Body Martial Soul Grafting Technique

"Grafting Technique?" Long Zhanye murmured, repeating the term. It sounded as though it defied the laws of nature.

"That's right!" Zhua Yun's tone grew excited.

"According to my master's theory, through special methods and mediums, the organs of a Spirit Master's Body Martial Soul can be..."

"Provided they have been specially treated after leaving the body and retain some Martial Soul vitality, they can be 'grafted' onto another Spirit Master whose physique is compatible but whose own Martial Soul is damaged or innately defective!"

"If the operation succeeds and the recipient survives the most dangerous rejection and fusion period, then not only can their physical injuries be repaired..."

"They may even... gain some or all of the abilities of the grafted Body Martial Soul!"

"In other words—they may gain a second Body Martial Soul because of it!"

"H-How is that possible?!" Long Zhanye cried out, feeling his entire understanding of the world overturned.

Forcibly transplanting a Martial Soul? And allowing the recipient to gain a new Martial Soul?

It was simply miraculous—no, utterly inconceivable!

Such a bold, heaven-defying theory—it was no wonder two generations of sect masters had firmly rejected it as heresy.

If this spread and fell into the hands of people with malicious intentions, then for all Spirit Masters with Body Martial Souls, it would likely become an unimaginable catastrophe sweeping across the world!

They would fall from proud cultivators to prey hunted down and stripped for "parts"!

"Of course, the more important part is this!" Zhua Yun gave Long Zhanye little time to digest the shock.

He took a step forward and stared intently at Long Zhanye. "According to my master's Grafting Technique theory, combined with your current condition..."

"Your 'heart' has shattered, causing the vitality in your heart meridians to nearly sever. The only possible way to save you now is Heart Grafting!"

"We replace it with a healthy, powerful heart—preferably one that originally possessed a heart-type Body Martial Soul!"

"As long as the graft succeeds, your damaged foundation can be compensated for and repaired, and the vitality of your heart meridians can continue."

"And there is a high chance that you will be able to return to a normal life, perhaps even... regain the ability to cultivate!"

Long Zhanye's breathing suddenly quickened. His heart pounded madly in his chest, as if it wanted to break free from its shattered restraints.

A new, healthy heart? A second chance at life, perhaps even a blessing in disguise?

The temptation was simply too great for a boy on the verge of death—so great that he nearly nodded in agreement at once.

But Zhua Yun's next words were like a bucket of cold water, instantly clearing his overheated mind.

"However," Zhua Yun's expression became incomparably grave once more.

"I must tell you honestly. Although my master proposed a complete theoretical framework for this Body Martial Soul Grafting Technique and prepared for it for countless years..."

"He has never performed a complete procedure on a living person!"

"All the procedures, risks, and success rates remain at the stage of theoretical deduction and limited in vitro experiments."

Seeing Long Zhanye's face turn pale, he continued, "And now, my master is advanced in years. His mind is lucid one moment and muddled the next. He is no longer in his peak condition."

"Although he has passed on most of the other theories of the Nine Body Secrets to me, regarding the most central and dangerous Seventh Secret: Grafting Technique..."

"He has not fully told me how to carry it out."

Zhua Yun's tone became earnest, even carrying a hint of appeal. "So, Long Zhanye, I sought you out not only to help you find a sliver of hope for survival."

"I am also helping my master fulfill the greatest wish of his life and prove that his theory is viable!"

"If you agree, we will embark upon this unprecedented road together. If you succeed, you will be reborn and begin anew!"

"And my master's theory will receive its strongest proof. He will no longer need to hide underground year after year, burdened with the stigma of being a 'madman.'"

"His contributions deserve to be recognized by the sect again! This is an adventure that stakes everything, but it is worth trying, isn't it?"

A choice between life and death, hope, fear, temptation, doubt... all manner of emotions tangled together wildly.

Long Zhanye seemed able to see a future in which he regained his health and perhaps even possessed Twin Body Martial Souls.

Yet he could also clearly sense the deadly thorns covering that path, enough to doom him beyond redemption.

His lips moved, but his throat was dry.

In the end, he did not immediately make a hot-blooded promise. Instead, he shook his head.

