gave off crisp clicks. His entire body was sinewy, tough, and powerful. He felt as though he could punch a wild ox to death!

He also felt as though a window had suddenly opened in his mind. One hundred and eight posture diagrams flashed through his thoughts, and he grasped an even deeper path of physical cultivation.

"The simplified one hundred and eight posture diagrams are better suited to the growth of the human race. When I used the Evil Tiger Diagram to cultivate just now, I felt a savage wildness, as though I had returned to the primitive mountains and forests. It isn't suitable to immerse myself in it for too long!"

"It's a pity that the posture diagrams of the Furnace Contemplation Method recorded on the pillar all require energy to activate..."

Chen Fusheng could only take out the scroll to study it. Just as he was engrossed in it, a voice like exploding thunder suddenly came from behind.

"Chen Fusheng, why are you loitering here instead of helping out in the Dining Hall?"

"Damn it!" Chen Fusheng hurriedly tucked the contemplation diagram into his clothes.

"Brother Lin, I overslept. I was just about to go. Sorry for the trouble." Chen Fusheng forced himself to remain calm as he turned around.

The Tian Yuan Star Observation Manor didn't support idlers. If he hadn't become a Dining Hall servant responsible for chopping vegetables every day, he wouldn't even have had a place to live.

"What are you hiding in your clothes?" The black-robed youth who approached was tall and burly. He reached out and tried to snatch it.

Chen Fusheng abruptly retreated and said with a smile, "Brother Lin, it's just a travel journal. I'm going to the Dining Hall right now."

Teng Lin sneered. "Do you take me for a blind man? Chen Fusheng, I've noticed that you've grown quite bold. Do you think that old Huang can still back you up? I nearly forgot—old Huang hasn't died completely yet. What, do you want to go ahead and leave him first?"

"Teng Lin, I was only late. What are you trying to do?" Chen Fusheng was furious. In the past, Teng Lin had relied on being the Dining Hall supervisor and had often docked his monthly pay.

Living under another's roof, he had endured whatever he could. But the thing hidden in his clothes absolutely could not be exposed now.

"Hand it over obediently! You servants are becoming more and more unruly." Teng Lin's qi sea roiled, bursting with three layers of yellow light—the sign of the third level of the Star Guiding Realm.