Chapter 14: The Scion of Martial Arts

On the continent of Jiuzhou, martial artists temper their bodies with spiritual energy. When this energy circulates through all the vital acupoints, it transforms into spiritual power. The Great Celestial Palm is founded upon these fundamental principles of martial cultivation... Li Jian-san recalled the martial art he had learned in the Sutra Repository, preparing for the monthly examination a few days hence.

As Li Jian-san began his cultivation, the spiritual energy within him seemed to burst open, surging madly toward his dantian. Boom! Boom! Boom! His dantian thundered as if exploding, and the cultivation base he had only recently broken through now seemed to rise again. Gentle spiritual energy flowed through his body, nourishing his skin, bones, and every cell...

In the blink of an eye, Li Jian-san advanced yet another realm!

"I've actually reached the second level of the Foundation Establishment stage..." Li Jian-san was utterly astonished.

Ordinary people, when cultivating, would find it impossible to break through in the Foundation Establishment stage in less than a year or two—assuming there were no setbacks. Yet Li Jian-san had advanced in the span of a few breaths. This... cultivation was just too easy!

Li Jian-san chuckled. Could it be that he was a peerless genius?

"Master, you need not be so shocked. This is the ten years of energy previously refined by the system while it was in auto-mode," a voice sounded in Li Jian-san's mind.

"So this is the proper way to use the system," he mused. No need to slay monsters or grind for experience, just a bit of idling and one could accomplish what others could only dream of in a lifetime.

Suddenly, just after his breakthrough, thunder rumbled through the silent night and lightning tore across the sky! From the distant starry river above the Nine Heavens, a divine bolt of lightning, carrying the force of destiny and reincarnation, crashed down. The dazzling celestial lightning fell upon Shengjing Gate. In an instant, rolling thunder shook the heavens and earth, changing the very color of the sky.

The blinding lightning illuminated all of Shengjing Gate. Boom! Boom!

At the summit of the Nine Heavens, thunder followed thunder, and upon closer look, nine divine bolts had already struck! Witnessing this tremendous phenomenon, Li Jian-san rushed outside, eager to see which fool had sworn a vicious oath and been struck by lightning...

The bolts had already reached the skies above Shengjing Gate, but as Li Jian-san stepped outside, the lightning abruptly veered away, transforming into countless sparks that scattered harmlessly to the ground, as if afraid of harming Li Jian-san.

"What on earth is going on?" he wondered.

"Master, are you unaware? Some prodigies are born with extraordinary affinity for cultivation, natural-born talents known as Children of the Martial Dao—legendary existences. When these Children of the Martial Dao advance in their cultivation, they may awaken, drawing down divine thunder from the heavens. The more bolts, the greater the talent!"

Li Jian-san was delighted. "Does that mean I'm a genius?"

The celestial phenomenon above Shengjing Gate sent shockwaves through all the powers of the Jiang Kingdom. Now that nine bolts of divine lightning had gathered at Shengjing Gate, this was surely the most envied Child of the Martial Dao!

The instant the ninefold thunder descended, the entire kingdom's attention turned to Shengjing Gate. News that a Child of the Martial Dao had appeared there swept through Jiang like wildfire. Everyone knew that from this moment on, Shengjing Gate would rise!

Within Shengjing Gate, excitement reached a fever pitch. That night, only one person achieved a breakthrough—Li Jian-san's fiancée, Jiang Churan. For only she broke through in cultivation that night.

Yes, the ninefold heavenly thunder that had swerved away from Li Jian-san had landed upon Jiang Churan instead. Thus, almost no one in Shengjing Gate doubted that she was the one chosen by Heaven. In everyone's eyes, Jiang Churan was the Child of the Martial Dao.

Yet Jiang Churan frowned slightly. She was not certain the ninefold thunder had come because of her. Though she had indeed broken through to Foundation Establishment, the celestial thunder had clearly fallen after her advancement. She could not be sure she was the Child of the Martial Dao, but dared not admit this doubt for fear of losing her newfound halo.

"Perhaps Heaven sensed my impending breakthrough, so the divine thunder came a little early. My advancement to Foundation Establishment already proves my talent. If I'm not the Child of the Martial Dao, who else could it be?"

The next day, as Li Jian-san stepped out, he overheard the disciples' chatter.

"I heard Jiang Churan summoned ninefold heavenly thunder yesterday. The Grand Elder immediately accepted her as his direct disciple—how enviable!"

"Haha, that's not something you can envy. After all, she's the Child of the Martial Dao."

"Amazing! A genius like that will surely rise swiftly."

"Besides, she's the young master's fiancée. It seems the young master can rest easy now—even when the sect master passes on, his line will thrive."

"Well, what can you say? Our sect master has always had a keen eye. He arranged their engagement when they were children, paving the way."

Jiang Churan? Li Jian-san frowned.

His so-called father and the grand patriarch of the Jiang family had been sworn brothers. Ten years ago, while traveling, Jiang Liu happened to save the patriarch's only granddaughter. In gratitude, the two elders arranged a marriage between their descendants. Yet, due to Li Jian-san's mediocre performance in recent years, the engagement gradually faded into the background within the Jiang family.

Li Jian-san had expected them to break off the engagement, but the old patriarch was a man of his word and would never go back on a promise, no matter how disappointing Li Jian-san became.

"So how did that ninefold thunder end up with her?" Li Jian-san muttered. It seemed his fiancée was quite the scene-stealer...

Among the great powers of Jiang—

"What is so special about Shengjing Gate?"

"Just a third-rate sect, hardly worth our curiosity. In a hundred years, it might fade into obscurity."

"Yet none of us expected it to produce a Child of the Martial Dao capable of drawing ninefold thunder."

"Everything has changed. With such a genius, Shengjing Gate is destined to rise—and perhaps all of Jiang Kingdom with it!"

"They have a monthly competition coming up. We must observe it."

In the capital—

Atop the imperial palace stood an old man with golden hair, hands clasped behind his back. He gazed toward Shengjing Gate, a glimmer of light in his otherwise clouded eyes. He spoke in a voice heavy with authority:

"Go and discover for whom this celestial phenomenon appeared."

"You could use some fresh blood on your side."

"And keep an eye on the borderlands. The powers there have lost their deterrent effect, and some are already stirring. The site of the anomaly is not far from them—be vigilant..."

"Yes, Your Excellency."

…