Chapter Thirty-Seven: The True Fire of Taiyi

The pill entered his mouth, dissolving into a sweet stream that flowed into his abdomen. Instantly, a wave of searing heat rose from his lower belly and swept through his entire body. Immersed in the vat, Lin Xiaobao felt as if he had fallen into a sea of fire. The intense temperature around him endlessly scorched his skin, far more potent than when he watched Old Mo refine pills in the alchemy chamber.

Within a few breaths, Lin Xiaobao was drenched in sweat, his body in turmoil as countless currents of heat gathered and relentlessly battered his meridians. The pain was so overwhelming that he nearly wished to leap out of the vat and abandon the process, but this fleeting thought was ruthlessly suppressed. In this world, without sufficient strength, everything is mere empty talk. To survive, and to live better, one must be powerful. He could not let this opportunity slip by.

Beneath his playful exterior, Lin Xiaobao possessed a determined heart. In his previous life, he had endured loneliness and tasted all the bitterness of existence. Now, even in this new life, fate remained unchanged. Was he to spend his days in the same way again? No! Absolutely not!

Clenching his teeth, Lin Xiaobao endured the agony wrought by the heat surging through his meridians. There was no other solution but to endure. Besides the assault of the internal heat, the medicinal liquid outside was also steadily soaking into his skin, infiltrating his meridians bit by bit, devouring every obstacle within. Had this tingling sensation occurred alone, Lin Xiaobao would have found it incomparably pleasant. But now, alternating pain and itch from the hot currents crashing against his meridians made him feel as though he were suffering the harshest torture known to man.

As his spiritual strength grew, Lin Xiaobao could no longer faint; instead, he acutely felt every agony coursing through his body. In fact, his heightened spiritual perception made him several times more sensitive to pain than any ordinary person.

Unable to lose consciousness, he decided to cultivate the Mindwave Technique. No sooner had the thought occurred than the voices of the two elders echoed in his ear, “You cannot cultivate now. Wait until your meridians have just been cleared, then begin!” Old Mo had already prepared the Supreme True Fire Formula for him. If he started cultivating the Mindwave Technique now and missed the perfect moment by sinking into meditation, it would be a shameful waste. Though he didn’t understand just how serious such a waste might be, Lin Xiaobao trusted the elders completely and abandoned the thought of cultivating Mindwave Technique, choosing instead to grit his teeth and endure.

Pain... itch... Lin Xiaobao soon lost all sense of time, feeling only the relentless waves of heat surging through his meridians, breaking down barrier after barrier and allowing the heat to flow faster, intensifying the pain even more.

“Focus your mind and hold your breath! I will now teach you the Supreme True Fire Formula. Follow the technique to guide your breath and break through the last barrier in one go, then channel the heat into your dantian. Remember, you must guide the heat into your dantian!” Old Mo’s voice was unusually grave. As he finished, Lin Xiaobao felt a sudden ache in his head, and countless unfamiliar characters appeared in his mind.

Whenever he received a technique, Lin Xiaobao would concentrate on it to distract himself from pain. Yet, whether it was the nature of this formula or Old Mo’s intention, the technique transferred into his mind this time felt familiar, as if he had practiced it a thousand times before. Unable to shift his focus, he could only end the pain as quickly as possible. Following the technique’s guidance, he began to control the heat within his body.

At first, he struggled, but the heat was no longer as wild and violent as before, so his suffering eased considerably. Lin Xiaobao had no time to wonder why Old Mo hadn’t taught him this method earlier; he devoted all his energy to practicing the Supreme True Fire Formula.

With each cycle, his understanding of the formula deepened, and his control over the inner heat grew stronger. The pain gradually diminished. Lin Xiaobao did not rush to break through the final barrier in his meridians; instead, he kept practicing the formula to improve his mastery over the heat. Sharpening the blade does not delay the chopping of firewood. Since Old Mo wanted him to channel all the heat into his dantian at the end, improving his control was no bad thing, especially as it eased his suffering.

Days passed. On the summit of Pine Ridge Peak, Lin Tian watched Lin Xiaobao’s complexion, which had changed from crimson back to normal, and felt reassured. Even though Lin Tian was a ninth-level Spirit Realm cultivator, he could do nothing to help now; Lin Xiaobao had to rely entirely on himself.

At last, all pain vanished, leaving only the itch and numbness from the medicinal liquid outside. Lin Xiaobao had no interest in savoring this; he began guiding the internal heat to attack the last barrier in his meridians.

Each assault felt like a heavy hammer striking his body—not excruciating, but indescribably uncomfortable. He tried again and again, but the final barrier was like an impenetrable wall, leaving Lin Xiaobao frustrated.

Still, Lin Xiaobao refused to give up. He trusted the elders wouldn’t harm him, and believed he had the power to change his fate. Enduring the discomfort, he attacked the last barrier over and over.

Finally, thanks to his formidable spiritual strength, Lin Xiaobao heard a faint crack at the site of the blockage, followed by several fissures. Encouraged by this progress, he redoubled his efforts.

A thousand-mile levee collapses from an ant’s nest. With a good beginning, the cracks multiplied and widened under Lin Xiaobao’s persistent assaults. At last, with a thunderous sound, the heat burst through the obstruction.

The powerful surge didn’t stop at breaking the barrier; it spread rapidly throughout Lin Xiaobao’s body, then shot out through his skin and into the medicinal liquid.

Alarmed, Lin Xiaobao recalled Old Mo’s instructions and at once focused all his will on the Supreme True Fire Formula, halting the loss of heat. Following the formula’s guidance, he directed the heat to circulate through his newly cleared meridians.

Finally, he channeled all the heat into his dantian. With each thread of heat that entered, he felt as if he gained new strength. Even the spiritual energy gathered through the array on his skin seemed partially assimilated by the heat and entered his dantian along with it.

His long-blocked meridians were finally clear, and Lin Xiaobao felt an unprecedented comfort, as though every cell in his body could breathe. The feeling of the heat coursing through his meridians was so pleasant that, after gathering all the heat into his dantian, he was reluctant to awaken from it.