The brilliant emerald light and the weeping mother faded into nothingness.
Whoosh.
Lucien gasped as reality snapped back into place.
His hands were still resting firmly on the cold bronze rim of the Low-Rank Mortal Cauldron.
Across the mahogany table, Elder Soren was still adjusting his spectacles, completely unaware that in a fraction of a second, Lucien’s consciousness had witnessed an ancient, godlike existence defy death itself through the sovereign craft of medicine.
Inside his sea of consciousness, the golden scroll remained unfurled, blazing with absolute clarity:
Genesis Alchemy Scripture — Volume One.
Just like the Primordial Genesis Art and the Genesis Sword Art, this legacy was only the first volume.
Unlike Genesis Elemental Control and the Genesis Beast Taming Art, which had unlocked as complete sovereign arts, this scripture was an immense foundation.
Yet even as an introductory volume, the depth of knowledge was terrifying.
It contained thousands of lost, Ancient pill recipes, revolutionary void-refining techniques that bypassed mortal cauldrons, and comprehensive botanical knowledge cataloging the spiritual properties of countless heaven-and-earth herbs.
“Young Master Lucien?” Elder Soren smiled kindly, noticing Lucien’s dazed stare.
“The weight of the bronze can be grounding, but do not worry if the theory seems overwhelming. True pill refinement takes years of patient study.”
“I understand, Elder. Your teachings were invaluable,” Lucien replied, schooling his expression into polite humility.
After exchanging a few more cordial words, Elder Soren packed his manuscripts, took his bronze cauldron, and departed into the night.
The moment the courtyard latch clicked shut, Lucien turned to his desk.
Void refining without a cauldron requires higher realm Qi, Lucien analyzed the techniques within his sea of consciousness.
For now, using Genesis Elemental Control to mimic a cauldron’s inner chamber is the most practical path.
He pulled out the leather pouch containing the assorted wild spiritual herbs and roots he had harvested during his three-day expedition in the Eastern Mountain Range.
Following the foundational recipe for Stellar Body Tempering Pills recorded in the scripture, Lucien sat cross-legged on the floor.
He extended both hands, pointing his fingers toward the open air.
Fwump.
Using Genesis Elemental Control, a sphere of pure crimson flame materialized before him, hollowed out in the center to form a blazing, invisible furnace.
With delicate precision, Lucien guided the wild herbs into the fire.
Under the guidance of the scripture, there was no trial and error.
The crimson fire stripped away impurities with surgical perfection, melting the bitter stems into a puddle of translucent, aromatic medicinal essence.
Lucien’s soul intent pressed inward, compressing the liquid until it divided into ten gleaming, marble-sized spheres.
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The flames died out, and ten dark-gold pills dropped into Lucien’s waiting palm.
They gave off a fragrant, celestial aroma that carried not a single trace of medicinal toxicity.
All his gathered herbs were completely depleted, leaving behind only these ten pills.
Beside the bed, Lumi rested her head on her paws, watching Lucien with bright silver eyes as he steadied his breathing.
Without hesitation, Lucien tipped the first pill into his mouth, then the second, swallowing all ten in rapid succession.
BOOM!
The transformation that followed caught Lucien completely off guard.
When he had consumed the common Body Tempering Pills from the clan’s alchemy store, he had needed ninety pills just to spark the foundation, and nine pills per level afterward.
Yet these ten pills—refined strictly through the Genesis Alchemy Scripture—contained zero mortal impurities.
The medicinal energy did not trickle into his veins; it erupted into a roaring river of liquid starlight!
Inside his dantian, the miniature crimson star core expanded violently, spinning like a fiery vortex.
The dense red planet orbiting it flashed with incandescent light, accelerating in its orbit as waves of celestial fire flooded outward into his flesh.
Crack!
Crack!
Crack!
His muscle fibers were torn down, compressed, and woven anew under the furnace of celestial fire.
One level broke through!
Then, without slowing down, the remaining medicinal energy surged into a second cascade of temperings!
Boom!
A shockwave of expelled air ruffled Lucien’s robes as the storm within his dantian settled.
Lucien opened his eyes, where two brilliant beams of crimson light flickered before receding.
Two full levels from only ten pills!
He had directly skipped from the 5th level to the 7th level of the Stellar Body Realm!
For an ordinary cultivator, Level 7 meant seven simple temperings.
Lucien clenched his fist, and the air around his knuckles let out a dull, pressurized pop.
His physical body alone—without channeling a single strand of Qi—now commanded the terrifying density and brute force equal to a 1st-level Blood Quenching Realm powerhouse, the highest combat realm in all of Aurora City!
If he managed to forge or acquire a weapon capable of withstanding both his tyrannical Stellar Qi and Rank 1 Genesis Sword Intent without disintegrating, Lucien knew he could effortlessly unleash strength capable of matching a 3rd-level Blood Quenching master!
Beside him, a sharp chime resonated through their shared spiritual bond.
Propelled by Lucien’s sudden breakthrough, the torrent of shared celestial essence poured directly into Lumi’s small body.
Rooar—!
Lumi let out a low, majestic chuff as silver arcs of light danced across her coat.
Her bones expanded slightly, her muscle density multiplying as her cultivation broke through its barrier, stepping firmly into the mid-tier of Tier 2—the beast equivalent of a human 5th-level Bone Forging expert!
_________________________________
The next morning, the central square of Aurora City was an ocean of noise.
Banners flapped in the autumn breeze, and thousands of citizens, martial artists, and merchants crowded around the elevated stone arenas.
Today was the Annual City Martial Competition.
Across the entire Triad Kingdom, this competition was a mandatory tradition held simultaneously in every major city.
It was not merely a display of prestige; it was an officially sanctioned betting arena governed directly by the Kingdom’s martial laws.
Families placed wagers—spiritual vein mines, prime commercial streets, or medicinal territories.
If a clan won, they claimed the wager; if they lost, their assets were stripped away.
Because the matches were strictly supervised by Kingdom magistrates, it mattered little how many ancient, powerful elders a family harbored.
The only thing that dictated a clan’s survival and dominance was the martial strength of its younger generation.
Furthermore, kingdom regulations permitted families to enlist outside talents as guest representatives, a loophole the wealthy exploited ruthlessly.
In the high-tier viewing pavilion belonging to the Lewis Clan, the atmosphere was thick with smug anticipation.
Patriarch Lewis, clad in rich crimson silk, stood bowing slightly toward a young man seated comfortably in the guest seat.
The youth looked to be in his early twenties, possessing sharp, arrogant brows and wearing the luxurious azure robes of an elite martial sect.
“Welcome, Young Master Patrick,” Patriarch Lewis said, his tone dripping with deference.
“I trust your journey to our modest border city was free of troubles?”
The young man, Neil Patrick, casually swirled a cup of fine spiritual wine, not even bothering to look up at the patriarch.
“Save your pleasantries, Patriarch Lewis,” Neil Patrick said coldly, his voice dripping with condescension.
“You know full well I am not here out of respect for your Lewis family. I was ordered to come to this backward place for a single reason: so a certain noble personage can witness the utter humiliation of Leona David’s clan.”