Chapter Two: Gathering Vital Energy to Unblock the Nine Orifices

Gently patting the sturdy trunk, a faint smile curled at Long Yun’s lips. Even he himself could not say when he had begun to feel such a special attachment to the Dragon Gate Pine. Perhaps it was its shape—resembling a slumbering dragon—that resonated with the dragon god’s bloodline within him. Thus, whenever he had grievances or worries, he would confide in the Dragon Gate Pine in silence.

Revenge! He must attain the realm of supreme strength. Long Yun was well aware of how formidable the power of Divine Dragon Island was. To challenge such a colossal force, he had to give two hundred percent.

“Time is short. My true energy is already abundant. The seven orifices I’ve passed before should pose no problem now, but the last two are much more difficult!” Long Yun murmured to himself. Long Xuan had reached the eighth orifice condensation; though only one orifice ahead, the difference in their monstrous talents was like night and day. Long Yun knew that unless he reached eight or even nine orifices of condensation, he could neither catch up to Long Xuan nor dream of confronting the entirety of Divine Dragon Island.

“There can be no more delay! I must break through!” At the thought of Divine Dragon Island, Long Yun’s heart tensed. He desperately needed to increase his strength. Focusing his mind, he once more entered a state of cultivation.

It had already been more than four months since Long Yun broke through to the orifice-clearing realm. Throughout this time, he ceaselessly used the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to hammer at his nine orifices. Now, the barrier was slightly loosened by his relentless efforts. Had he not worried about failing to reach the eighth orifice, he would have broken through long ago.

Humans have nine orifices, but they are not naturally equal in thickness; this is the origin of differences in talent. Once a single orifice is opened, energy condenses, and the other orifices automatically close. Thus, the orifice condensation realm is not one that can be cheated—how many orifices one can open depends entirely on perseverance and the innate quality of one’s orifices.

Three days passed in a flash.

“Is the breakthrough finally coming?” Long Yun could not help but feel a surge of excitement. Under the relentless wash of spiritual energy, only a thin veil remained over all nine orifices—just a final push, and he would ascend to the condensation realm!

“Success or failure, it all comes down to this!” With a motion of his will, Long Yun suppressed all restlessness, and heavenly energy surged down upon him.

At that instant, an unexpected change occurred.

A slender, nearly imperceptible golden ray shot abruptly from the Dragon Gate Pine and plunged into Long Yun’s meridians, swirling violently inside. The spiritual energy he had painstakingly gathered was shattered by this golden light.

A spurt of blood burst from Long Yun’s lips, his face suddenly ashen and the aura around him trembling in chaos.

“What’s happening? What kind of power is this?” Long Yun’s eyes snapped open, returning from his meditative state, brows furrowed tightly. This force was definitely not from his bloodline. Could it be that mysterious bloodline power that had suddenly appeared within him? But why would it shatter his gathered true energy?

“Once more!” Long Yun gritted his teeth. Breaking into the condensation realm was something he was determined to achieve.

Outside the Dragon Gate Pine, a figure was hidden amidst the thick branches of a nearby tree, eyes fixed intently on Long Yun.

“What is that aura? How mysterious…” a shadowy figure concealed in the undergrowth murmured, a hint of suspicion flickering in his gaze.

“Someone’s coming!” The mysterious observer whispered, and a faint azure glow enveloped his body, masking his presence completely.

It was none other than Chen Jie, the second senior brother of the Sword Heart Sect, who hurried anxiously to the base of the Dragon Gate Pine. Seeing Long Yun still deep in cultivation, he could not help but stomp his foot in agitation.

“This boy! Every time he cultivates, he throws caution to the wind. If he doesn’t wake up soon, our Sword Heart Sect will lose all face!” Chen Jie muttered under his breath.

Sword Heart was the weakest among the five branches of the Jade Sword Sect, its inheritance stone severely damaged during the great calamity three millennia ago. Long Yun, when he joined, had no cultivation at all and was nearly eliminated, but Elder Xue Renqi of Sword Heart saw potential in his tenacity and took him in.

