From bone collectors to the supreme ruler of humanity

Zhou Kaiquan bent down and reached out to grab Lin Yan's neck.

Lin Yan lay on the ground, watching the hand get closer and closer until he felt a pain in his throat.

My vision grew increasingly blurry, and my mind seemed to be racing.

Scenes from his past and present lives flashed through Lin Yan's mind, finally settling on a yellowed, tattered page.

The first page of the incomplete text on breathing exercises: sitting posture, cultivating one's inner energy.

Page 2, Posture, Luck.

Page 3, Bow Posture, Concentration of Qi.

Three postures, three breathing methods, and three pathways for the flow of Qi and blood.

But what if we connect them?

They weren't practiced separately, but together, in one go.

From sitting to standing, from standing to bowing, and from bowing back to sitting, a complete cycle is formed.

The goal is to allow Qi and blood to circulate simultaneously along three pathways, not one at a time, but all three together.

Lin Yan closed his eyes.

The body's Qi and blood began to circulate wildly.

The Qi in a seated posture originates from the Dantian (lower abdomen) and travels along the Ren meridian.

The energy generated while standing originates from the dantian and travels along the Du meridian.

The Qi in the bow posture originates from the Dantian and travels through the Chong meridian.

Three pathways, three streams of qi and blood, surge simultaneously within the body.

then……

They merged.

At the chest, three streams of qi and blood collided, like three rivers flowing into the sea, and with a boom, they broke through a barrier that had never been breached before.

Lin Yan suddenly opened his eyes.

There was a faint light in his eyes.

It's not firelight, but light emanating from the body's vital energy and blood.

Zhou Kaiquan's hand froze in mid-air.

He looked into Lin Yan's eyes, his expression shifting from surprise to shock.

"you……"

Lin Yan sprang up from the mud and punched Zhou Kaiquan in the chest.

This punch was unlike any of the previous punches.

Its strength has more than doubled, its speed has more than doubled, and...

His fist was clenched with force.

It's not brute force, but the strength formed by the condensation of qi and blood.

The force penetrates the body, passing through the skin and flesh, through the tendons and bones, and directly strikes the internal organs.

Zhou Kaiquan groaned and staggered back three steps, a trickle of blood spilling from the corner of his mouth.

He looked down at his chest, then looked up at Lin Yan.

"You've reached the pinnacle," he said, his voice a little hoarse. "You've reached the pinnacle."

Lin Yan didn't say anything, and threw another punch.

Zhou Kaiquan raised his hand to block, and the two fists collided with a muffled thud, and both men took a step back.

Zhou Kaiquan's expression changed.

He was at the first-grade Body Tempering Realm, and now Lin Yan is also at the first-grade Body Tempering Realm.

Furthermore, Lin Yan's vitality seemed to be stronger and his strength greater than his.

What did Lin Yan do in the mountains during those three days?

he does not know.

All he knew was that the bone collector in front of him was no longer the boy he had pinned to the stone with one hand three days ago.

Lin Yan threw his third punch.

Zhou Kaiquan didn't catch it; feeling the force of Lin Yan's punch, he turned and ran.

Lin Yan chased after him and kicked him in the back of the knee.

Zhou Kaiquan stumbled and almost fell, but steadied himself and continued running.

Lin Yan picked up a stone from the ground, weighed it in his hand, and then threw it away.

The stone hit Zhou Kaiquan on the back of the head.

A muffled thud!

You could see Zhou Kaiquan's body sway, and his running speed noticeably slowed down.

As Lin Yan chased after him, he picked up stones from the ground and threw them at Zhou Kaiquan.

I maintained this for about fifteen minutes.

Zhou Kaiquan finally couldn't hold on any longer and knelt on the ground, blood flowing from the back of his head, soaking the ground with the rain.

Lin Yan walked up to him, squatted down, looked at Zhou Kaiquan, and asked expressionlessly:

"What's your name?"

Zhou Kaiquan raised his head, looked at him, and twitched his lips as if he wanted to laugh, but as soon as he moved, he felt a sharp pain in the back of his head.

