2: System Rewards and Crisis
Ye Fu's miserable screams were still echoing in the back mountain. The other two lackeys were already pale with fright. They scrambled to drag away the nearly unconscious Ye Fu, fleeing down the mountain like stray dogs, not even daring to look back.
Only after their figures disappeared at the end of their sight did Ye Chen slowly loosen his grip on the sword hilt.
"Buzz..."
The "blade of ruin" in his hand let out a slight wail. The trace of sharp Aura on the blade receded like a tide, and the rust and cracks seemed to become even more obvious. Finally, with a "crack," it shattered inch by inch, turning into spots of fluorescence that dissipated into the air, changing back into that rust-covered wood-chopping knife and clattering onto the snowy ground.
A strong sense of weakness followed, even worse than before. The power the System had temporarily bestowed upon him was exhausted, and the sharp pain from his broken martial veins returned clearly, causing his body to sway. He had to lean against a nearby tree trunk to barely stand steady.
But his eyes were startlingly bright.
"System," he murmured in his heart.
[I am here, host.] That grand and ancient voice responded immediately, carrying an inorganic coldness, yet bringing Ye Chen an endless sense of security.
[Detected that the task 'Beginning of Revenge' has been completed.]
[Task Evaluation: Perfect. The host crushed the enemy with overwhelming force and successfully delivered a declaration of revenge, which conforms to the Heart of the Sword Sovereign.]
[Distributing task rewards...]
[Congratulations host, you have obtained Beginner's Gift Pack Opening Authority x1!]
[Congratulations host, you have obtained System Points: 100 points!]
As the System notification sound faded, Ye Chen felt his consciousness being drawn into a mysterious space. It was a place of Chaos, with only a simple treasure chest emitting a faint golden light floating in the center.
"Open the Beginner's Gift Pack." Ye Chen did not hesitate for a moment.
[Opening Beginner's Gift Pack...]
[Congratulations host, you have obtained the following items:]
[Basic Qi Guiding Art(System Improved Version) x1: Can ignore damage to martial veins, draw in the purest Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi to quench the Physical Body, solidify the Foundation, and accumulate energy to repair the martial veins.]
[Low-Grade Spirit Stone x10: Ore containing pure Spiritual Qi, can be used to assist in cultivation or as System Mall currency.]
[Marrow-Cleansing Spirit Pill x1: Removes Impurities from the body, initially improves Physique, and slightly increases perception and absorption speed of Spiritual Qi.]
[Repair Talisman (Fragmented) x1: Can initially repair one damaged martial vein, restoring it to a cultivatable state. (Note: Because the host's martial veins are extremely severely damaged, this talisman can only repair one main vein, and the quality of the repaired martial vein will significantly decrease; subsequent Heaven And Earth Treasures or higher-tier Medicinal Pills will be needed for a complete recovery.)]
Looking at the light spheres floating before him, especially that [Repair Talisman (Fragmented)] emitting a soft green light and that seemingly ordinary yet extraordinary Basic Qi Guiding Art, Ye Chen's heart couldn't help but beat violently.
Hope! This was the true hope to break out of his desperate situation!
Cultivate while ignoring martial vein damage! He could even repair the martial veins!
Although the repair talisman was only a fragment and could only fix one vein with reduced quality, it was enough! As long as one martial vein could circulate Spiritual Qi, he could step back onto the path of cultivation! With his knowledge and experience as a Sword Sovereign from his past life, as long as he had this initial spark, he had the confidence to start a prairie fire!
"Extract the Basic Qi Guiding Art." Ye Chen commanded.
A golden light instantly sank into his forehead, and a large amount of exquisite techniques regarding Qi guidance and heavenly cycle circulation flooded into his mind. This technique seemed basic, but its circulation route and Spiritual Qi refinement efficiency were several times more profound than the top-tier Foundation Establishment techniques he had seen in the Nine Heavens Realm in his previous life!
"System improved... truly extraordinary!" Ye Chen suppressed the urge to start cultivating immediately and turned his gaze toward those ten crystal-clear Low-Grade Spirit Stones and that longan-sized, fragrant Marrow-Cleansing Spirit Pill.
He did not hesitate to take out the Marrow-Cleansing Spirit Pill and swallow it directly.
