The Tempering of Cold and Pain

Shrek Academy, Inner Court, Inside the Golden Tree.

Yun Jingheng followed Yun Ming into the highest room.

"Jing Heng, now you can complete your Second Trial here."

Yun Jingheng looked around. "Why won't you let me go to the Star Pavilion?"

Yun Ming shook his head. "Here, you can get the protection of the Golden Tree, and even Limit Douluo can't break in. Do you think the Star Pavilion you built can stop it?"

"All right."

Yun Ming nodded. "You should assess your own situation. Safety is the top priority. I'm going to a meeting."

"Good."

The room fell silent, Yun Ming's footsteps gradually faded away along the winding wooden staircase until they disappeared behind the heavy door deep within the trunk of the Golden Tree.

Yun Jingheng stood alone in the center of the room, looking up and around. The room was not large, but the walls and ceiling were made of living wood from the Golden Tree, with a warm golden-green light flowing between the grain, beating slowly and evenly like a pulse.

An ancient and mellow life force permeated the air; with each breath, it felt as if tiny particles of Soul Power seeped into the lungs, nourishing the limbs and bones.

He walked to the futon in the center of the room, which was naturally formed from intertwined tree roots, sat down cross-legged, closed his eyes, and began to mobilize the Soul Power within his body to communicate with the God Trial space.

[The Second Trial the Nine Trials of the Lunar Moon God: Bathing in the Moon to Refine the Body: Drawing the Lunar Essence into the body to replace the spiritual energy of the mortal world to temper the meridians and flesh. The Yin Force is cold and clear, which is difficult for the mortal body to withstand, resulting in bone-chilling cold and distending pain in the meridians.]

The criteria for passing the test are: all meridians in the body are open, the physical body can absorb the power of the Moonlight, the initial formation of the Moon Body is achieved, and one is immune to all diseases and free from dirt and grime.

Time limit: Three months, no suspension allowed.

Success: One scroll of the Lunar Path Technique, Soul Power increased by four levels.

Failure: Assessment terminated, permanent ban from this stage.

[Start?]

"Start."

[The assessment begins.]

The moment the words left his mouth, a full Full Moon appeared above Yun Jingheng's head.

When he drew upon the first Moonlight, his body first felt a slight warmth, followed by an intense chill that exploded from his tailbone and shot up his spine like lightning.

That cold wasn't ordinary cold; it was an almost nonexistent emptiness, as if all the warmth had been drained from the flesh and blood in that instant, leaving only the bones emitting a faint hum under the Moonlight.

"Hiss—WC!" He gritted his teeth, cold sweat instantly beading on his forehead.

The process of the Moonlight entering the body is like driving an ice pick inch by inch into the bone marrow; with each step forward, the meridians have to endure a throbbing pain as if they are being torn apart.

At the same time, he also clearly sensed that the bone that had been touched by the Moonlight was undergoing a subtle change. Its texture became denser, and its surface shone with a pale silver luster, like jade that had been soaked in moonlight.

"... continue."

He took a deep breath, maintaining the flow of his Soul Power, and guided the Moonlight deeper.

Sweat dripped down his chin onto the futon, spreading into dark, damp patches, which were quickly absorbed by the living wood of the Golden Tree, turning into a wisp of barely perceptible golden mist that dissipated.

After an unknown amount of time, Yun Jingheng suddenly opened his eyes.

He sensed an unfamiliar fluctuation of Soul Power, extremely faint, like a feather falling on the surface of water, right in the direction of the outer wall of the Golden Tree.

The fluctuation was fleeting, and if he hadn't been in a highly sensitive state of body tempering under the Moonlight, he would have been almost unable to detect it.

He listened intently, and all he could hear was the low hum of the Soul Power flowing within the Golden Tree.

A moment later, the fluctuations disappeared.

"... illusion?"

"Ah--! Holy crap!"

Before Yun Jingheng could finish uttering that curse, he felt the flow of Moonlight within his body suddenly become disordered.

That momentary distraction caused the Moonlight power, which was slowly advancing along the established meridians, to lose its guidance and, like a runaway silver-white wild horse, suddenly crash into a thin, unrefined meridian on the inside of his left arm.

The pain was excruciating, like being stabbed with a knife.

Before he could even groan, his entire left arm was covered in a layer of frost-white powder from the inside out, and fine ice crystals instantly formed on the surface of his skin, making his fingertips stiff and unable to bend.

