Chapter 7: Formation of Root and Bone

A long time passed.

Ning Qi exhaled softly, a fighting spirit rising in his eyes.

Regardless of what secrets the Great Yan Martial Saint might hold, he was confident that as long as he was given time, surpassing the other party would be incredibly simple.

The secrets of Great Yan had, in fact, served as a reminder to him once more.

If, in the years to come, he achieved the rank of Martial Saint and still saw no hope for longevity, then breaking through the boundaries to ascend would be a path to take. Once in a broader world, his limits would inevitably be higher.

Ning Qi’s thoughts became even clearer.

"The Great Yan Dynasty’s Martial Saints are endless; could it be that they intend to rule this land forever?"

Ye Qinghe let out a scoff.

"That’s not necessarily true."

There was no reverence for imperial power in her eyes; instead, there was a hint of dissatisfaction.

Ning Qi could understand.

Martial arts sects relied on imperial power, but two thousand years was a long time—long enough for countless contradictions to fester, only to be suppressed time and again.

It was just waiting for a catalyst to shatter the silence.

"This time when Senior Sister went down the mountain, I discovered traces of the Demonic Sect within Qingzhou. This Demonic Sect is no simple matter; it is suspected to be related to the previous dynasty."

"Not only that, the attitudes of the martial arts sects in various provinces are quite ambiguous, and the Great Yan borders are also stirring with unrest."

"You must know, it has only been a hundred years since the last time a Great Yan Martial Saint took action. If they hadn't discovered some clues last time, it would be impossible for them to start a second probe so quickly."

Ye Qinghe’s expression gradually grew excited.

"Little Nine, do you think there might already be chaos within Great Yan? Is the Martial Saint’s lifespan nearing its end? Perhaps no new Martial Saint has been born?"

Ning Qi was somewhat surprised.

When his Fifth Senior Brother returned from his training, he had also mentioned discovering traces of the Demonic Sect. Now that his Third Senior Sister had found them too, it seemed the Demonic Sect was making significant moves.

Listening to Ye Qinghe’s speculation, he merely shrugged slightly.

"In any case, whichever it is, it’s not something we can interfere with."

He hadn't even started practicing martial arts yet.

Looking at the grand trends of the world, he was indeed a bit too insignificant.

Even if chaos truly erupted, he could only drift with the tide. If he had the energy to think about this, he might as well seize the time to improve himself. With sufficient strength, everything would fall into place naturally.

"That’s true, I suppose."

Ye Qinghe muttered a few words.

Suddenly realizing that she had been lectured by a one-year-old child, she couldn't help but fiercely pinch Ning Qi’s cheeks.

"You little old man!"

Ning Qi ignored her.

He put back the *Chronicles of Great Yan* and turned to take out another book, *Miscellaneous Notes on Feng Shui*, to read.

This left Ye Qinghe feeling somewhat frustrated. She couldn't help but tug at her own hair, saying in annoyance

"Sometimes I wonder, Little Nine, is there an old monster living inside your body?"

Ning Qi paused for a moment, then continued to lower his head to read.

"Oh, stop reading. You need to balance work and rest. If you want to work hard, Little Nine, there will be plenty of bitterness to endure once you start practicing martial arts. For now, you should cherish this rare, leisurely time."

Ye Qinghe nagged.

Ning Qi finally responded

"Is practicing martial arts very difficult?"

Ye Qinghe perked up

"That goes without saying. If you want to achieve something in martial arts, talent alone isn't enough; you have to be diligent enough and spend enough time."

"Take your Eighth Senior Brother, for example. His natural talent is top-tier even across the Great Yan, but guess how long he spent on Body Tempering."

Ning Qi flipped the page, sparks of inspiration rising in his mind as he absorbed the essence into his own Feng Shui system. Even so, he still had the capacity to deal with Ye Qinghe.

"Five or six years?"

Ye Qinghe clicked her tongue and laughed

"It seems you haven't realized the miserable life that awaits you, Little Nine!"

"Let me tell you, from age seven to eighteen—a full eleven years! Qin Yun practiced diligently day and night without pause before he finished Body Tempering and stepped into the Inner Origin Realm!"

