Chapter 37: Cao Youqian – 'I Did It! I Finally Did It!”

Chapter 37: Cao Youqian – “I Did It! I Finally Did It!” “I did it! I finally mastered the Chaotic Body Refinement Art! I’ve officially entered the introductory level!” —Deep in the night. In the back mountain of the Miscellaneous Dao Academy— Cao Youqian leapt out of the fire cave. After eighty-one days of continuous tempering, his entire body looked like a piece of charred coal, completely covered in a layer of soot. But despite his blackened and burnt appearance, the excitement in his heart could not be concealed. Xiao Chen, seeing how happy his junior brother was, couldn’t help but let a faint smile rise at the corners of his lips. Part of it was genuine happiness for his junior brother’s success. The other part? He had just cultivated his Invincible Sword Intent to the Minor Completion stage himself. Not long after, a series of cracking sounds echoed from Cao Youqian’s body. Xiao Chen looked over and saw that the outer layer of “charcoal” on Cao Youqian’s body was slowly peeling off. “Junior Brother, stop jumping. Any more and you’ll be exposed.” Only then did Cao Youqian realize he wasn’t wearing clothes. If not for the charred layer covering him, he’d be standing stark naked. Realizing this, his old face turned red. “Senior Brother, please go report to Master for me. I’ll take a moment to stabilize myself.” “Alright.” Xiao Chen turned and left with a smile. After confirming that his senior brother had walked away, Cao Youqian immediately sat down cross-legged, channeling his spiritual power to shake off the impurities from his body. Then he quickly got dressed and began circulating his cultivation method to examine his body. To his surprise, he discovered that his dantian had expanded, his meridians had widened significantly, and—most importantly—the previously blocked meridians were now completely unobstructed. At this point, as long as he willed it, he could break through to the True Fate Realm at any time. He slowly opened his eyes and threw a punch at the cliff wall behind the mountain. Boom—! With a loud explosion, a massive fist imprint was left in the stone wall. And this punch—he hadn’t used a single trace of spiritual power. Yet the force behind it wasn’t inferior to what he could do before his body refinement. If he channeled his spiritual power now, the strength of his punches would multiply several times over. “Master really is amazing... But that aside, why does my spiritual power seem to carry both fire and wood attributes?” “I clearly only used earthfire to temper my body...” Miscellaneous Dao Academy. In the chief’s residence. Chu Feng, as always, was burning the midnight oil cultivating. At the moment, he was reading the Heavenly Secrets Bulletin. This publication recorded all the latest news and developments from across the Xuantian Continent. He used to treat it like some casual gossip rag. But this time, he was seriously searching for Xiao Chen’s name on the Hidden Dragon Ranking. The Hidden Dragon Ranking listed the most outstanding youths across the Xuantian Continent. Anyone who appeared on it was considered a true genius. There was an age limit—only those under a hundred could make the list. If you hadn’t reached the Nirvana Realm by a hundred, you didn’t qualify as a genius. Now, Xiao Chen was the first disciple in the younger generation of the Wendao Academy to awaken a Divine Body. With the prestige of the academy backing him, there was no doubt he’d be on the list. Soon enough, Chu Feng found Xiao Chen’s name at rank 100. Name: Xiao Chen Cultivation: True Fate Realm Affiliation: Wendao Academy Reason for Entry: Awakened Divine Body Potential Rating: ★★★★★ Chu Feng didn’t really care about the exact rank. After all, the Hidden Dragon Ranking emphasized potential—and a five-star rating was the highest possible evaluation. It seemed his first disciple was about to become famous across the continent. Thinking this, Chu Feng felt genuine pride for Xiao Chen, while also wondering—just how many new disciples would come to him next? Right then, a familiar mechanical voice echoed in his mind: “Host’s eldest disciple Xiao Chen has achieved Minor Completion in Sword Intent. Rewarding the host with one trace of Sword Dao True Meaning.” Oh? Chu Feng’s eyes brightened instantly. He was already a cultivator who had achieved Great Completion in Sword Intent. Now, with this additional trace of Sword Dao True Meaning, his understanding of the sword would advance to yet another level. “Emotions can even be used to enhance Sword Intent...?” “Master, your disciple Xiao Chen seeks an audience.” The familiar voice of Xiao Chen came from outside, pulling Chu Feng out of his thoughts. Chu Feng immediately