Kaelan enters the royal chamber and finds Li Xueyao seated with her great-uncle Li Lingfang, facing an elderly man and a young girl.
He pauses, recognising the girl—Chen Yuyan, the one he had encountered near the Black Mountain in the Chen Kingdom.
Li Xueyao rises with a smile.
"My husband is here."
The guests stand as well.
She gestures toward them.
"Wuya, they are visitors from the Chen Kingdom. This is the great ancestor of the Chen royal line, and this is Chen Yuyan."
Kaelan exchanges polite greetings.
The old man laughs softly.
"Lord Kong, you may call me Luzai. In the cultivation world, seniority lies in strength, not formality."
Before Kaelan can respond, Li Lingfang chuckles.
"Senior Luzai speaks modestly. Even if you remain at the Ultimate Master realm, your power has already touched the Divine Mind realm."
Kaelan's eyes narrow—not in disrespect, but in genuine surprise.
To reach near-Divine Mind strength while still in the mortal half-step of second realm transcendence required something terrifying: deep comprehension of a Law.
Law comprehension levels are categorised—Dust, Meteor, Moon, Sun, and Star.
Mortals rarely even touch Dust, and Meteor stage comprehension among humans is almost unheard of.
Yet Luzai stood before him—someone who had achieved it.
Kaelan inclines his head slightly.
"Then, Senior Luzai, calling me Lord is unnecessary. Wuya is fine."
Li Xueyao gestures for them to sit.
"Come, let's continue."
Once seated, Chen Yuyan bows deeply with earnest eyes.
"Lord Wuya… thank you for saving my life."
Li Xueyao turns toward Kaelan, one brow raised with slow suspicion.
"Wuya saved you?"
Chen Yuyan retells everything.
When she finishes, Ancestor Luzai bows his head, tone solemn.
"Thank you for protecting my descendant."
Kaelan waves a hand dismissively.
"It wasn't intentional. They struck at me first. I merely responded."
Conversation continues—politics, cultivation, the shifting world.
Dinner arrives, and cups are filled.
As they drink, Li Lingfang turns to Luzai with a curious smile.
"Senior Luzai, I assumed you would leave after Kong's preaching."
Kaelan already understands why Li Lingfang spoke those words—because without Chen Luzai present in the Chen Kingdom, the royal family would collapse within months.
For centuries, the Chen royal line had endured erosion—not from war or rebellion, but from the quiet dominance of the Ren Kingdom's Qi Refining sects.
Those sects had sunk their roots deep into the Chen court, slowly stripping away authority generation by generation.
Only one man kept the dynasty from falling:
Chen Luzai.
He had held the reins alone for more than two hundred years—far beyond the natural span of an Ultimate Martial Artist, whose life should average only one hundred eighty years.
Through the cultivation method he created, he had forced his lifespan beyond its limit.
But Kaelan can sense it now—the faint, cold edge hidden beneath Luzai's powerful aura.
A lingering shadow.
A scent of endings.
*His lifespan is nearly exhausted.
One more serious battle, and the flame of his life may flicker out forever.*
Luzai meets Kaelan's gaze steadily.
"I have come to ask for help."
Kaelan sets his cup aside.
"Speak, Senior Luzai. I will decide based on what you ask."
Luzai's voice remains calm, but the weight beneath it is unmistakable.
"I want you to create a Spiritual-grade meditation technique for me."
Kaelan studies him for a moment.
Then answers with quiet clarity.
"Spiritual-grade meditation methods are not like martial techniques. Each contains Law comprehension. They cannot be copied or exchanged. One must create their own."
Silence hangs for a breath.
Luzai's fingers tighten slightly around his cup.
"You can see my condition. I no longer have the time or strength to complete something like that."
His eyes sharpen—not pleading, but bargaining.
"If you help me, I give you my word—Chen Kingdom will become the second birthplace of the Wizard Way."
Kaelan considers it.
A golden opportunity.
A weakening kingdom—but one with strong cultural roots and ancient resources.
If Wizardry takes the Chen Kingdom, it will spread east like wildfire.
After a moment, he nods slightly.
"I cannot create a Spiritual-grade method for you," he says, "but I can craft a Golden-grade foundation. From there, you may refine and evolve it into the higher stage yourself."
Luzai closes his eyes in thought—then nods.
"Agreed."
Kaelan continues,
"To do that, I will need the blueprint of your current cultivation method."
Luzai answers,
"I will send it to you tomorrow."
Dinner continues afterwards, but Kaelan's mind drifts.
Later, returning to his palace room, he finds Li Xueyao already asleep, blankets rising and falling with soft breath.
He exhales quietly.
*He had meant to spend tonight refining spiritual instruments…
But guests had dragged time from his hands.*
His gaze lingers on her for a moment—the warmth, the softness, the quiet invitation of a shared bed.
