Chapter 9: Five Years Later, Reborn and Transformed

After dinner.

Dongbo Xueying, his younger brother Qing Shi, and Zong Ling were gathered together. Dongbo Xueying took out a crystal orb the size of a watermelon from a nearby bag—it was something left behind by their mother.

“Brother, what is this? It’s so pretty,” Qing Shi said. He was a handsome and adorable child. If Dongbo Xueying resembled their father more in appearance, Qing Shi clearly took after their mother. He would undoubtedly grow into a dashing young man, while Dongbo Xueying would never quite match his younger brother’s good looks.

“Come here, Stone. Place your hand on it,” Dongbo urged.

“Okay,” Qing Shi obediently placed his small hand on the orb.

As his palm made contact, the natural spiritual fluctuations within his body triggered a reaction within the crystal. Immediately, it emitted a hazy crimson glow that spread throughout the room.

Everyone present wore expressions of joy.

“Brother, why is it glowing?” Qing Shi asked curiously.

“Great! A mage has awakened! Come here, give me a kiss,” Dongbo said happily as he hugged his younger brother and kissed him.

Mages differ greatly from knights.

Knights must begin training at a very young age. For instance, Changfeng Academy only accepted students up to the age of ten. Mages, however, were the opposite—children were not allowed to practice magic until they were older. Those from powerful families usually began training at around ten years old, while others might not start until they were sixteen or seventeen, or even past twenty. The age limit for entering Changfeng Academy as a mage was as high as thirty.

Anyone under the age of thirty could still be admitted.

This was because magic required a high level of mental acuity, especially since the cultivation process involved the soul. If children began practicing too early, they risked damaging their souls, potentially turning into mindless idiots. On the other hand, those who began training later in life—those in their forties or fifties—often had the advantage of life experience and the depth gained from years of living, and could still achieve great success or even transcend into the extraordinary.

…

Time passed day by day.

Before long, five years had passed.

“Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh~~~” Large snowflakes drifted down like goose feathers.

A youth dressed in a thin black robe stood leaning against a railing, gazing at the falling snow. His facial features were as sharply defined as if carved by a knife. Years of training had given him an aura that sent shivers through the hearts of those who felt it—a presence typical of a master spearman.

“Brother.”

A heavily bundled boy shouted from a distance.

“Qing Shi,” Dongbo Xueying smiled. He leaped down from over six meters high and landed softly on the thick layer of snow below. Now that his younger brother had grown up, Dongbo no longer used the childhood nickname “Stone.” He now called him by his given name, “Qing Shi.”

“Brother, let’s go to Yishui City and have some fun. There are so many interesting places there. It’s so boring staying at home all the time,” Dongbo Qing Shi said excitedly.

“Why don’t you ask Uncle Zong to go with you?” Dongbo Xueying replied with a smile.

“You’re always staying within Xueying Domain. You hardly ever go into the city even once a year. Don’t you get bored?” Dongbo Qing Shi muttered.

Dongbo chuckled but said nothing.

His younger brother had no memory of their parents anymore, nor did he remember the night they were taken away. He lived carefree and worry-free.

“I’ll practice some more martial techniques,” Dongbo Xueying said as he took off his shirt, revealing his bare upper body. While clothed, his physique wasn’t obvious, but once he removed his shirt, his powerful, muscular body became evident. Years of rigorous training had sculpted his body into something truly extraordinary.

With that, Dongbo Xueying stepped onto the snow-covered ground and began practicing the “Flame Three-Stage Method,” a martial art technique involving battle energy, also a boxing style.

Snowflakes landed on Dongbo Xueying’s skin. Each movement heightened his awareness of the surrounding world.

“You keep practicing. I’m going to play,” Qing Shi ran off excitedly.

Dongbo Xueying continued practicing his boxing techniques amidst the falling snow. Each movement, though seemingly slow, carried a flowing, seamless transfer of bodily strength.

At the age of thirteen, he had already reached the level of “Oneness of Man and Spear” in spear techniques.

But that wasn’t enough. He needed to unify every ounce of his physical strength with absolute precision and control before he could be called a “Spear Master” and successfully master the first level of the “Dark Ice Spearplay”—”Drifting Snow.”

In the past two years, he had often practiced boxing techniques to better understand his own body, seeking moments of enlightenment in quietude, striving to unify his physical strength into a single, harmonious force.

“I’m close.”

Dongbo Xueying had already faintly sensed the threshold of perfect physical unity.

From the age of six until this winter at fifteen, he had trained with the spear for nearly ten years. His diligence likely surpassed that of most people who trained for twenty or thirty years.

“There’s no need to worry about my spear techniques, but why haven’t I yet developed any battle energy?” Dongbo Xueying picked up a nearby long spear and began casually demonstrating spear techniques. The spear and Dongbo Xueying seemed to become one. The spear moved like a dragon, surging powerfully forward. Each thrust sent out countless spear shadows, and each sweeping motion was unstoppable.

According to earlier expectations, he should have developed battle energy by the age of ten and, by fifteen, already entered the Earth-tier Knight stage.

But in reality?

He had yet to generate any battle energy or become a Knight.

Dongbo Xueying, Zong Ling, and Tong San were not disappointed—they were perplexed!

The principle behind battle energy cultivation was to absorb the power of the heavens and earth to nourish the body. Once the body reached its limit in absorbing this energy, the excess would condense into battle energy within the body.

Yet Dongbo Xueying had already surpassed the physical limits of an ordinary person at the age of ten. Over the next five years, his body had continued to grow stronger, constantly absorbing energy from the heavens and earth. This was why he had yet to generate any battle energy.

“What exactly is the reason?”

“My body is now more than ten times stronger than an ordinary person’s, yet I’m still absorbing energy from the heavens and earth.”

Dongbo Xueying was puzzled.

Even Zong Ling, who had seen many strange things in his life, couldn’t explain this phenomenon.

“Crash!”

Suddenly, the long spear struck the ground with tremendous force, smashing into the stone beneath the snow. It rebounded violently and shot forward with a terrifying, sharp whistle.

At that moment, while performing the spear technique, Dongbo Xueying suddenly felt an itching sensation deep within the tiniest parts of his body.

“Huh?” Dongbo immediately stopped his movements. Every bone and muscle deep within his body began to itch. Even with his immense willpower, the sensation was unbearable. Then, his entire body grew scorching hot, as if being burned. It felt as though his very bones were being incinerated. His skin turned bright red, growing tougher, and a thin membrane of sinew began forming beneath it.

A faint, crimson aura rose from his bare upper body, vaguely taking the shape of a towering giant.

In a daze, Dongbo Xueying “saw” a colossal, barefoot giant wearing a beast-skin loincloth roaring toward the sky from a desolate land.

Then the crimson aura dissipated.

But the changes within Dongbo Xueying’s body grew even more intense.

“Ah!”

Unable to suppress the pain any longer, Dongbo fell to his knees, supporting himself with both hands on the ground. The heat radiating from his body began melting the surrounding snow.