Chapter 1

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Chapter 1: Nine Lotus Platforms

"Young Master, run quickly…"

The heartbreaking voice of the last guard who fell still echoed in Yun Yi’s mind.

The night was filled with heavy rain!

The weather in the valley was very cold!

Just like Yun Yi’s already cold blood.

Ten days, from the Imperial Capital to this nameless valley, thirty-six guards fell one by one.

Yun Yi dragged his weary body forward, the pounding rain hurt a little, but Yun Yi had long become numb.

Step by step, the ground was full of mud.

Already out of strength, Yun Yi didn’t know what kept him from falling yet. Perhaps it was the overwhelming hatred, or maybe it was the sight of the thirty-six guards falling one after another.

"There is half an hour left. In half an hour, I will be sixteen years old."

Yun Yi murmured. His sixteenth birthday was very important to him. He just didn’t expect to spend it here.

But the pursuers behind Yun Yi would not give him half an hour. He had to find a hiding place in this nameless valley.

Yun Yi took a deep breath and continued forward. After walking a little over a hundred steps, he was exhausted and could barely move, so he leaned against the rocky wall to observe the terrain of the valley.

Creak!

When Yun Yi leaned against it, the rocky wall let out a creaking sound. Although the noise was faint under the roar of the storm, Yun Yi still heard it clearly.

Yun Yi turned around and saw many tiny cracks on the rocky wall, which was made up of stacked stones.

Yun Yi pressed his hands against the wall and pushed with all his remaining strength. With a loud rumble, the stones were pushed aside, revealing a pitch-black cave behind.

"Heaven helps me."

Yun Yi was very happy and quickly entered the cave. The cave was small, but it was big enough for him to hide.

Looking at the heavy rain outside, he thought of the Yun family’s troubles, the lives of the thirty-six guards, and the soldiers who were coming after him. Yun Yi didn’t know where he found the strength, but he struggled to pick up the stones and piled them up like before, completely sealing himself inside the cave.

Soon, more than ten figures appeared in the valley. These people had strong breaths and moved quickly, all at the Open Spirit fifth or sixth grade level. One of them even reached the Open Spirit seventh grade.

"Captain, that kid is definitely hiding in this valley."

One person spoke up.

"Search! The prince has ordered that we must capture Yun Yi and behead him along with the Yun family."

The captain said coldly.

"Yes, captain. Everyone, listen to me, search!"

A group of expert fighters searched the valley. They were very skilled, and even in this heavy rain, it could not affect them at all.

Yun Yi hid in the cave, not daring to make a sound. He looked outside through a crack in the rocks, and he listened carefully to the captain’s words, clenching his fists in anger.

Yun Yi could not understand why the Yun Mansion, which had supported the Chu Kingdom for generations and had produced three famous Generals Yun, had come to such a terrible situation.

Ten years ago, General Yun Yun Canghai ruled the Northern Desert, making enemies too afraid to act. But then he fell ill, and both his legs were harmed, leaving him in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. He was Yun Yi’s grandfather.

Five years ago, General Yun Yun Feihu stirred the winds of the Northern Desert with his flying tiger dagger, but he lost his life unexpectedly in the battle at Grand Dragon Cliff. He was Yun Yi’s uncle.

Then, Yun Feilong, known as the greatest talent of the Chu Kingdom, appeared and fought in the Northern Desert. In just one month, he gained the great reputation of Cloud General Feilong. He was Yun Yi’s father and the pride of the Yun Mansion and all of Chu Kingdom. Ten days ago, the emperor summoned Yun Feilong back, accusing him of treason just because he shared a drink with an enemy general, and imprisoned him in the heavenly prison.

That night, the guards attacked the Yun Mansion, capturing everyone they saw. Those who resisted were executed on the spot. Yun Canghai realized the seriousness of the situation and, to protect the last bit of the Yun family bloodline, sent thirty-six guards through a secret passage to help Yun Yi escape from the Imperial Capital.

Even now, Yun Yi did not know what happened to his grandfather, whether he was alive or dead. When he escaped from the Imperial Capital, he turned back and saw the rising flames above Yun Mansion. The Yun Mansion is known for its loyalty and bravery for three generations, yet it ends in such a tragic way. How sad it is.

Terrible! Terrible! Terrible!

Yun Yi’s heart roared, his eyes were red, but he did not dare make a sound. "Captain, we still haven’t found him. The rain is getting heavier, and it’s hard to see many places. Searching is very difficult."

There was a sound coming from outside. "Keep searching for me. That kid is just a waste who cannot Open Spirit. He can’t escape far," the captain said in a cold tone.

A waste who cannot Open Spirit? A cold smile appeared at the corner of Yun Yi’s mouth. In the Lingtian Continent, Spirit Cultivators are the main focus. Most people can open their spirit body at the age of ten, which is called the Open Spirit Realm. If someone has not opened their spirit by the age of ten, they can never open it in their lifetime.

People like Yun Yi, who are sixteen years old and have not opened their spirit, are destined to live a mediocre life and cannot become Spirit Cultivators. For sixteen years, Yun Yi has been called the biggest failure in the Imperial Capital, and the saying about "a tiger father has a dog son" has become a popular story to tell over meals.

But no one knows that being unable to open the spirit and not having opened the spirit are two different things. Yun Yi cannot open his spirit because he has never tried to do so. Ancient records say that an Innate Dao Body opens at the age of sixteen. Yes, Yun Yi is incredibly rare, an Innate Dao Body that hasn’t occurred in ages. This secret is known by only three people in the Yun Mansion besides himself.