rose, opened the door, and asked, “Chen’er, what brings you here so late at night?” Xiao Chen replied, “Reporting to Master—Junior Brother Cao has completed his eighty-one days of cultivation. He’s successfully entered the introductory level of the Chaotic Body Refinement Art.” Chu Feng chuckled. “I nearly forgot about that. Come, let’s go see how much Da Qian has changed.” “Yes, Master.” Xiao Chen responded promptly and followed his master toward the back mountain. Before long, they arrived and saw a completely transformed Cao Youqian. The old Cao Youqian had been a pudgy, somewhat sleazy-looking guy. Now, his first impression was towering, brawny, and full of energy. Seeing him, Chu Feng couldn’t help but murmur, “Cultivation really does make one handsome. The ancients didn’t lie.” Cao Youqian: “???” Xiao Chen: “...” “Master flatters me. Without your guidance, I never would’ve come this far,” said Cao Youqian humbly. He really lived up to being the former favorite junior of the Profound Flame Alchemy King—his flattery was instinctual. Chu Feng grinned. “Da Qian, how are you feeling now?” Cao Youqian said, “Master, I feel incredibly strong. If I met Lin Fan again, I could shatter his head with a single punch!” Chu Feng replied, “You’re getting cocky already? And you’ve only completed two stages of the Five Elements Body Tempering?” At that, both Cao Youqian and Xiao Chen froze for a second. Cao Youqian looked puzzled. “Master, haven’t I just been tempering my body with earthfire for eighty-one days?” Chu Feng explained calmly, “You’re from the Alchemy Academy, so you should know what pills are made from, right?” “Of course—herbs,” Cao Youqian responded. “Correct,” Chu Feng continued. “Pills, at their core, extract the essence of wood to aid cultivation.” “And you’ve long had a buildup of medicinal energy and pill toxins in your body.” “The reason I had you use earthfire to temper yourself was to refine and absorb all that essence.” “That allowed your body to naturally draw in the energy of wood—thus achieving the effect of wood-element body tempering. You can review the section on Wood Element Body Tempering in the Five Elements Tempering Scripture.” Cao Youqian had already memorized the Five Elements Tempering Scripture inside and out. Soon, his eyes lit up in sudden realization. “So that’s what it meant when it said one only needed to absorb wood essence to complete body tempering... I understand now. Thank you for the lesson, Master.” Chu Feng smiled. “Any other doubts?” Cao Youqian shook his head. “None, Master. I’m ready to begin the next phase of my cultivation tomorrow.” Chu Feng said, “Then go cultivate in the Millennium Cold Pool at Wendao Academy.” “Just like before, you’ll need to spend eighty-one days in the cold pool. Each day, at least nine hours must be spent immersed in the cold water.” Cao Youqian now fully understood—Master’s so-called Five Elements Body Tempering clearly had a sequence. Without hesitation, he replied, “Thank you for your guidance, Master. I’ll begin cultivating in the Millennium Cold Pool first thing tomorrow.” “Good.” Chu Feng nodded. “You two should rest soon. I’m heading back as well.” With that, he turned and left. Cao Youqian turned to Xiao Chen. “Senior Brother, can I trouble you for a favor?” Xiao Chen said, “Go ahead.” Cao Youqian got straight to the point. “Could you help me drain the spiritual power from my body? I’ve reached my limit.” “Easy.” As he spoke, Xiao Chen unleashed Ten Thousand Swords Return to Origin, instantly siphoning away all the spiritual power from Cao Youqian’s body. Huff... huff... Moments later, Cao Youqian was panting heavily, his face pale. “Senior Brother, you’re way too strong. I feel like I’ve become several times stronger, and yet I still can’t put up any resistance against you.” Xiao Chen smiled. “You haven’t even fully entered the Chaotic Body Refinement Art yet—of course you’d feel helpless.” “But now that you’ve completed both fire and wood tempering, you’re definitely among the top-tier of outer disciples. I won’t be sparring with you anymore.” Cao Youqian bowed deeply. “Thank you for looking after me these past days, Senior Brother. Without you, my progress wouldn’t have been this smooth.” “We’re brothers—no need for thanks. Just remember to honor Master well once you’ve grown strong.” Xiao Chen said as he helped Cao Youqian up, slinging an arm around his shoulder as they strolled back toward the Miscellaneous Dao Academy... ==================================================================================== Get access to 20 chapters in advance and enjoy 2 daily updates by supporting the series. Available on Patreon: /Alex_Cruise or Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/anish_44