Chapter 1

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Chapter 1 — A Father Worthy of the Name, Jiangning City’s Pride!

Before dawn, frost dusted the leaves like pale silver.
Luo Guan woke up on time. After a quick wash, he stepped outside.
In the courtyard, he glanced toward his father’s room. The coughing that had gone on deep into the night still echoed in his ears.
Guilt flashed across his face. He drew in a deep breath and strode straight into the training yard.
“Hup!”
With a grunt, Luo Guan lifted a stone pier and began the daily grind of physical training.
The handles of the stone pier had grown smooth with age, and its edges were chipped from years of use.
It weighed over a hundred jin (~120 lbs), but in Luo Guan’s hands, it moved with a surprising grace.
Soon, steam rose from the top of his head, and his thin shirt was soaked through with sweat, clinging tightly to his lean, powerful frame.
After two hours, he set the stone down and gasped for air, chest heaving.
His arms and legs trembled violently, sore muscles twitching and spasming like earthworms under his skin.
And yet—his chest and abdomen remained utterly still.
Luo Guan forced himself upright. The pale red light of the rising sun fell upon him, lending his solitary figure a trace of desolation—and unwillingness to accept defeat.
In this world, cultivation began with tempering the body. At sixteen, when one’s body had fully matured and qi and blood were abundant, one could attempt to condense the Tongtian Bone ( “Heaven-Piercing Bone”).
Success meant stepping onto the path of cultivation!
There were seven realms in martial cultivation:
Ten Strength, Hundred-Man, Thousand-Mountain, Ten-Thousand-Weight, Sky-Piercing, Soaring Cloud, and Heaven-Stepping.
Beyond that lay the ten levels of the immortal path:
Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, Nascent Soul, Divine Soul, Unity of Return, Great Tribulation, Heaven-Bearing Thought, Eternal Indestructibility, and Ascension to Immortality.
Luo Guan had started body cultivation at age six and had never missed a single day in twelve years, rain or shine.
At sixteen, he failed his first attempt to condense the Tongtian Bone.
At seventeen, he failed again.
Half a month ago, on his third attempt—still nothing.
Now past eighteen, the innate qi in his body was beginning to dissipate. He would soon lose all chance of ever forming the Tongtian Bone. A mundane life was all that awaited him.
True, among hundreds, barely one ever stepped onto the cultivation path.
But he was the only son of the Luo Clan’s Third Elder!
His father, once a Thousand-Mountain Realm master, had become crippled after a severe injury.
Yet for Luo Guan’s sake, he’d spared no expense on rare spiritual medicines.
Under his father’s personal guidance, Luo Guan had tempered his body better than most could dream of.
And more importantly—he had been granted the rare opportunity to attempt Tongtian Bone Condensation not once, but three times.
Yet…he still failed.
A bitter curve tugged at the corner of the young man’s lips.
Talent—it could truly break one’s spirit.
He used to believe that with enough effort, man could conquer the heavens.
But reality had taught him otherwise.
An old servant watched from the edge of the training yard, unable to hide the sorrow in his eyes. He gave a respectful bow.
“Young Master, the Master calls you in for breakfast.”
Luo Guan took a long breath. “Alright.”
As he left, a nearby young servant muttered, “Young Master’s still getting up early to train like this… why bother…”
The old servant barked, “You think you can talk about the Young Master like that?!”
The boy shrank back. “It’s just—he’s failed three times already, wasted a fortune in clan resources. People are already talking… I just don’t want him to be laughed at again.”
The old servant sighed heavily.
“Let others talk. We’ve seen how hard he’s worked! I still remember—back then, such a tiny child, Master would drag him out before sunrise to train, standing motionless in the freezing wind…”
“I remember how the Young Master used to cry from the pain, calling for his mother in his sleep… Madam loved him most. If she knew what he’s gone through only to end up like this, her heart would break. Heaven really is blind! Why can’t our Young Master cultivate…”
The boy’s eyes widened. “Uncle Ku! The Master forbade us from mentioning Madam—did you forget?!”
“Scram! I didn’t say a damn thing!”
With a flick of his sleeve, Uncle Ku stormed off.
By the time Luo Guan returned, bathed and changed, his expression had settled into calm.
“Father.”
Luo Zhenyang nodded. “Eat. Afterward, come with me to the ancestral hall.”
“Yes, sir.”
They finished breakfast in silence.
Luo Zhenyang walked ahead, coughing now and then as the cold wind bent his hunched back.
Luo Guan followed behind, eyes fixed on his father’s frail figure. The image of that weary back… each step a reminder of how many times he had let this man down. His fists clenched tightly at his sides.
They arrived at the ancestral hall—and it was packed.
Luo Guan frowned. There hadn’t been any major clan events lately. Why was everyone here?
“Wait outside,” Luo Zhenyang said, then straightened his back and stepped into the hall.
With a long creak, the doors closed behind him.
Luo Guan turned to ask when a stern-faced cousin, Luo Yong, marched up to him.
“Three days ago, my brother was ambushed while escorting a shipment. He’s crippled for life now.”
“I’m heartbroken—but I’m also proud. He fought to the death against three mounted bandits alone, and protected the Luo Clan’s escort bureau’s honor!”
“But do you know—last year, he was this close to condensing his bone on his second attempt. If he’d had a third chance…”
Luo Yong’s eyes turned red.