The Medicinal Pill melted as soon as it entered his mouth, and a gentle yet powerful medicinal force instantly exploded within him, turning into countless warm currents that washed toward his limbs, bones, and internal organs. Intense pain followed; it was the Impurities and congealed blood hidden deep in his body being forcibly expelled.
After a moment, the pain gradually faded, replaced by an unprecedented sense of ease and comfort. He felt as if his body had lightened by several pounds, and his senses became much sharper; he could even vaguely perceive the tiny light spots of Spiritual Qi floating in the air.
His body's surface was covered in a layer of grayish-black greasy grime, emitting an unpleasant odor.
Ye Chen didn't care. He walked to a clean patch of snow and used it to scrub his body. It was bone-chillingly cold, but his heart was burning with fire.
After cleaning up and changing into a set of clothes that were worn but much cleaner, Ye Chen immediately took a Low-Grade Spirit Stone and sat cross-legged on the bed in the broken house, starting his first cultivation session according to the method of the Basic Qi Guiding Art.
As soon as the Cultivation Technique began to operate, the Low-Grade Spirit Stone in his hand emitted a soft light. Pure Spiritual Qi, as if drawn by a force, seeped through his skin in threads and flooded into his body.
Indeed! It ignores martial vein damage!
This Spiritual Qi did not attempt to charge through those three blocked and broken main veins. Instead, it permeated his flesh, bones, and organs in an extremely gentle yet efficient manner, performing the most basic quenching.
At the same time, a portion of the Spiritual Qi followed the guidance of the technique and converged toward the 'Hand Shaoyang Meridian,' which had relatively the lightest damage. The green energy transformed from the [Repair Talisman (Fragmented)] had already attached itself to that martial vein. Now, driven by the Spiritual Qi, it began to slowly squirm, like the finest craftsman, connecting and smoothing the broken vein walls bit by bit.
This process was slow and continuous, bringing pain no less than that of marrow cleansing and vein tempering, but Ye Chen didn't even knit his brows. Compared to the pain of Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering, compared to the hatred of being betrayed by a close friend, what did this bit of physical suffering matter?
Time passed bit by bit.
By the time he had completely absorbed all the Spiritual Qi from the ten Low-Grade Spirit Stones, night had already fallen.
"Buzz!"
A slight vibration came from inside his body. That 'Hand Shaoyang Meridian' suddenly lit up. Although it still appeared fragile, the place that was originally broken and blocked had been initially connected and cleared!
Quenching Body Realm Fourth Level!
A sense of power far stronger than before emerged from deep within his body! He snapped his eyes open, a sharp light flashing and then vanishing.
Even though he had only repaired one martial vein of reduced quality, and even though his cultivation had only recovered to the Quenching Body Realm Fourth Level, it meant that he, Ye Chen, had stepped back onto the path of cultivation!
He stood up and threw out a punch at random.
"Whoosh!"
The wind from his fist whistled, actually creating a clear air-breaking sound!
The power of this punch far exceeded the Quenching Body Realm Fourth Level in this body's memory, almost comparable to an ordinary Quenching Body Realm Fifth Level! This was the effect brought by the System-improved Cultivation Technique and the Marrow-Cleansing Spirit Pill; his Foundation was incredibly solid!
However, just at this moment—
"Ye Chen! Get the hell out here for this old man!"
A shout filled with anger exploded like thunder outside the courtyard, and a powerful Aura instantly enveloped the entire dilapidated small courtyard.
Ye Chen's gaze narrowed as he looked out through the broken window lattice.
He saw that outside the courtyard gate, torches were bright and figures were numerous. Leading them was a gloomy-faced middle-aged man wearing the uniform of the Ye Family Enforcement Team. The spiritual power fluctuations radiating from him were impressively at the Kaiyuan Realm Third Level!
Behind him, besides Ye Fu, whose leg had been broken by Ye Chen earlier and who was now groaning on a stretcher, there were a dozen Ye Family guards holding clubs and radiating Killing Intent.
What was bound to come had finally arrived.
The corner of Ye Chen's mouth curled into a cold arc.
Perfect, I'll use you all to test the power I've just recovered and sacrifice you for my first sword after Rebirth!
He took a deep breath, without the slightest fear, pushed open the door, and walked out with his head held high.
The cold wind whipped his slightly thin clothes, but his posture was like an unsheathed sharp sword, straight and piercing.