Chapter 9: Eight Veins Appear

Before the thatched hut, the young boy's face, still tender and somewhat thin, was now alight with unconcealable excitement. His hands trembled as he touched his body; the sensation, like being reborn, made even the mature-beyond-his-years Zhou Yuan grin foolishly.

After all, this was incredibly important to him.

As he grew older, his peers had begun to open their meridians for cultivation, each displaying different talents. Although Zhou Yuan usually hid it well, deep down, he was always filled with envy.

He, too, yearned to open his meridians, step onto the path of Origin Qi, and wield power capable of shaking heaven and earth.

He had longed for this day for a very long time.

"When you were born, your eight meridians were naturally open; you were a born meridian opener. But unfortunately, you encountered a calamity right after birth. Sensing the external destruction, your eight meridians, in a form of self-preservation, retreated deep within your body. That's why, even when you reached the age when meridians normally appear, yours remained dormant," the old man in black said with a smile, looking at the overjoyed Zhou Yuan.

"Though your eight meridians were hidden, they could still sense danger. To re-activate them, you had to place yourself in a life-or-death situation. Only then would they be forced to reappear."

The old man in black raised an eyebrow and said blandly, "Don't think the aura of death you just experienced was fake. If you hadn't activated your eight meridians for self-preservation at the last moment, then now... you would truly be dead."

Zhou Yuan, still high on excitement, suddenly felt a chill run through him. He stared blankly at the old man in black, his face paling, clearly recalling that intense aura of death.

He even had a premonition that if he had delayed for just another moment, he might have truly died.

Clearly, the old man in black's method for reactivating his eight meridians carried considerable risk.

"What? Are you blaming this old man for not telling you beforehand?" the old man in black asked with a knowing smile.

Zhou Yuan took a deep breath, shook his head, and slowly replied, "As long as I can cultivate by opening my meridians, I would do it, no matter how great the risk. So, knowing beforehand wouldn't have made much difference. It's just that thinking about it now, I'm still a bit shaken."

The old man in black nodded, a hint of admiration in his voice. "You're a young lad, not old, but your character is quite good."

"However, even though your eight meridians have reappeared, don't celebrate too soon. Your eight meridians were originally open, but with their concealment over the years, they have become blocked and sealed again. So you must start cultivating from scratch, fully clearing these eight meridians, before you can advance beyond the Meridian Opening stage and enter the Qi Nurturing stage."

"Moreover, your situation will make opening your meridians more difficult than for others. Because they self-sealed to avoid calamity, the difficulty of opening them will be greater than for ordinary people," the old man in black said, shaking his head.

Zhou Yuan's brow furrowed slightly at these words, but he quickly relaxed it. "But at least, now I have more hope than before, don't I?"

No matter how bad the current situation was, could it be worse than his previous state, where he couldn't even find his eight meridians? What if opening them was harder? At least there was hope now, wasn't there?

Behind the old man in black, the girl in green picked up Tun Tun from the water vat. With a gentle shake, points of red light appeared on the small beast's body, instantly evaporating all the water droplets. Only then did she contentedly pick it up.

As her delicate hand gently stroked the small beast, her calm, beautiful eyes lingered on Zhou Yuan for a moment. Clearly, his persistence in seeking meridian cultivation somewhat surprised her.

"Not being able to cultivate by opening meridians isn't a big deal. I also can't use Origin Qi," she said, her red lips parting slightly, her tone indifferent.

The girl in green was clearly a person of tranquil disposition, barely bothering to glance at people or things she didn't care about. Yet, her words now seemed to carry a hint of comfort.

Zhou Yuan stared at her in surprise. This girl in green, unable to use Origin Qi?

"Haha, due to some special reasons, Yaoyao indeed cannot use Origin Qi," the old man in black chuckled from the side, then teasingly added to Zhou Yuan, "But don't underestimate her. She has inherited all of my true teachings in Origin Runes. Don't let her age, similar to yours, fool you; in terms of Origin Rune mastery, she's more than qualified to be your teacher."

"Oh?"

Zhou Yuan's eyes filled with doubt and astonishment. So, this girl in green actually possessed extremely profound mastery in Origin Runes—that was truly unexpected.

"But you don't need to belittle yourself. While the difficulty of opening your meridians is indeed higher now, what you give up, you gain. So, each time you open a meridian, the benefits you receive will also be greater than for ordinary people," the old man in black said with a smile.

Zhou Yuan's eyes lit up. He knew that each time a meridian was opened, his physical constitution would improve. According to the old man in black, his improvements would clearly be stronger than those of others. Looking at it this way, although opening meridians was harder, it was acceptable.

Thoughts swirling in his mind, Zhou Yuan suddenly looked at the old man in black and said pitifully, "Senior, although I can now cultivate by opening my meridians, I'm already a step behind others. It might take quite some time to reach a level where I can protect Sister Yaoyao."

The old man in black stared at Zhou Yuan with a half-smile. "What are you trying to say, you sly little brat, beating around the bush?"

Zhou Yuan chuckled. "How about, Senior, you do a good deed all the way and grant this junior a small opportunity?"