“You’re lucky to have a good father. Third Elder paid double the cost to get you those three chances.”
“But Luo Guan, you have to understand—what you wasted… was someone else’s chance to change their fate!”
Luo Guan had no words.
Whispers swirled all around him.
“Is today’s meeting called by the clan head… for Luo Guan again?”
“Three failed attempts already. The Luo Clan’s done more than enough. What more does the third branch want? If they keep pushing this, my family will object!”
“The Clan Head and Third Elder are blood brothers. It’s fine to show a little favoritism, but there’s a limit! What, just because Luo Guan’s from the main bloodline, the rest of us are all bastards now?! Should we all give way just for him?”
Cold, indifferent eyes surrounded him.
Jealousy. Pity.
But most of all—contempt.
The Third Elder had once been a pillar of the clan. Even injured, he was still a man among men. But for the sake of his only son, he’d burned through every favor, sold off every asset of the third branch.
And this was the son he’d raised?
Inside the hall—
Luo Zhenyang, hair grayed and face aged, sat down with a calm expression under the eyes of the gathered elders.
Clan Head Luo Zhenshan spoke gravely, “This meeting was called at Third Elder’s request. You all know why we’re here. Speak your minds.”
Silence.
In this world, the path to power was through cultivation.
Everyone understood the Third Elder’s obsession with his son’s future.
Though there had been minor disputes between branches before, no one wanted to be the first to speak today.
Finally, the hot-tempered Fifth Elder couldn’t hold back.
“What’s there to discuss? Third Brother, I’ll be blunt—you’re wasting your time. Your boy just isn’t cut out for cultivation!”
“My fifth branch has two kids reaching bone-condensation age this year. Same with the others. Even the household elders have candidates lined up. Are we just supposed to step aside again?!”
Once someone started, the others joined in.
“Three failures already. There’s no need for a fourth.”
“I don’t support this either.”
“Yes, the clan has wealth—but there are many mouths to feed. We have to be fair.”
Luo Zhenshan’s sharp gaze quieted the room.
“Third Elder, you’ve heard everyone. Anything more to add?”
Luo Zhenyang replied calmly,
“You’ve all heard—the Heavenly Fire Abyss is opening. That’s my son Luo Guan’s final chance.”
“I’m not asking for anything more than this: let the clan list him as a candidate. The third branch will cover all costs.”
Fifth Elder’s frown eased. One slot in the Abyss could be negotiated. But he quickly scowled again.
“Let’s not beat around the bush, Third Brother. You’ve sold off most of your assets for your son already. What silver do you have left to send him in?”
Luo Zhenyang scanned the room. “I have my ways.”
Luo Zhenshan’s pupils narrowed.
“You intend to sell your Tongtian Bone?”
Luo Zhenyang nodded.
“Yes.”
Gasps erupted throughout the hall!
The Tongtian Bone was essential for bone condensation rituals. It could also be refined into pills or crafted into powerful tools—its value was astronomical.
But to extract it from a living cultivator… the pain was unbearable.
Worse still—it would cripple one’s cultivation and shave ten years off their lifespan!
At that moment, a side door creaked open.
The old, limping servant who always guarded the ancestral hall approached Luo Guan. He gave him a strange look.
“Young Master Luo Guan, please be silent and follow this old one to the side hall.”
Confused by everyone’s behavior, Luo Guan followed.
The side hall was separated by only one wall from the main hall. He couldn’t see anything—but he could hear everything.
Fifth Elder’s voice roared again.
“Third Brother, have you lost your mind?! Do you even hear yourself?! The Tongtian Bone is your foundation! Once it’s gone, your cultivation is crippled, and you’ll lose ten years of your life! Is it worth it?!”
Sell… his Tongtian Bone?!
Luo Guan’s eyes widened.
What was Father planning?!
He had to stop him!
Just as he turned, the lame old servant raised a hand. Luo Guan was instantly pinned to the floor by some unknown force. He couldn’t move—couldn’t even speak.
Then his father’s calm voice echoed through the walls—
“For my son, even death is worth it. What’s ten years of life, compared to that?”
Luo Guan’s tears poured down.
Memories flooded his mind.
That late autumn when he was six—burning with fever, teeth clenched in the cold rain, crying silent tears.
His father was by his side.
That snowy winter at nine—his fingers and toes swollen with frostbite, unable to feel anything.
His father was by his side.
That year at twelve, when he broke his arm but still had to train… and refused to get out of bed.
His father hit him for the first time.
Then stayed with him anyway.
All this time—through every stumble and struggle—his father had never left his side.
Back in the ancestral hall, Luo Zhenyang rose to his feet.
“I’m already a dying man, clinging to life by a thread. How could I just sit and watch my son’s twelve years of effort go to waste?”
“This is all I have left. Let me give him one last chance—so I may call myself a father without shame!”
He knelt on the floor, face calm.
“Brother, please… grant me this.”
Luo Zhenshan’s eyes brimmed with tears.
“…I will.”
In the side hall, the old servant had long since left.
Luo Guan lay sprawled on the floor, staring blankly at the ceiling.
Luo Zhenshan walked in.
“It was me who told the old man to bring you here.” He squatted beside Luo Guan, pulled him upright, and looked him in the eye.
“He’s your father. But he’s also my brother.”
“I respect his decision—but you must remember…”
“This is a chance your father bought for you… with his life.”
“Luo Guan—don’t let him down again!”