Star Martial Era: From Mortal to Emperor

The Star Essence Liquid drifted slowly down from mid-air, like a feather held up by the wind, or a shooting star falling from the depths of the Milky Way, gathering all its light and heat, quietly and steadily landing in Lin Chen's palm.

The liquid felt warm to the touch, neither too hot nor too cold, like holding a handful of morning sunlight. Pure life force seeped into the body through the skin of the fingertips, like countless tiny streams flowing from the palm to the wrist, from the wrist to the arm, from the arm to the chest, finally converging in the dantian. Wherever that power passed, tired muscles were soothed, cracked meridians were nourished, and parched acupoints were replenished. The surrounding spiritual energy seemed to be summoned, spontaneously gathering towards the altar, surging in from all directions, converging into a faint glow above the altar. The evil aura that had suppressed the entire core area for who knows how long was dissipated by this primordial spiritual energy, like dust blown away by the wind, like ink drops into the sea.

Five people surrounded the altar platform. Lin Chen stood at the front, cradling the ball of shimmering white light in his palm. Su Muyue stood to his right, her array flag already sheathed, held in her hand, the flagpole against the ground for support. Leng Feng stood at the edge of the steps, his battle sword sheathed, leaning against a stone pillar, eyes closed, chest heaving. Chu Fan squatted on the ground, emptying the shattered fragments of the Blood Sacrifice Jade Pendant piece by piece from his cloth bag, recounting and rewrapping them, each step performed slowly and meticulously, as if completing a very important task. Su Ling'er sat on the steps, her medicine box spread out on her lap, counting the remaining pills one by one. Bottles and jars were scattered all over the ground, her fingers running over each cap, muttering something softly to herself.

Below the steps, dozens of new students from various races sat or stood, none leaving. Some rested on their companions' shoulders, some bandaged their wounds, some drank water, and some simply sat quietly, gazing at the five figures atop the altar. No one stepped forward, no one spoke up to compete. According to the trial rules, the treasures of the secret realm were to be disposed of by the victor of the final battle—an unwritten rule established over thousands of years. Moreover, everyone had clearly witnessed the battle just now—if Lin Chen's team hadn't fought desperately to break through the impasse, none of those present would have left this secret realm alive.

Su Muyue stood beside Lin Chen, her expression not good.

It wasn't an injury, it was blood poisoning. From the moment she entered the middle level of the secret realm, she had been in an environment with a high concentration of evil energy. The depletion of the array, the erosion of evil power, and the repeated agitation of blood poisoning had layered upon layer on her body, like water being poured into a cup until it was about to overflow. She could feel the evil poisoning in her meridians had accumulated to a critical point, like a string stretched to its limit, ready to snap at any moment. She felt chest tightness, shortness of breath, cold fingertips, and occasionally her vision would go black for a moment, only to quickly return to normal.

Lin Chen didn't look at her, but he sensed everything.

He opened the jade bottle he carried with him and carefully divided the Star Marrow Liquid in his palm. He poured most of it into the bottle, holding the rest in his hand. His movements were steady, his hand did not tremble, and he divided each drop clearly. After dividing it, he handed the half-full bottle of Star Marrow Liquid to Su Muyue, with the bottle opening facing her.

"This Star Marrow Elixir is most effective at eradicating evil toxins and nourishing the blood." His voice was soft, his tone even, as if he were stating something ordinary. "It's perfect for curing your long-standing blood poisoning."

Su Muyue did not answer.

She looked at the jade bottle, then at the tiny amount of marrow fluid remaining in Lin Chen's palm—enough for just one person, and perhaps not even enough. Her brows furrowed slightly, not out of hesitation, but out of heartache.

"Most of it for me?" Her voice was tense. "You've suffered too much damage; you also need marrow fluid to repair your origins and break through to a higher realm. You—"

"I can slowly heal by absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth using the Star Origin Technique." Lin Chen placed the jade bottle in her hand, his grip firm but not forceful. The bottle was warm to the touch, carrying his body heat. "The longer your blood poison lingers, the greater the danger. We've fought our way from Black Wind Ridge and battled so many times in the secret realm, all to find the Star Marrow Elixir to detoxify you. Now that it's time, you're being so polite?"

Su Ling'er nodded, her ponytail swaying. "Sister Mu Yue, please accept it. The remaining marrow essence is enough for Lin Chen to stabilize his cultivation and break through his bottleneck. Besides, after the secret realm ends, we can use our trial points to exchange for various high-level cultivation resources, so a little bit won't make a difference." As she spoke, she was holding a bottle of healing pills. The cap wasn't tightened properly, and one pill fell out and rolled down the steps, but she didn't bother to pick it up.

Su Muyue lowered her head, looking at the jade bottle in her hand. A pale white light shone through the thin jade walls, illuminating her fingertips and making them almost transparent. She didn't refuse again.

She sat cross-legged on the clean stone surface of the altar and slowly swallowed the Star Marrow Liquid from the bottle. The moment the liquid entered her throat, a warm, faintly sweet sensation spread from her throat to her chest, and then diffused throughout her body. Pure primordial power entered her body, flowing through her blood vessels like a warm river, passing through every meridian, every acupoint, and every blood vessel.

The blood poison lurking deep within her meridians—those dark purple evil toxins that had followed her for years, brought from her womb, and which even Master Xuanchen could only temporarily suppress with his life-force—dissolved, crumbled, and vanished at a visible speed under the cleansing force of this primordial spiritual energy, like snow meeting sunlight, like ink meeting water. It wasn't forced back, it wasn't suppressed; it completely disappeared, as if it had never existed. She could feel her body becoming lighter little by little, as if a heavy burden carried for many years had been lifted, every bone, every muscle, every meridian rejoicing.

Nourished by the primordial spiritual energy, the bloodline of the Su family's Martial Emperor Guardian gradually replenished its strength, which had been somewhat weak due to the long-term struggle against blood poison. Her complexion changed from pale to rosy, her lips regained their color from pale purple, and the weariness between her brows, tormented by illness for many years, faded away layer by layer, revealing her true appearance.

Half an hour. Not long, not short, enough for a person to be completely transformed.

Su Muyue slowly opened her eyes. Those eyes were brighter than before, not with a sharp gleam, but with a warm, full, and vibrant light. A faint, shimmering white light surrounded her, the lingering afterglow of her primordial spiritual energy still circulating within her, like a thin veil enveloping her. She stood up, her movements light and graceful, lacking the previous cautiousness, but a natural, effortless fluidity. She looked at Lin Chen, her eyes filled with warmth. She didn't say thank you, but her eyes spoke volumes.

Lin Chen swallowed the remaining half of the Star Marrow Liquid.

The moment the primordial spiritual energy surged into the dantian, the Star Martial Core trembled violently and began to operate at high speed. The rotation speed was faster than ever before, so fast that the buzzing sound was almost inaudible; only a pure, extreme vibration spread from the dantian throughout the entire body, even causing the bones to resonate gently. The middle volume of the *Star Origin Technique* flowed smoothly, and the silvery-white star power surged along the twelve meridians, each one being widened and solidified again by the primordial spiritual energy, like a riverbed being dredged and a dam being reinforced.

The bottleneck in the late stage of the Meridian Opening Realm began to loosen. It wasn't a forced loosening, but a natural, inevitable loosening—like river water rising to the edge of a dam; no pushing was needed, just waiting for it to overflow on its own. He was only a thin barrier away from the Transformation Realm, so thin it was almost transparent, so thin he could even vaguely sense the aura on the other side. He only needed to accumulate spiritual energy for a period of time to successfully break through.