I Cannot Comprehend

Previously, Yu Ziqing would never have had such thoughts. The saying that it's hard to leave one's homeland isn't just empty words—the village was the only beam of light that shone into their hearts and onto their bodies when the villagers were at their most desperate.

If there were no absolute necessity, even the Village Chief wouldn't have the slightest thought of leaving the village.

But the current situation made it necessary to consider.

No new children would appear in the village, and it seemed unlikely that anyone else would be added to the population in the future. Decline was only a matter of time.

So adaptation was the only path.

Yet the road to leaving was difficult. Many might not survive the journey. Even if they found a new home, despite the villagers' terrifyingly good physiques, they were still mortals. By conservative estimates, at least half would die due to the environment, war, and various dangerous creatures.

Yu Ziqing had personally tested it, so he couldn't keep it hidden. He needed the entire village to layer on the thickest armor.

He didn't expect them to become powerful or achieve great things. Most of them, even if they walked the path of body cultivation, would at most reach the Fourth Tier. This was only because the villagers had long consumed Jinlan Mushrooms and practiced health-nourishing boxing techniques, giving them far better innate conditions than ordinary people.

With the thickest armor, even if they took the harshest beatings, they might not die.

In the battles, bitter cold, and other dangers that might come later, this would greatly increase their survival rate.

Yu Ziqing explained all this to the Village Chief. The Village Chief's gaze toward Yu Ziqing shifted.

"You... have already begun body refinement?"

"I've tested it. Don't worry. I'll train at Cècè's place. Once Quiet Cultivation ends and the surging Blood Essence calms down, there won't be any problems.

As for Active Cultivation of 'Blood Essence,' I think it's better to just practice boxing in the village. Nourishing the body while refining it might yield excellent results.

Plus, many in the village have trained hard without pause. Their boxing foundation for health is quite high, so their progress should be fast. Take Er Han, for example."

But before Yu Ziqing could finish, he stopped, staring at the Village Chief in shock.

"Village Chief, what's wrong?"

The Village Chief, who had weathered countless storms and always remained composed, now turned his head away, raised a hand, and quietly wiped the corner of his eye. When he turned back, his eyes were red, and his voice was choked with emotion.

"I'm fine, fine. I may be an old man who's never seen much of the world, but I know something about cultivation. I know what a body cultivator is..."

"Village Chief?"

"Don't say anymore. I understand. Old Yang is learned and well-traveled. He surely knows more than this worthless old man... We've been holding you back. You're a good child, a truly good child. You really shouldn't be burdened by us..."

As the Village Chief spoke, he could no longer hold himself together. His emotions completely overwhelmed him, tears streaming down his face as he kept wiping them away.

When he mentioned being a burden, Yu Ziqing finally realized what was happening to the Village Chief.

Damn it. The Village Chief had misunderstood, and it was a huge misunderstanding.

He thought Yu Ziqing had started body refinement for the sake of the village.

Though the Village Chief had never cultivated, he had certainly heard of the "illustrious reputation" of body cultivators—bitter, thankless, and without prospects.

He also knew that once you set foot on the path of cultivation, there was only forward, no retreat, no regrets.

And the Village Chief had witnessed Old Yang's knowledge firsthand. That was one reason he believed Yu Ziqing would eventually leave the village and have a bright future. Precisely because of that, he thought Yu Ziqing would never choose body refinement.

Yu Ziqing was full of inner turmoil. He quickly helped the old man, soothing the Village Chief's breathing as tears streamed down his face and his breath grew uneven. With utmost sincerity and firm resolve, he said, "Village Chief, you must have misunderstood. There's absolutely no burden involved. I chose body refinement after long consideration. It's the most practical choice that best meets my needs. There's no other reason!"

"Mm, I believe you. You're a good child. I'll believe whatever you say."

The Village Chief's face was full of kindness as he nodded repeatedly, like he was humoring a child.

Having said that, the Village Chief took a deep breath and bellowed toward the outside.

"Er Han, get in here."

Within three breaths, Er Han rushed in with a docile expression.

"Grandpa, you called for me?"

"Er Han, kneel down. Grandpa has something to tell you."

Er Han was confused and hesitated. The Village Chief's cane, whistling through the air, struck Er Han's leg.

Er Han's knees buckled, and he knelt on the ground, head lowered, listening obediently, racking his brain to recall what he'd done lately to anger the old man.

"Er Han, listen carefully.

From now on, whatever Ziqing says, you obey. Whatever he tells you to do, you do. If you hesitate even a little, I'll break your legs.

Do you understand?

With that thick skull of yours, after I die, you probably won't be able to carry the village's banner. But we can't tie Ziqing down either. You follow Ziqing, learn well, and watch carefully.

After I'm in my coffin, if anyone in the village dares to force Ziqing to do anything, you beat them to death. Understand?"

"I understand, Grandpa, don't worry." Er Han didn't know what was happening, but seeing his grandfather red-eyed and so solemn, he knew this wasn't a joke. It was a serious instruction.

Yu Ziqing raised a hand to cover his forehead, his face full of distress.

It was completely ruined. Even if he swore to heaven right now, no one would believe him.

