Time passed like a white steed flashing past a crack in the wall. Shi Hao was now over six years old. Memories kept replaying in his mind, and he felt they were connected to his origins. His parents were indistinct in those memories. Wanting to uncover his past, he asked Grandpa Chief, but the old man told him to ask the Willow Deity!
Shi Hao ran up to the Willow Deity and asked, "Willow Deity! Do you know where my dad and mom went? Can you send me to see them? I miss them so much."
The Willow Deity said, "I do. They are at the Primordial Divine Mountain, but you cannot go. You are too weak right now. It is too dangerous."
Shi Hao asked again, "Then do you know what happened?"
The Willow Deity said, "You must seek that answer yourself. To find it, you will need great strength."
With that, the Willow Deity summoned a huge cauldron and told Shi Hao, "When you can lift this cauldron, I will give you the answer."
Shi Yunfeng asked from the side, "Willow Deity! How many jin does this cauldron weigh?"
The Willow Deity said, "One hundred thousand jin."
Everyone in Stone Village gasped. "One hundred thousand jin? That's terrifying!"
Shi Hao's refusal to admit defeat flared up, and he shouted, "I accept the challenge!"
Then, under the suppression of the field the Willow Deity had set up, he struggled toward the huge cauldron. He had barely taken a few steps closer when the lightning within the field blasted him straight out of the village. Shi Hao's screams rang throughout Stone Village.
Shi Hao knew his strength was still insufficient. What followed would be a hellish life of grueling training.
Shi Yunfeng also took out a precious bone and handed it to Shi Hao. "Little One! Try cultivating the technique on this precious bone. On a stormy night, the Willow Deity descended upon Stone Village, bathed in lightning, and brought this precious bone along. None of us could understand its runes. Just looking at them made us dizzy. Try cultivating it and see."
Shi Hao asked, "What is this?"
The Willow Deity explained, "The Divine Guidance Chapter of the Original True Understanding. It interprets the profound mysteries of all runes. It is extremely deep and will be of great help to you in the future. Take your time studying it."
Shi Hao accepted the Original True Understanding and concentrated on comprehending it. Before long, he felt dizzy.
Shi Yunfeng comforted him. "It's all right, Little One. Take it slowly."
In the days that followed, Shi Hao devoted himself to studying the Original True Understanding and tempering his body in the Blood Moving Realm.
Every day, Shi Hao's howls echoed through Stone Village! To adapt to the power of lightning, he went to the river and subdued a Unicorn Horse. The Unicorn Horse possessed lightning power, and Shi Hao used its lightning to temper his body every day.
Half a year passed, and Jun Moxiao turned five.
Inside the Willow Deity's Divine Kingdom Space, Jun Moxiao woke up and asked in utter bewilderment, "Where am I?"
Seeing that the little fellow had awakened, the Willow Deity hurriedly asked with concern, "Xiaoxiao, you're awake. Has your body recovered? This is my Divine Kingdom Space. You were injured, so I brought you here to recover."
Jun Moxiao saw the Willow Deity's true appearance. She had never revealed it before. So she had been recovering within this space all along.
Looking at the Willow Deity's beauty, enough to topple cities and kingdoms, Jun Moxiao immediately praised her. "Sister Willow Deity, you're so beautiful!"
That was no exaggeration. Jun Moxiao thought the Willow Deity was even more beautiful than in the animation. He loved it! Loved it!
The Willow Deity chuckled. "Such a sweet tongue at such a young age."
The Willow Deity had never imagined that, after living for countless years, she would receive praise from this little fellow. Not only is this little fellow adorable, he even knows how to flirt.
Jun Moxiao had called her Sister Willow Deity for several years. Combined with the vision of her future self she had previously divined, that had led her to decisively choose a female form.
Jun Moxiao asked her again, "Sister Willow Deity, how much did you recover after absorbing the Ginseng Fruit?"
The Willow Deity said, "The Ginseng Fruit contained complete laws of the Dao. I recovered to the self-slaying enlightenment realm, saving a great deal of time."
Jun Moxiao said, "As long as it helped you, Sister Willow Deity. Oh, right! What about Shi Hao? Has he broken through the limits of the Blood Moving Realm?"
The Willow Deity said, "He's almost reached one hundred thousand jin."
Jun Moxiao said, "One hundred thousand jin is too little. The minimum target I set for him is around one hundred thirty thousand jin. I reached one hundred eighty thousand jin myself."
The Willow Deity laughed in exasperation. "You've already opened three cave heavens. You broke through after sleeping for half a year. If outsiders found out, wouldn't they be furious enough to die?"
Jun Moxiao waved his chubby little fist. "I'm an invincible genius, after all! Sister Willow Deity, send me outside. I want to give Shi Hao a little push. He's someone who refuses to admit defeat. Besides, he's cultivated the Phoenix Nirvana Technique, and his Supreme Bone has already begun to revive. I think he can definitely break through the limit."
The Willow Deity sent Jun Moxiao out of the Divine Kingdom Space.
The moment Jun Moxiao emerged, he encountered a famous scene: Shi Hao challenging the one-hundred-thousand-jin limit.
As soon as he appeared, Jun Moxiao greeted everyone. "Hello, everyone! Did you miss me?"
Everyone cheered. "Xiaoxiao has finally recovered! Let's make something delicious tonight to celebrate!"
Seeing it was him, Shi Hao ran over and said excitedly, "Xiaoxiao, you're better! Thank you for doing so much for everyone."
