A drop of lifeblood as potent as a river of vitality. As the liquid flowed down Feng Han's throat, an immediate force swelled within him. Both the innate qi inside him and the ambient qi around him reacted, forming an invisible vortex with him at the center.

  He expected to retch in disgust, to drown in the smell and taste of bloodied copper, but to his surprise, it tasted amazing. It was an incredible feeling, as if the heavens themselves were blessing his mouth. It had an almost fruity texture, a mellow fragrance, and a vibrant sweetness incomparable to anything he'd ever tasted.

  Feng Han's eyes widened in surprise, and a delighted smile creased his cheeks. Instinctively, his body reacted, a hunger buried so deep within stirred, akin to the awakening of insects. He tipped the chalice fully, downing its contents to the last available drop. He lapped his lips greedily, a yearning for more warming his insides.

  What is this... sensation. Did blood ever taste so... sweet?

  How many died to make this possible?

  How many more will die?

  ...when will I be able to get more?

  Feng Han relished the feeling flowing into him. As the liquid vanished from the chalice, its radiant glow dimmed, and Baoshi's voice muted.

  The only sound that remained was a rhythmic thud, the pounding of Feng Han's heart. Then there was the surging tide of qi that overflowed inside him; it tore through his body without a moment's respite, sudden and overbearing.

  It continued building up.

  Like a dam that could no longer be contained.

  It left Feng Han assaulted by a pain so violent it forced him to his knees. He could not mind Baoshi's silence, or anything for that matter. He clenched the ground desperately, panting for air.

  His blood vessels burned beneath the onslaught of the rampant qi flowing through him like a firestorm. Even his meridians flattened as if a flock of dragon-elephants were stampeding across them.

  Feng Han coughed blood, putrid and blacker than death itself.

  The ambient qi swirled intensely, a suctioning force that flowed into Feng Han's body without restraint. For he who devours Heaven cannot fear the world of man.

  Qi pulsed violently, a rebellion against Feng Han and the sin of consuming it. It battered his heart, lungs, and every cell of his being.

  He coughed up more blood, his limbs numb and mouth immobile as he curled up on the ground.

  What the hell... is cultivating... supposed to be... so painful...

  With a weak exhale, Feng Han fell unconscious, slipping into an abyss of his own making at the hands of his deal with Baoshi.

  [You're too weak, boy. So, so weak. But still, I wonder if your determination will last long enough to help me.]

  Baoshi appeared above Feng Han, enveloping him in a dulled white glow. It flickered momentarily, and both disappeared from the area. Moments later, and hundreds of miles away in an isolated underground cavern, Baoshi appeared and laid Feng Han flat into a corner.

  [Godsin's cultivation is far more arduous than normal. The sin you now bear is far greater than you can imagine. Immortals, Gods, Devils, Demons, the very Heavens themselves trembled when we wrought havoc on the myriad realms.]

  [Will you be the same as we were? Or will you fall like the last one?]

  [Well, no matter. Cultivate well, boy. Your body will be reforged from head to toe, from cell to cell. Endure it, and you'll truly become a cultivator. And then, whether or not you grow enough for my needs can only be left to fate.]

  Baoshi knew Feng Han couldn't hear her in his current state. But whether for him or for her, sometimes words spoken had their own weight, even if the meaning of them couldn't be heard.

  She settled before him, the golden rim of the chalice gently placed against Feng Han's forehead. With a soft hum, she transmitted her teachings directly into his mind. After several minutes had passed, the little luster that remained on the chalice faded, and Baoshi retreated to the opposite corner in silence.

  "Xiao Han. Xiao Han! Are you pretending to not hear me?"

  "Auntie Yi said you beat Xiao Xiao until he was bawling his eyes out. Did you?"

  "No... Yes, Mama... but he was being mean to Yue'er."

  "You little rascal."

  "I told you before. If you're going to beat someone, do it when nobody's around, and hit them so hard they don't have a chance to cry. Didn't I?"