What Xue Renqi had not expected was that Long Yun would display extraordinary talent from the moment he entered, breaking through two major realms in eight months—a feat that could only be described as legendary.

What is most fearsome is not a rare genius, but a genius who devotes himself to relentless cultivation, wasting not a single moment. Such a prodigy is truly terrifying.

Long Yun was just such a genius! Because of this, Xue Renqi now regarded him as a treasure. Though the inheritance sword stone was damaged, it was not impossible to comprehend the sword path from it—no one had yet been able to open the stone and commune with its spirit.

Long Yun’s monstrous talent sparked a ray of hope in Xue Renqi’s heart, so he placed great faith in him, even promising that once Long Yun reached the condensation realm, he would be allowed to seek understanding from the inheritance sword stone.

At this moment, Long Yun was wholly immersed in cultivation, oblivious to the outside world. Threads of spiritual energy once more flowed into his body through the crown point atop his head.

“This time, I’ll see if I can break through!” Long Yun steeled himself, ready to guide the spiritual energy to assault his nine orifices yet again.

Simultaneously, his spiritual sense remained vigilant, carefully watching every corner of his meridians. If that mysterious golden light appeared again, he would immediately withdraw his energy to avoid injury.

Just then, the enigmatic golden light reappeared within his body. Yet, this time, it did not scatter his gathered energy. Instead, it fused directly with the spiritual energy, becoming one with it.

Long Yun felt the golden light join, and at once, the ball of condensed energy swelled severalfold, pushing the limits of what he could endure, his meridians throbbing with pain.

There was no time to ponder the origin of the golden light. Gritting his teeth, he unleashed the combined force of golden and spiritual energy, directing it with a roar toward the nine orifices!

Boom—a wave of intense vibration shook his spiritual sense as the nine orifices broke open, a soothing warmth flooding his entire body.

At the same time, seven beams of light burst from the crown of his head, shooting straight into the sky!

“Seven orifices? No, that’s not right…” the hidden figure muttered, only to immediately contradict himself. With his sharp eyes, he saw that among the seven beams, two faint, nearly invisible rays were concealed. Their presence was masked by the others and their own weakness, making them hard to detect.

“Nine orifices condensed—such a monstrous talent will surely cause a great uproar! No, he mustn’t be exposed!” The mysterious man’s brows knitted in concern.

He spread his fingers, and five streaks of azure light swirled around them, forming a blinding barrier that flew instantly to cover Long Yun’s head. The nine beams of light were completely suppressed and gradually faded.

“He truly lived up to my expectations. Nine orifices condensation—a remarkable boy!” The mysterious man sighed softly, then vanished in a flash.

“Seven orifices! Seven orifices! Junior Brother Long Yun is such a prodigious talent!” With his limited power, Chen Jie could not perceive the two hidden rays, but even so, he was so astounded he nearly collapsed in shock.

At last, Long Yun slowly opened his eyes, a trace of joy flickering within them. All his hard work had paid off—he had finally condensed nine orifices!

“Second Senior Brother?” Spotting Chen Jie below, Long Yun smiled gently and called out.

Chen Jie was also at the condensation realm, but only with two orifices. In truth, the Sword Heart branch had not seen a true genius in ages, due to the damaged inheritance sword stone. Every new disciple who entered the Jade Sword Sect sought out the other four branches, and Elder Xue Renqi could do nothing to change it.

Seeing Chen Jie unresponsive, Long Yun leapt lightly from the Dragon Gate Pine, landing before him. Waving his hand in front of Chen Jie’s face, he said, “Hey, Second Senior Brother?”

Chen Jie stammered, “My heavens! Seven orifices condensation!”

With that, he finally snapped out of his shock, sucking in a cold breath. Seven orifices condensation—unheard of in the Jade Sword Sect. Long Yun was the first.