This old man in black was clearly unfathomable. In Zhou Yuan's estimation, his strength had likely reached an unimaginable level; at the very least, his own father, King Zhou Qing, was certainly far from his equal.

Normally, given Zhou Yuan's current status, he probably wouldn't have access to such a powerful individual. Now that this opportunity had presented itself, Zhou Yuan naturally wanted to seize it as much as possible.

This was a fortunate encounter.

Upon hearing this, the old man in black let out a hearty laugh. "What a cunning brat, so greedy."

Zhou Yuan keenly perceived that there was no anger in the old man in black's words, so he smiled and said, "Isn't this junior trying to better fulfill Senior's commission? Otherwise, if danger truly strikes, with my weak arms and legs, what good would I be besides dying before Sister Yaoyao?"

His pitiful demeanor, coupled with his tender face, made him look somewhat comical. Yaoyao, standing by, couldn't help but let her red lips curve slightly, her eyes twinkling. This fellow was quite amusing indeed.

"Grandpa Hei, if you don't want him to end up being a burden to me, making me protect him instead, then just agree," Yaoyao said, gently stroking Tun Tun with her delicate hand, her red lips barely moving.

Hearing this, Zhou Yuan immediately cast a grateful look at her, but the girl remained impassive, as if she hadn't heard.

The old man in black stroked his beard, his eyes flickering slightly, falling into a silence as if deep in thought. Finally, he sighed lightly and said, "Yaoyao, you're right. If this brat is too weak, he'll only cause you trouble."

He stared at Zhou Yuan, his gaze profound, and slowly said, "However, this old man's methods are not taught to outsiders."

Zhou Yuan was exceptionally intelligent. Upon hearing this, he immediately bowed down respectfully. "Disciple Zhou Yuan, greets Master!"

"Heh, you're a truly quick-witted young lad," the old man in black exclaimed in admiration at Zhou Yuan's decisive action. His tone had merely softened a little, and this boy immediately began the apprenticeship ceremony. He was truly skilled at striking while the iron was hot.

The old man in black shook his head, then sighed, "But to meet here is also a form of destiny. Although you came for this old man's methods, I will temporarily take you as my disciple."

Zhou Yuan was overjoyed at these words and bowed respectfully again.

The old man in black watched Zhou Yuan meticulously complete the apprenticeship ceremony, and his aged eyes softened somewhat. He said, "Since you, young lad, are so determined, this old man cannot be stingy."

"Now that your eight meridians have appeared, I shall impart to you a Qi Guidance Art."

In the Meridian Opening stage, one cannot store Origin Qi in the body, and thus cannot cultivate true cultivation techniques. One can only practice Qi Guidance Arts. Only after all eight meridians are open and one enters the Qi Nurturing stage can true cultivation techniques be formally practiced.

Light appeared at the old man's fingertip, as if subtle characters were flowing. Then, his fingertip suddenly touched Zhou Yuan's glabella.

As the fingertip made contact with his glabella, Zhou Yuan immediately felt his head swell. A vast amount of information poured in, making his head feel somewhat dizzy.

However, the dizziness quickly receded, and Zhou Yuan carefully absorbed the information that had appeared in his mind.

Qi Guidance Art, Dragon Absorption Art?

Clearly, this Qi Guidance Art was called the Dragon Absorption Art. It sounded quite imposing; he wondered what its effects would be in practice. But since it was from the old man in black, it surely wasn't an ordinary technique.

The old man in black withdrew his finger, looked at Zhou Yuan, and smiled. "I saw you had Origin Runes inscribed on your body earlier. Are you interested in this path?"

Zhou Yuan nodded, saying earnestly, "The path of Origin Runes is profound and extensive; it should not be underestimated."

For the past two years, he had specialized in Origin Runes and could vaguely perceive their profound power. The path of Origin Runes was somewhat like "using a small force to move a great weight," constructing mysterious Origin Runes with tiny amounts of power to unleash immense force.

Unfortunately, Origin Runes could not achieve self-transformation, and being both profound and extensive, achieving anything significant in them inevitably consumed much energy. Thus, many Origin Masters regarded it as a minor path and were too lazy to cultivate it extensively.

The old man in black nodded in agreement when he heard Zhou Yuan's words. "The world is foolish, seeing Origin Runes as a minor path, disliking their obscurity and difficulty to master. Yet, they do not know that the path of Origin Runes emphasizes the spirit. Once cultivated expertly, it can complement the path of an Origin Master."

Zhou Yuan noticed a hint of pride in the old man in black's demeanor when he spoke of Origin Runes, and he knew in his heart that the old man must have extraordinary mastery in this field.

"I see your spirit is lively and vigorous; you are quite talented in Origin Runes. This old man shall impart to you a Soul Forging Art."

The old man in black smiled, and the next instant, his eyes suddenly shot out a brilliant light, directly piercing into Zhou Yuan's pupils.

Zhou Yuan's head boomed, as if great bells and chimes resonated in his mind. Countless ancient characters swirled in his eyes, and finally, as they gradually settled, a stream of information flowed forth from his heart.

"Chaos God Mill Contemplation Art..."