"Senior Brother Zhua Yun... thank you for telling me all this. This... this is too important."

"I need time... I need to think it over carefully."

The fact that he did not refuse immediately gave Zhua Yun a glimmer of hope.

Zhua Yun nodded understandingly. "Of course. This concerns your life and future, so you should consider it carefully. I'll wait for you."

He paused, then added, "But you must keep this secret."

"Before my master's theory is proven, the fewer people who know about this... the better."

Long Zhanye nodded, then turned and left that secluded corner almost as though fleeing from the place that filled him with both surging emotions and chilling dread.

His steps were unsteady as the words "Body Martial Soul Grafting Technique," "replacing the heart," "a second Body Martial Soul," and "never tested on humans" echoed endlessly through his mind...

From that day onward.

Long Zhanye's thoughts spiraled out of control, day and night without rest.

The two humanoid figures split from the depths of his consciousness began taking turns occupying his mind, arguing and tearing at each other without pause.

One of them always whispered seductively in his ear:

"Long Zhanye, what are you still hesitating for? Wake up!"

"Look at yourself now. Walk for more than the time it takes to burn an incense stick, and you are already gasping for breath. Circulate your Soul Power just a little too quickly, and your chest feels as though it is being carved apart..."

"You know better than anyone that Elder Xu's talk of 'finding a way' is nothing but medicine to comfort your heart."

"The path before you has only two clear choices: either cling to this broken body, count your few remaining days, and silently turn to dust."

"Your vengeance, your hatred, the vows you once made—all of them will become nothing but bubbles!"

"Accept it! Gamble on that sliver of hope! As long as you succeed, you can reclaim everything you lost and perhaps gain even more!"

Yet another figure emerged as well.

"Calm down, Long Zhanye. You need absolute calm."

"What is the heart? It is not an arm or a leg. It is the sacred altar where Soul Power and vital blood converge!"

"For an ordinary Spirit Master, damaged heart meridians are already a grave injury. Yet your shattered Martial Soul is your heart! That alone is an injury nearly akin to a curse."

"No matter how shocking that Mad Old Man's theory may be, he has never put it into practice on a living person!"

"That so-called Grafting Technique sounds more like a fantasy. You are suffering now, but at least you still have three years."

"Three years can accomplish many things, but once you accept the Grafting Technique, if it fails, you will not even have those three years."

For more than half a month, Long Zhanye was like a walking corpse.

Food had no taste to him, and he could not sleep peacefully. His already thin body grew even more gaunt.

During the day, he often stared blankly at the sky alone, his gaze hollow.

At night, he tossed and turned in bed as the two consciousnesses argued fiercely in his mind, tormenting his already fragile spirit until he was on the verge of collapse.

He recalled his former glory: becoming a Soul Ancestor at twelve, drawing the attention of countless people, regarded as a future pillar of the sect.

He recalled even more clearly the tragic day his family was destroyed, the savage and powerful faces of his enemies, and the pain and despair he felt when his Martial Soul had been crippled.

"My great vengeance remains unavenged..."

"With this body, which struggles even to walk and could stop breathing at any moment?"

"Forget revenge—I probably cannot even reach the place where my enemies are!"

"No! Absolutely not!"

"Three years... Heh, living like a cripple is even more unbearable than dying immediately!"

"Even if there is only the slightest possibility, even if that possibility comes from hell and demands everything I have, I will gamble on it!"

One day, Long Zhanye did not hesitate.

He headed straight toward the area where the outer sect disciples gathered.

When he saw Zhua Yun in the corridor outside the steward's quarters, the other man seemed to sense something and happened to look up.

Their eyes met, and Zhua Yun instantly read the answer in Long Zhanye's calm gaze.

Long Zhanye walked up to Zhua Yun and stopped. Without exchanging pleasantries, he said, "Senior Brother, I want to try."

After a brief flash of surprise crossed Zhua Yun's face, he looked around and swiftly composed himself.

He stepped forward and lowered his voice. "Good! Junior Brother Long, since you have such resolve, I will accompany you on this journey!"

"Tonight, at the third quarter of midnight. The usual place. Don't be late."