Chapter 6

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Chapter 6: Ten Refinements of the Body

A strand of sunlight fell upon Lou Yun’s face. Unbeknownst to him, he had sat atop the mountain peak until dawn the next day. As he opened his eyes, an indescribable comfort washed over his entire body, making him stretch vigorously. How long had it been since he last felt such contentment!

After relaxing for a moment, Lou Yun recalled yesterday’s experiences. He couldn’t help wondering if it had all been a dream. Eagerly, he called out in a low voice, \"Chang Xiang, are you still there?\"

Chang Xiang’s voice responded, \"I am! Kid, you’re getting quite bold, addressing me directly by name!\"

Confirming yesterday’s events as reality lifted Lou Yun’s spirits even higher. He couldn’t resist teasing Chang Xiang, \"Then what should I call you? Master?\"

\"No need for \’Master.\’ How about this—from now on, call me Big Brother!\"

\"Big Brother?\"

\"Mhm! That’s decided.\" Chang Xiang shifted the topic abruptly. \"You’ve meditated long enough to grasp spiritual energy absorption. Now we move to the next stage: cultivating your body.\"

At the mention of cultivation, Lou Yun dropped the debate over names. He sprang to his feet. \"Alright! How do we cultivate? Running? Carrying weights?\"

Though he had never trained his body before, he’d read books describing body refinement techniques.

Chang Xiang scoffed dismissively. \"Running? Carrying weights? Those are the clumsiest, slowest, lowliest methods of body refinement. Using those, you’d barely achieve modest results in ten years. Beyond that, there’d be no further progress. I’m teaching you the supreme body refinement method—I call it the Ten Refinements of the Body. Listen well!\"

\"Most believe body refinement involves strenuous exercise to build strength. Over time, while this hardens the flesh and firms muscles, it also robs the body of flexibility and damages bodily functions. The harm outweighs the benefits.\"

\"True body refinement cultivates from the inside out. Absorb spiritual energy from the world, then dissolve it into every part of your body’s meridians, bone marrow, blood, and organs. Strengthen them fundamentally—transform their very essence. This reconstructs your body completely.\"

\"This refinement method runs through your entire cultivation journey. Initially, you actively compel the spiritual energy into your body. Once your body adapts, it spontaneously absorbs and assimilates energy—like an instinctual self-cultivation requiring no effort.\"

\"However, once your body reaches a certain toughness, absorbing more spiritual energy ceases to help. Imagine your body as a vessel. A full vessel can take no more. At that point, you must expand your body’s capacity to hold greater spiritual energy. Only then can you grow stronger.\"

\"In my eyes, the human body resembles a crude weapon. Repeated forging, tempering through fire and hammer, refines it. That’s why I named the method Ten Refinements of the Body. Meaning: you undergo a minimum of ten capacity-expanding stages. No less!\"

\"Now, begin cultivating your physical body. Only when I deem it sufficiently strengthened will we proceed to the next step.\"

After a full day and night, Lou Yun mastered spiritual energy absorption. Though integrating energy into his body proved difficult, under Chang Xiang’s guidance and his own persistence, he succeeded before long.

Worldly spiritual energy streamed ceaselessly into Lou Yun’s body, cycling within him until he guided it to dissolve into every limb and organ. Lou Yun sensed his body greedily guzzling the energy like one long starved.

Thus began his routine: cultivating whenever he wasn’t sleeping or eating. His intensity troubled even Chang Xiang. But Lou Yun had his rationale—he’d wasted nine years. Now he intended to reclaim every lost moment.

Though cultivation proved monotonous, memories of nine years of ridicule and his still-unconscious father awaiting a cure spurred him on. The tedium seemed trivial by comparison.

Lou Yun visited his father nightly. For unknown reasons, the man remained comatose—a state offering neither recovery nor deterioration. It appeared like deep slumber. This brought Lou Yun some peace of mind.

The Lou Family also appointed a new clan head. Everyone had expected Lou Tianlei, Lou Tianming’s third brother, to take the position. But the ever-unassuming Lou Tianzhi stunned them all—revealing strength surpassing even Lou Tianming before his injury. At the peak of a high two-star magical weapons master, he rightfully assumed leadership.