A normal man might stay.
But he turns away.
"Now… I have no time to waste."
He changes clothes, leaves silently, and steps into the cultivation room.
The door closes.
The world outside fades.
Kaelan sits cross-legged, eyes focused.
Tonight, Kaelan does not sleep.
Tonight, he builds the first sketch of Clone Magic.
---
Dawn
The first sunlight spills across the palace roofs when he finally steps out of the cultivation room. His eyes are faintly shadowed, but his aura is sharply focused.
He walks straight to the training field.
Lin Zian waits there, sword in hand.
Without a word, their blades meet.
Metal clashes—wind splits—sparks scatter.
Kaelan parries casually, watching Lin Zian's rhythm, his breathing, the flow of his dark energy.
"Too stiff," Kaelan says faintly, deflecting a strike with a flick of his wrist.
"Darkness does not push. Darkness swallows."
Lin Zian adjusts—his sword arc melts instead of forcing, his presence thinning like a fading star.
Better.
Kaelan nods once.
For a time, only sword-light and wind sound.
When the lesson is complete, Lin Zian bows deeply.
Kaelan leaves the field.
He finds Li Xueyao seated in the garden, drinking tea beneath a peach tree. Her silver-white robe glows in the early light.
Kaelan sits beside her and pours himself a cup.
Only then does he speak.
"Yesterday, Tang Luyan came to negotiate."
Li Xueyao lifts a brow.
Kaelan continues, briefly retelling the meeting—the proposal, the wager, the condition.
Finally, he concludes:
"The Demon Hunting Association will likely support you ruling the kingdom."
Li Xueyao exhales softly—relief and fatigue mixing in her eyes.
"So… the chaos will finally end."
Kaelan gives a faint smile.
"If nothing unexpected interferes."
Before long, footsteps approach.
Chen Luzai arrives—his steps calm, but his life force faint as winter breath.
He hands Kaelan a jade scroll.
"My cultivation technique—as promised."
Kaelan accepts it with a small nod.
"Once I complete the meditation method, I will bring it to you."
Luzai cups his fist.
"Then I shall wait in the Chen Kingdom."
Without further delay, he departs—his cloak fluttering like an old banner resisting the wind one last time.
---
Study
Silence returns.
Kaelan stays where he is, taking one of the wooden chairs in the garden. Peach blossoms fall around him like drifting snow.
He opens the jade scroll.
Words and diagrams unfold through spirit sense—dense, intricate, filled with centuries of refinement.
"Medicine Body Refining Technique."
Kaelan's eyes narrow with interest.
He begins reading.
The tea cools beside him.
The world fades.
Only the method remains.
Kaelan reads in silence—line after line, diagram after diagram—and slowly, the depth of the technique unfolds.
He finally understands why Chen Luzai survived so long—far past the natural limit of an ultimate martial artist.
It wasn't luck.
It was designed
Medicine Body Refining Technique views the human body as a medicinal treasure—something to be purified, tempered, and rebuilt.
Luzai divided it into twelve refinements, each using different herbs and alchemical solutions.
Each refinement reshapes the body—removing flaws, strengthening constitution, purifying marrow, nurturing blood, and refining the foundation.
At the end of twelve steps, the practitioner should obtain a perfect human body.
But Luzai never completed the technique.
The twelfth refinement is only theory—a boundary waiting to be crossed.
If completed, Luzai would no longer be an ultimate martial artist.
He would stand in the realm beyond.
Kaelan closes the scroll.
Reading will not teach me this.
To convert it into a meditation method, he must first experience it.
He raises a hand.
"Bring the herbs and materials listed here," he orders a nearby servant.
The servant bows and runs.
Within minutes, trays of spirit herbs, powders, liquids, and rare roots arrive.
Kaelan crushes the first herb between his fingers and mutters a formula.
Mana flows—symbols flicker—and a sphere of medicinal essence forms in his palm.
He absorbs it.
Heat rushes through his veins like molten iron.
His flesh tightens. His marrow vibrates. His cells hum with new vitality.
He understands.
The first refinement strengthens a mortal body—a foundation for those without Qi or spirit roots.
A stepping stone toward transcending weakness.
So he continues.
Step two—marrow cleansing.
Step three—blood purification.
Step four—nerve awakening.
Step five—organ reinforcement.
Step six—bone hardening.
Hours pass.
The sun climbs, arcs, and sinks behind the horizon.
By the time night blankets the sky, Kaelan finishes the sixth refinement.
His body feels neither stronger nor weaker—but his understanding deepens.
Now I can reshape this into meditation.
He looks at the remaining herbs but shakes his head.
Not today.
He gave his word.
"Store the rest," he tells the servant.
Then, without another pause, Kaelan rises from the garden, steps into the night sky, and soars toward his meeting with Tang Luyan.