"It takes that long?" This was indeed beyond Ning Qi’s expectations.

"And that’s because your Eighth Senior Brother is a natural-born talent. For anyone else, it takes even longer. In Great Yan, anyone under thirty is considered the younger generation. Those who can step into the Inner Origin Realm by twenty are peerless geniuses."

"Although you are certainly a genius, Little Nine, it would be perfectly normal for you to spend ten years on Body Tempering."

"Now you know, there’s plenty of bitterness ahead, so don't rush it now. There’s a saying, how does it go? As long as you are willing to suffer, there will be an endless supply of suffering. How about this? How about Senior Sister takes you out to play? I always regret that my own eight years of carefree childhood were too short."

Facing Ye Qinghe’s chatter and expectant gaze, Ning Qi gave a faint glance in response.

"Oh."

He didn't feel he would need that long.

The world of geniuses is something mortals will never understand.

Ye Qinghe immediately went frantic, feeling as though she had wasted her breath.

After that, no matter how she tried to engage him, Ning Qi ignored her completely. He had become entirely immersed in his own world of realization.

Ye Qinghe sighed mournfully, lay back on the rattan chair in the courtyard, and before long, fell fast asleep.

Ning Qi glanced at Ye Qinghe and smiled slightly.

His Third Senior Sister was boisterous, but in truth, she was just afraid he would be lonely.

However, he was not lonely.

With his max-level comprehension, he gained something every single second. That feeling was actually quite exhilarating; it was just that ordinary people couldn't experience it.

...

Time drifted away leisurely.

Life on Mount Zhenwu was very comfortable. Compared to his previous life, unable to move on a hospital bed, this life was far too wonderful.

Although his body was a bit small, at least he could walk freely, and he had a master and senior brothers and sisters who doted on him, which made Ning Qi very satisfied.

In the blink of an eye.

Two and a half years had passed since that discussion on longevity with Daoist Longshan.

Ning Qi was now three years old.

During these two and a half years, his senior brothers and sisters had been incredibly attentive to Ning Qi. Every time they went down the mountain, they would bring him a pile of things. Knowing that Ning Qi loved collecting classics, they would consciously search for them to bring back, and in their spare time, they would come to accompany Ning Qi in his play.

His master, Daoist Longshan, also taught him patiently without holding anything back. Aside from not allowing Ning Qi to touch martial arts too early, he shared everything else without reservation, making the other disciples a little jealous.

Furthermore, Ning Qi discovered that his master had gone down the mountain a few times, suspected to be tracking the murderer who slaughtered the Snow Plum Villa three years ago, but it didn't seem to be going very well.

Daoist Longshan never took the initiative to speak to Ning Qi about the events of that year, perhaps hoping that Ning Qi would remain carefree and not have his eyes clouded by hatred. But he didn't know that Ning Qi remembered everything that happened that day with perfect clarity.

Ning Qi was not in a hurry.

He needed time to grow.

When the time came, he would resolve it with his own hands.

Over these three years, he had displayed enough intelligence to make Daoist Longshan, Luo Wentian, and the others look forward to how stunning Ning Qi would be once he began his martial arts journey.

They had estimated more than once when Ning Qi’s bones would fully set.

They generally felt he had the potential to set by age six.

But what they didn't know was that the changes within Ning Qi’s body were growing greater with each passing day.

Early morning.

Ning Qi woke up.

His expression was expectant yet calm; everything was within his expectations.

As always, he circulated the Innate Bone-Nurturing Technique. The last trace of extremely subtle Innate Qi within his body accompanied the final cycle, completely dispersing into every part of his body. It seemed as if some mysterious power from heaven and earth was pouring into him.

In an instant, Ning Qi’s body trembled slightly. An unprecedented sense of satisfaction rose in his heart, as if something incomplete within him had finally become whole. He even vaguely felt a connection with heaven and earth that he had never felt before.

There were no earth-shattering visions. Ning Qi opened his eyes, a flicker of joy appearing in them.

Two and a half years, nine hundred days and nights of persistent practice.

His bones had finally, completely set!