The icy Moonlight swept wildly through the side paths, like countless silver needles piercing deep into the bones, bringing a throbbing pain that almost ruptured the meridians.

"... Hold on!"

He clenched his teeth, almost biting his tongue until it tasted blood, and forcibly regrouped his scattered will.

Soul Power surged from his dantian, like a large net covering the out-of-control Moonlight power.

The moment the net touched the Moonlight, a shockwave, like ice and fire intertwining, rebounded along his Soul Power meridians to his chest. He groaned, and a trickle of blood spilled from the corner of his mouth.

But the net eventually came to a stop.

He slowly suppressed the rampaging Moonlight and guided it back into his main meridian.

Cold sweat had already soaked through his inner clothes, sticking stickily to his back, but as the chaos subsided, the bone-chilling cold began to regain its order, advancing inch by inch along the path he had painstakingly constructed.

A subtle tremor emanated from deep within the bones, like the crisp sound of spring ice cracking. Each tremor was accompanied by a barely perceptible qualitative change. The jade-like bone surface gradually extended under the Moonlight, spreading from the forearm to the shoulder blade, and then slowly sinking down along the spine.

It hurts, but within that pain lies a clear sense of "progress".

How terrifying...

He dared not be distracted again.

Close your eyes, withdraw all five senses, and shrink your consciousness into a solid silver light point that sinks into your dantian.

He temporarily set aside the unfamiliar fluctuations that had alerted him moments before, outside the Golden Tree.

At this moment, only one thing remained in his world: guiding the Moonlight.

Time has become blurred.

He couldn't tell how much time had passed; he only knew that the chill had spread from his arms to his chest and was slowly but irresistibly advancing towards his legs.

With each breath, frost and mist overflowed from his mouth and nose, condensing into fine, silvery-white powder before him, falling onto the futon, and being absorbed by the Golden Tree.

The meridians were widened and tempered time and time again amidst the swelling and pain, and the impurities in the flesh and blood were washed away by the Moonlight and expelled to the surface of the body, forming layers of grayish-white scabs.

He felt his body becoming "lighter," a sense of clarity emanating from within, as if Moonlight were flowing through a mirror, polishing it piece by piece from the dust.

"... I almost lost half my life."

He grinned and forced out a self-deprecating remark.

But when he moved his lips, he felt a thin layer of silver light covering his facial skin, refined by the Moonlight, which had spread to his head and face.

Before I could think it through, the next wave of Moonlight surged in like a tide.

He took a deep breath of the air, carrying the crisp scent of the Golden Tree, and sank back into the tempering process intertwined with ice and pain.

Outside the room, below the spiral staircase.

Ya Li had somehow found herself standing at the corner of the stairs, looking up at the tightly closed wooden door.

A sliver of silvery-white light shone through the crack in the door, cold and pure, completely different from the Soul Power fluctuations of Yun Jingheng that she was familiar with, yet carrying a reassuring and growing resilience.

Yun Ming came up from downstairs and stood beside her, the two of them gazing at the silver light.

"He was in so much pain, but he didn't utter a single scream."

Ya Li said softly, her voice tinged with a hint of heartache and a touch of pride.

Yun Ming was silent for a moment, then gave a soft "Mmm," and said, "He can handle it."

Ya Li glanced at her husband. Moonlight filtered through the leaves of the Golden Tree, illuminating the faint lines at the corners of Yun Ming's eyes—marks left by the years and countless worrying nights.

He didn't look at her; his gaze remained fixed on the silver light shining through the crack in the door, but there was a very faint, almost imperceptible curve at the corner of his mouth.

Who will watch over him tomorrow?

"Tomorrow... it's Elder Long's turn."

[Hao, isn't this a bit inappropriate? I secretly took a look a month ago, and he...]

[I don't know either. The Xiao San asked us to keep an eye on things, but she didn't say what we were supposed to do.]

[Should we still look at it? And did I give this child too little vitality?]

[No, don't add it. You're interfering with him. This process cannot be interrupted, and... it won't be allowed to be interrupted.]

However, the injury to his meridians was quite severe, which will leave lasting health problems.

That's right.

[Huh? But...]

[Stop with the "buts," hurry up and leave, or the thing inside this kid will discover you.]

[... oh...]