Most clansfolk reacted only with surprise. Naturally, they desired a powerful leader. Yet a faction seethed with fury: Third Elder Lou Runshui and his kin.

Their rage remained unsated. Faced with indisputable facts, they dared not voice dissent openly. They reluctantly accepted the outcome.

Two months vanished. One dawn, after a night of arduous cultivation in his room, a sharp pain tore through Lou Yun body.

Though agony twisted his features, exhilaration surged within him. This marked the first saturation point: the First Refinement in the Ten Refinements of the Body!

Accumulated change triggers qualitative transformation. After absorbing vast amounts of spiritual energy, Lou Yun’s body was finally ready for metamorphosis.

Lou Yun inhaled deeply and opened his eyes. He didn’t immediately charge at the bottleneck. Instead, he calmed himself—a choice revealing his extraordinary composure. Neither impatient, nor arrogant.

Chang Xiang instantly detected the shift. His voice followed promptly, \"Not bad! Thought it’d take you three months to reach this point. You’ve shaved off one. Next, you expand your capacity. This won’t be easy. Succeed, and you become eligible to select an appropriate common weapon!\"

Lou Yun flashed a confident smile. \"Then we’ll choose one tomorrow!\"

\"Tomorrow?\" Chang Xiang gaped momentarily, then barked laughter. \"Alright! Let’s see you broaden your body in a single day!\"

Lou Yun simply smiled. During their time together, he’d come to understand Chang Xiang’s temperament. Though sometimes harsh-spoken, Chang Xiang was truly dedicated to helping him. For now, Chang Xiang withheld specific guidance—but over two months, his pointers were abundant. Lou Yun remembered every word.

\"The human body has numerous components—organs, bones, large structures; meridians, vessels, tiny networks. Existing since birth, they mature with age but stay confined within fixed parameters. My Ten Refinements method fundamentally alters them—forcing change beyond those boundaries.\"

\"For example: meridians are vital. If they normally hold spiritual energy the thickness of one finger, two fingers’ worth finds no passage. Now you must expand your meridians—widen them, thicken them. Make them hold two fingers, three—even five!\"

Lou Yun murmured to himself, \"Since meridians are most critical, I’ll begin the First Refinement there!\"

He closed his eyes, sank into deep concentration, and commenced the First Refinement upon his own flesh.

Spiritual energy flooded every inch of him. But unlike before, the energy surged violently now. Unable to integrate smoothly into overcrowded vessels, it clogged and churned — fighting to enter, but trapped in chaos. Eventually, all flow ceased, forming stagnant pools.

The most skilled physician cannot locate meridians. They’re conceptual, formless. Yet Lou Yun’s spiritual sense perceived them—a tangled, web-like network blanketing his being.

Like Chang Xiang had compared, these meridians were merely as thick as a little finger. Walnut-sized clots of spiritual energy wrestled to squeeze through. This struggle birthed Lou Yun’s pain.

\"Stop jostling! Wait your turn!\"

Lou Yun whispered instructions while directing the energy himself. First, disperse the clotted energy. Next, meticulously condense a strand slightly thicker than his little finger. Guide it slowly into the meridian passage.

Even that minuscule increase stretched the meridian agonizingly wide. Teeth gritted, Lou Yun persisted. With gentle guidance and minor force, he forcibly stuffed the spiritual strand in.

More energy flooded inward. The meridian visibly dilated under the strain. With every fractional expansion, Lou Yun fed it more energy—anchoring the newly gained space before it could collapse. He didn’t relent until the meridian stabilized, no longer regressing.

Segment by segment, meridian by meridian, Lou Yun repeated the process. Hours later, when every meridian in his body had been expanded, his eyes fluttered open. Drenched head-to-toe as if hauled from water, his robes clung heavily. A light squeeze would wring streams of sweat.

Yet immense satisfaction and excitement blossomed inside him. He’d completed his First Refinement! The previously chaotic backlog of spiritual energy dispersed—flowing smoothly through his revitalized form once more. Integration. Absorption. All resumed.

Clenching his fists, Lou Yun palpably sensed the newfound, formidable power radiating through his body. A content nod escaped him.

\"Kid! You actually pulled it off! Within one day! Now wash up. At dawn, we hunt for that common weapon!\"