  "Yes, Mama... you did."

  "Then why?"

  "I had to, Yue'er was crying—"

  "That's not an excuse, my son. Sometimes you have to hold your anger in. Keep it down in the pit of your stomach until it's ready to erupt."

  "I know, Mama. But—"

  "Yes, yes, I know what you're going to say. My son is such a brave boy. You dote on your sisters without fail. But if you're hurt, how could I forgive myself ever?"

  "I'll be more careful, Mama."

  "I know you won't, but that's okay. It'll all be over soon."

  "What do you mean, Mama?"

  "Forget it. Keep growing, Xiao Han. If you wish to protect anything, you need to grow a lot more. Like cultivating a bamboo sprout, it takes time, but once it grows strong, even the mightiest winds may fail to bend it. Cultivate well, so you'll never bend or break under pressure."

  "Yes, Mama!"

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  Water dripped endlessly from the stalactite-covered cavern's ceiling, and the stench of bestial corpses wafted from the cavernous depths, beyond the darkness and winding tunnels.

  Feng Han stirred restlessly, blood and impurities flowing from his pores in equal parts. His bones snapped audibly, filling the hollow space with a raucous trill.

  The swell of qi caused his robe to burst at the seams, revealing his flesh seeped in black and crimson. It was as if the weight of Heaven was collapsing on his shoulders. And he was the one bearing it while drenched in muck and blood.

  Baoshi's transmitted knowledge crammed into Feng Han's thoughts and instincts, filling his battered mind with the means to survive.

  For a moment, Feng Han's eyes burst open, brimming with a bright violet glow that illuminated the cavern and snuffed out all else. It caused even Baoshi to audibly stir for a moment before silencing again.

  Stones shattered, and stalactites fell, debris flung across the cavern with every roaring pulse of qi that emanated from Feng Han's body. Reforging was never easy, not for anyone, but for Feng Han, especially, the lifeblood-fueled breakthrough was a nightmare few could imagine.

  It was safe to say that Feng Han was learning the true meaning of 'Body Forging' in the most painful way possible.

  His consciousness flittered in and out, a veritable mindscape of darkness and information that buffeted him away from his dreams and onto the cultivator's path.

  Godsin Physique Forging Art

  Heaven Devouring Art

  Thousand Sins Evasion Technique

  Original Sin Sutra

  Blood and Soul Refinement Technique

  Feng Han gnashed his teeth and clenched his throbbing skull. The pain pounded him mercilessly, without a shred of guilt, like a torturer's mallet.

  He was begging for some modicum of relief, but it never came. Each slam of pain forced him to writhe and claw, his hands soaked in blood.

  Forge the Godsin's physique as the core. Godsin cultivators are those who challenged the peak of creation, wielding the truth none dared speak. None may question their courage once their might is realized. To wield the Godsin Physique Forging Art is to form the perfect body, untainted by the Heavens, one unbreakable by creation itself.

  Focus on the steps.

  Meditate on the truth.

  Forge perfection.

  Become Godsin.

  The mantra bore into Feng Han's mind, narrowing his focus onto it and it alone. It bypassed the pain, the dreams, the distant voices, and all distractions. Like an engraving, it branded itself at the forefront.

  It was odd. Simplistic and pure, but detailed and ethereal just the same. The mantra hit truths behind lies and secrets beneath the visible surface.

  There were profundities, novelties, and philosophies that rang loud and proud with a charm of their own. And as the mantra consumed Feng Han, it converged into the stillest of meditative forms and a breathing exercise that matched the mantra's nature.

  With great difficulty, Feng Han roared and propped himself off the dreary grey stones awashed with his blood into a lotus position.

  Each breath followed the mantra, an incomprehensible cadence akin to the breath of life and creation itself. The world itself could not deny the resonance, and the ambient qi formed a tempest above the mountainous terrain that Baoshi had brought Feng Han to.