The Village Chief had already started thinking that after he passed, the villagers—including Er Han—would make Yu Ziqing take over as Village Chief and shoulder that responsibility. He was afraid Yu Ziqing would be too sentimental and truly be trapped in the village.

He'd already given his final instructions in advance. How could Yu Ziqing even explain now?

"Ah..."

Walking out from the Village Chief's place, Yu Ziqing let out a long sigh.

Forget it, let's stack some defense first. Whatever happens, we'll deal with it later. For now, let's slightly increase my survival odds first.

According to Old Yang's speculation, a fight was likely to break out on the Wasteland, and it wouldn't be on their own home turf. Once they started throwing down, they'd probably have no restraint at all...

Yu Ziqing's body refinement training was progressing smoothly, but the consumption was quite heavy.

When he first arrived at the village, he probably weighed less than ninety jin, skin and bones from being so thin. Now he'd recovered to around one hundred thirty, but body refinement's first stage, the Blood Essence Realm, drained blood essence quite a bit. Without supplements, it would take a very long time.

The Jinlan Mushrooms were in ample supply, which kept his weight from dropping again.

He entered the gate that very day, and after seven days of grinding away, Yu Ziqing finally managed to circulate blood essence through his limbs and torso.

In the village, the second-fastest, Er Han, had already completed the first stage of Blood Essence Realm cultivation. When circulating blood essence, he could flow it through his entire body in one breath, condensing all his strength into a single force.

On top of that, Er Han's foundation from nurturing his body was terrifyingly good. Even before starting body refinement, he dared to throw down with cultivators. Now, with one punch, an ordinary second-stage Marrow Cleansing body refiner probably wouldn't even have room to resist—one hit and they'd be dead.

Over the past half month, Er Han had completed Marrow Cleansing, his blood as heavy as lead and mercury, re-nourishing his five viscera and six bowels. When his blood essence began to boil, the sound of his heartbeat was like a drum being pounded, shaking the soul.

A month later, Er Han had reached the third stage of body refinement, the Return to Apertures Realm. His meridians were like great dragons, surging with power, and he'd already opened over one hundred ninety acupoints without stopping. Even when he practiced Quiet Cultivation, his blood essence force was so vigorous that no one could stay near him.

Er Han was one thing—expected. What Yu Ziqing couldn't understand was that the Village Chief, at his age, insisted on joining in. After starting body refinement, his progress was even more exaggerated than Er Han's...

As for Yu Ziqing himself, with many factors stacked together, he'd only reached the second stage now.

Looking at the Village Chief's thin frame, slightly hunched back, and walking stick in hand, his entire aura concealed within, at a glance he seemed no different from usual. But Yu Ziqing couldn't forget how, when the Village Chief had smacked Er Han earlier, he'd broken the walking stick and kicked Er Han flying out of the Abyss of Despair with one foot...

"I don't understand, but I'm deeply shaken."

"I don't understand either..." Old Yang shook his head with a bitter smile.

"Although I knew early on that because of their long-term nurturing accumulation, once they switched to body refinement, their progress would be very fast, I never expected it to reach this level. And there are no side effects—their foundations are even more solid than those gained through hard training...

Especially the Village Chief. Clearly, he's already old, and his blood essence has begun to decline, yet he's faster and more stable than Er Han.

In the past, among all cultivators, including Daoists, not many paid attention to body refiners.

You're still within my expectations—solid foundation, incredibly fast speed.

But them? I truly can't understand. Earlier, I said I'd help them improve their fist techniques. Now it seems I overestimated myself and underestimated the predecessors here."

"Maybe their accumulation is like a Daoist's accumulation—what you see on the surface is just the tip of the iceberg," Yu Ziqing offered his guess.

"Maybe so."

Old Yang left silently. That night, when Yu Ziqing woke up hungry at midnight and went to get some food, he discovered Old Yang secretly practicing a set of Goat-Style Fist Techniques he'd adapted from somewhere, using the Black Stone...

After eating, Yu Ziqing returned to his earthen den, lay there staring blankly, and felt that everyone in this village was a bit off.

Old Yang was starting to go off too...

Although he didn't say it outright, Yu Ziqing could sense that Old Yang had also looked down on body refinement before, but now he was secretly practicing it...

Unable to sleep, and having already practiced his fist techniques, he might as well continue cultivating.

He went to the Abyss of Despair again, where the scene was still playing on repeat.

He didn't stop. After thinking it over, he walked past the Abyss of Despair and out of the village.

The wind was biting, and the snow on the ground was already a foot deep. The farther he went, the thicker the snow and the lower the temperature. Even though his blood essence now flowed through his body, making him less afraid of the cold, he still felt the chill piercing into him like needles.

Gazing into the distance, a streak of light suddenly flashed across the sky, then exploded and went out in an instant. Soon after, several more streaks of light flew past, colliding with each other, and occasionally one would fade away.

Yu Ziqing knew that each streak of light was a cultivator using an escape technique.

When the light went out, it meant either they'd dispersed their technique, or they were dead.

"They're really fighting now, and it's not that far from us anymore..."