"Zhou Kaiquan".

"What rank are you?"

"First-class."

Lin Yan nodded and said earnestly to Zhou Kaiquan:

"Thank you for touching me. Thank you for teaching me for three days."

Zhou Kaiquan was stunned for a moment, then laughed, a bitter laugh, and shouted:

"You fucking...you're a monster."

Lin Yan stood up and slashed the dagger across Zhou Kaiquan's throat.

It rained all night.

Lin Yan dragged the two corpses to the depths of the mountain stream, found a crevice in the rocks and stuffed them inside, then blocked the entrance with a large stone.

The rain will wash away all traces.

Even if someone comes looking for them, they won't find any clues.

He dragged his injured body and limped toward the stone chamber.

He had two broken ribs, and every step he took was so painful that he broke out in a cold sweat.

But he can't stop.

It was almost dawn, and he had to get his mother and sister away before the rain stopped.

When they arrived at the stone chamber, Chen and Lin Xiu were still awake, huddled in a corner, listening to the thunder and rain outside, having not slept all night.

When Chen saw Lin Yan walk in covered in blood, her face turned pale.

"Yan'er..."

"Mother, it's alright." Lin Yan leaned against the stone wall, catching her breath. "It's just a superficial wound, nothing serious."

"You're covered in blood..." Lin Xiu cried, rushing over to hug his legs.

Lin Yan patted her head and said softly, "It's not my blood, it's someone else's."

Chen looked at him, her lips trembling, wanting to say something but unable to utter a word.

"Mother, we have to go," Lin Yan said. "Let's go now."

Ms. Chen nodded without asking why.

She had been prepared for this for a long time.

Lin Yan packed the hidden grain and copper coins into a bundle and carried it on his back. He then carried his mother on his back, and with Lin Xiu in his hand, they left the stone chamber.

The rain was still falling, a little less than at night, but still quite heavy.

The mountain road was muddy and difficult to traverse, making every step a struggle.

Lin Yan had two broken ribs, and the wounds on his back were white from being soaked in the rain. Every step he took felt like someone was stabbing him with a knife.

But he didn't stop.

He walked all night, crossed two mountain ridges and three streams, and finally left the Black Wind Ridge area by noon the next day.

Standing atop a low hill, he glanced back.

Black Wind Ridge was faintly visible in the rain, a hazy gray expanse where nothing could be seen clearly.

He was born here, grew up here, learned to collect bones, learned breathing techniques, and learned to kill here.

Now, he is leaving.

"Brother," Lin Xiu tugged at his sleeve, "Where are we going?"

Lin Yan withdrew his gaze and looked ahead.

Ahead lies the vast land and rivers of the Great Yan Dynasty.

"Go south," he said. "Go to the warmer places."

"Shall we come back?"

Lin Yan remained silent for a while.

"I'm not coming back."

Lin Xiu nodded and didn't ask any more questions.

Chen lay on his back and sighed softly.

Lin Yan took a deep breath, started walking, and headed south.

The rain gradually subsided, and a sliver of light appeared on the horizon.

That was the sun's light.

When the rain stopped, Lin Yan's family had already left the territory of Black Wind Ridge.

The mountain path was muddy, and with each step Lin Yan took, his broken ribs rubbed against his chest. He wrapped his chest with three strips of cloth, tightening them tightly; it hurt, but at least he could walk.

Chen lay on his back, somewhat delirious from the fever.

Lin Xiu followed behind, her face pale from being soaked in the rain, but she didn't utter a sound, walking step by step in her brother's footprints.

"Xiuer, are you alright?"

"Okay." Lin Xiu wiped the rain off her face. "Brother, don't worry about me, just carry Mom on your back."

Lin Yan didn't say anything more, lifted his mother up a bit, and continued walking forward.

With his "Viewing the Mountain" ability spread out, he could perceive all the movements within a half-mile radius.

Information such as which roads have forks, which woods can hide people, and which mountain hollows have water sources appeared in Lin Yan's mind in an instant.