"Soon, I will be sixteen years old." Yun Yi clenched his teeth, feeling the changes in his quiet energy center after sixteen years; the Innate Dao Body is about to awaken. When the Dao Body awakens, he will be invincible! This is a record from an ancient book, but because the Innate Dao Body has never appeared, Yun Yi does not know what it will be like to awaken the Dao Body.

The rain was getting heavier, as if the heavens were helping Yun Yi; after all, such a heavy downpour was making it very hard for the men in black to search. Time passed by second by second, and suddenly, a clear cracking sound came from Yun Yi’s body. If it weren’t for the pouring rain, even inside this cave, that crisp sound might have been heard by people outside.

"Sixteen years, and the Innate Dao Body is finally about to awaken. Grandpa, Dad, wait for me." Yun Yi’s eyes began to shine with a strange light; at this moment, he was not as excited as he had once imagined, because his heart and blood had gone cold.

Yun Yi had once dreamed of many scenes of awakening the Dao Body: the Yun Mansion decorated with lights for celebration, countless high-ranking officials and nobles from the Imperial Capital coming to congratulate him, and taking off the hat of the son of a tiger. But today’s scene was something he could never have imagined in his dreams. Yet none of this mattered anymore; ten days of being hunted and fleeing had changed the wealthy young man’s heart dramatically.

Buzz buzz…

Yun Yi’s energy center began to stir. He took a deep breath and quickly steadied his mind, knowing that the most important moment had come.

Yun Yi’s energy center soon opened up, and in the misty space, a pure white lotus platform appeared.

The lotus platform emitted a holy aura, making Yun Yi’s energy center feel as if the world had just begun. Sacred energy surged and flowed into his limbs, causing all his fatigue to vanish without a trace, filling his body with energy.

At the moment the lotus platform appeared, a wave of information rushed into Yun Yi’s mind.

[Heaven and Earth create, creation gives rise to the lotus platform]

[The lotus platform opens nine petals, one is first grade]

These four sentences contained the innate Dao, and Yun Yi saw four equally sacred characters appear on the pure white lotus platform: [Nine Dao Lotus Platform].

From the information, Yun Yi learned that these nine lotus platforms were the foundation of the Innate Dao Body, representing nine great paths in the world.

On the lotus platform, there were nine holes. According to the information, as one’s skills changed, nine lotus flowers would grow on the platform. Each flower represented a different spirit body.

Yun Yi couldn’t help but get excited.

It is known that the spirit body depends on a person’s constitution. There are many types of spirit bodies: metal, wood, water, fire, earth, wind, thunder, light, darkness, stars, evil, goodness, and more…

Usually, a Spirit Cultivator can only have one spirit body. In Lingtian Continent, those who can have two spirit bodies are truly exceptional. If someone can have three spirit bodies, they are an extraordinary being, unmatched in the world.

Yun Yi’s Innate Dao Body, however, can grant him nine spirit bodies, which is simply amazing.

Although the nine spirit bodies do not all awaken at once, this supreme potential is already invincible.

When the Dao body awakens, it becomes unbeatable; it seems this statement is not just a simple saying.

It is hard to imagine what heights Yun Yi could reach if all nine spirit bodies were awakened.

If this frightening constitution were to be known, it would likely cause a tremendous stir.

Buzz buzz…

The lotus platform moved, energy was flowing continuously. A hole on the platform began to glow with flickering black light.

Yun Yi held his breath. He knew that the first lotus flower was about to bloom, and he was going to have his first spirit body, which would be an innate spirit body.

The black light grew stronger, swirling and spreading above the lotus platform. Within this light, there was a strong dark power, eerily terrifying.

Soon, a black lotus bloomed. This black lotus was surrounded by a thick dark aura, making one feel a chilling sense of falling into hell.

At the moment the black lotus bloomed, a message appeared in Yun Yi’s mind once again.

[Dark Spirit Body, can absorb all dark powers from the world for oneself, becoming the King of Darkness…]

The Dark Body opened, and wild Dark Energy surged from the black lotus into Yun Yi’s limbs and organs, causing his power to rise wildly under the impact of this energy.

Open Spirit Realm, first grade.

Open Spirit Realm, second grade.

Open Spirit Realm, third grade.

…

The black lotus carries the original Dark Energy, which is the source of darkness. The energy on it is not much, but the benefits it brings to Yun Yi are unimaginable.

Under the impact of the black lotus, Yun Yi’s cultivation finally reached the peak of the fifth grade of the Open Spirit Realm before stopping, just one step away from the sixth grade of the Open Spirit Realm.

In these sixteen years, Yun Yi did not cultivate the Open Spirit but did not remain idle either; he trained his physical body to a nearly perfect level, allowing him to withstand the impact of dark power.

At this moment, after reaching the peak of the fifth grade of the Open Spirit Realm, his body became even more extraordinary under the impact of Dark Energy.

Moreover, Yun Yi’s entire aura experienced a tremendous change; it was cold, dominating, like a king walking in the darkness.

Yun Yi knew that the reason he first developed the Dark Body was related to his current state of mind, with a heart full of hatred and unwillingness flooding into the lotus platform, causing the black lotus to grow naturally.

"Captain, there is a cave here, and there are sounds coming from inside. That guy must be inside."

At that moment, a voice came from outside.

The heavy rain had stopped; the people outside finally found the cave where Yun Yi was hiding.

Bang!

As soon as the words were spoken, a huge foot kicked away the stone blocking the entrance, and two figures appeared at the mouth of the cave.