  Qi poured into the storm, swirling downward and filling the hollow chamber with an abundance of energy to consume.

  It was an eye-catching sight that caused many to turn to the sky, gazing up at the ominous omen.

  Feng Han's eyes rolled back as a stabbing force struck him in the pit of his stomach. His previous cultivation regressed, the qi he'd worked for his whole life, dissipating in the blink of an eye.

  But it only lasted for a moment.

  A vessel could not be tainted.

  Hard work was one thing, persevering through failures was one thing, but to achieve the physique of a Godsin meant bearing a far greater burden than anyone else.

  Feng Han's body had to be reborn and reforged from the beginning.

  Strands of qi continuously absorbed into his body, surging with an incredulous force and vitality that filled every blood vessel and meridian with an undeniable strength. It soaked into the bones, cells, and every fiber of his being, until his potential burst to life.

  Like a phoenix reborn, Feng Han rose from the ashes of his past life as a street rat, having endured a hellish pursuit that pushed his body to the brink of collapse.

  He would not be chained by the cruel hands of existence, forced to grovel and beg for every meal. He would not sit idly by as those he cherishes are preyed upon.

  At that moment, Feng Han had taken the first step on a path with no known end in sight.

  His body expelled inky black sludge from every bloodied pore. The impurities that existed in the depths of his body were rejected with each breath he took. And as the changes took hold of him, he broke through.

  First layer... second... third...

  Bones cracked, and blood flowed.

  Feng Han writhed.

  Each breakthrough altered the very foundation of Feng Han and the life he was to lead.

  It continued, days passing by as if fleeting seconds.

  Until finally, Feng Han broke through the sixth layer of body forging.

  His form was larger, more chiseled, and underneath the sludge of impurities that glued to him, patches of flesh shone through with a dazzling luster.

  Feng Han's eyes shot open as he exhaled a breath of turbid air. He looked around him, the hollow chamber, silent and still, all but a single chalice glowing dully in the corner opposite him.

  He clenched his fists, feeling the surging power swelling within them. "This..."

  [Ah! You stink, boy! Wash up before opening your mouth.]

  Baoshi whined before striking Feng Han with an invisible force that sent him tumbling across the cavern and landing into a small crater filled with pooling stalactite water.

  Feng Han propped himself up, feeling the icy cold water against his newly reforged flesh. He knelt there, stupefied, embracing the changes and comfort that enveloped him. "Is this an illusion...?"

  He rolled in the water briefly, washing off the impurities that had coated his body, before pulling himself out. "That was surprisingly refreshing, Baoshi."

  "But... is this real? I- I can feel it... I'm in the sixth layer of body forging?"

  Baoshi hovered in front of Feng Han, bobbing up and down as its dulled exterior took on a soft pink hue.

  [Delicious.]

  [Yes, it's real. Didn't I tell you? Drink from me, and you'll soar...]

  "Damn, I didn't think it would happen all at once, though. How is it possible to break through so many layers all at once?"

  [Body forging is nothing. There are those who are born with bodies forged from the countless aspects of creation and the Dao itself. Compared to them, you're but a baby chick, barely grasping at seeds to grow your wings.]

  [Even if... you're more than a baby chick in some ways.]

  Feng Han's torso glistened with water droplets, which paired incredibly well with the freshly reforged muscles. Hearing Baoshi's reaction, he quickly realized something was wrong.

  His clothes had long since torn to shreds from the force of his body forging and the qi that flooded into the cavern. His hands dropped as swiftly as lightning, and he screamed, "You perverted chalice, what the hell are you thinking?"

  [Foolish boy, I told you my name's Baoshi! Why are you acting so nervously as if I'd eat you?]

  [Well, I might... but not in that way at least.]

  Baoshi's laughter rang through Feng Han's mind with playful mockery as a soft rumble quaked from the far wall as the spatial ring that had lodged into it moved.

  It flew across the cavern and landed in Feng Han's hand.

  [Put it on. You should have no problems using it now.]