Jun Moxiao said, "It was nothing. Don't dwell on it. Go lift the cauldron!"
Shi Hao resumed his attempt to lift the cauldron. He grabbed it, hoisted it onto his shoulder, then raised it above his head with both hands and shouted, "Willow Deity! Where are my dad and mom?"
The imposing sight stunned everyone in Stone Village, young and old.
Shi Yunfeng shouted, "One hundred thousand jin! Little One has succeeded! Our Stone Village has produced a young supreme!"
The Willow Deity touched Shi Hao's forehead with a branch, and a sequence of images appeared in his mind. He had been born in the Martial King Manor with a Supreme Bone. When he was two, his older cousin Shi Yi, who possessed double pupils, discovered it and wanted to seize it. Then his Supreme Bone was dug out. After losing it, he reverted to a newborn infant, barely clinging to life. His parents then slaughtered their way through the Martial King Manor before taking him away. They brought him to their ancestral land, Stone Village, and entrusted him to Grandpa Chief before leaving, saying they would find a divine medicine for him.
Shi Hao broke into sobs. To think he had suffered such a fate! That hateful cousin Shi Yi had ruined his family. Then he thought of his parents and the sight of them being suppressed by the Martial King, and his heart ached.
The Willow Deity asked, "Shi Hao! Shi Yi now possesses both double pupils and the Supreme Bone. Don't you hate him?"
Shi Hao declared with commanding confidence, "A single bone doesn't make someone supreme. You become supreme by fighting your way there, step by step."
The Willow Deity said, "Shi Hao, you are truly remarkable. You haven't let hatred blind you. Let me tell you some good news: have you ever heard of withered wood meeting spring again?"
Shi Hao's eyes lit up. "You mean my Supreme Bone might recover someday?"
The Willow Deity said, "Correct. And it will be even stronger than before. Now, Xiaoxiao has something to say to you."
Jun Moxiao was reading a system notification:
Ding! Congratulations, Master, on checking in at the scene of Shi Hao successfully lifting one hundred thousand jin. Rewards: the Calming Chaos Sword Art, one jar of true dragon precious blood, the seal unlocked, and strength restored to five cave heavens.
The Calming Chaos Sword Art! That's one of the three insanely powerful sword arts in Perfect World. Nice, very nice! And there's a precious medicine like true dragon precious blood too. In one word: awesome!
Jun Moxiao was still immersed in his delight and paid no attention to what was happening around him.
The Willow Deity wondered why the little fellow had suddenly frozen.
She hurriedly transmitted her voice to him. "Xiaoxiao, what are you thinking about? Didn't you want to give Shi Hao a little push?"
Jun Moxiao came back to his senses and told Shi Hao, "Shi Hao, you successfully lifted one hundred thousand jin, but in my eyes, that's only so-so!"
Shi Hao rolled his eyes. Who could compare with a monster like you?
Seeing his expression, Jun Moxiao said, "One hundred thousand jin is certainly impressive to ordinary people, but do you know how much physical strength I had in the Blood Moving Realm?"
Shi Hao asked, "How much?"
Everyone in Stone Village was curious too. They all knew the little fellow defied the heavens, but they had no idea just how far he went.
Jun Moxiao said, "Brace yourselves! I reached one hundred eighty thousand jin in the Blood Moving Realm. Surprised? Didn't see that coming, did you?"
Everyone exclaimed, "Heavens! Is Xiaoxiao even human anymore?"
Shi Hao's mouth fell wide open. That was too damn terrifying.
Jun Moxiao told Shi Hao, "I'll set a target for you. You need to reach at least one hundred thirty thousand jin in the Blood Moving Realm. Only break through to the Cave Heaven Realm after you pass that mark. I'm not asking you to reach my level, but one hundred thirty thousand jin? I think you can definitely do it if you give it everything you've got."
Shi Hao's refusal to admit defeat flared up again, and he said excitedly, "I accept! Otherwise, I'd be too embarrassed to call myself your brother."
"Good! That's what a true supreme genius should be like. Shi Yi and all the rest are nothing but trash. Come on, I'll tell you the plan."
With their arms slung over each other's shoulders, the two headed out of the village. Jun Moxiao knew there was a Taiyin River outside and planned to have Shi Hao cultivate there. That place could make Shi Hao even stronger.
Shi Yunfeng watched the two little fellows, who had grown to around a meter and a half tall. His heart filled with comfort and a sense of accomplishment. He had finally raised these two boys.
Jun Moxiao was startled by his own height. He was just over five years old and already a meter and a half tall, only a little shorter than Shi Hao. He recalled a line from Let the Bullets Fly: This is fucking five years old?
Shi Yunfeng asked the Willow Deity, "Willow Deity, Xiaoxiao is practically divine now. Can Little One succeed?"
Recalling Jun Moxiao's miraculous abilities, the Willow Deity said, "He can. Have faith in those two little fellows!"
Jun Moxiao had Shi Hao train hard in the Taiyin River. He also brought out a little Heavenly Horned Ant precious blood and true dragon precious blood, asking the Willow Deity to give Shi Hao another baptism.
Half a year later, Shi Hao reached one hundred thirty-five thousand jin. He could go no further; he had reached his limit. After all, he was only seven years old, still far too young.
Following the Willow Deity's advice, Shi Hao broke straight through to the Cave Heaven Realm. Because he had surpassed the limits of the Blood Moving Realm, he opened four cave heavens in one go. Shi Yunfeng was so delighted that he kept exclaiming, "Heaven has blessed us! Our Little One has made something of himself!"
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