They took Wu Hao and the newborn Feng Xinyi to the Feng Clan.
After arriving, Feng Xinyi was taken away by the seven cultivators while Wu Hao was guided to the servants' quarters. The Feng Clan was enormous—almost a city of its own—and the work was hard, but the pay wasn't low. Servants earned 500 Qi stones per month, equal to five thousand gold coins. It was more than Wu Hao had ever earned in his life.
There were over a hundred servants, but none were normal. All of them were immortals—and not weak ones. Wu Hao guessed correctly: every servant here was at least Core Formation. Even Gu Chaun, watching through the illusion, acknowledged that the Feng Clan's background was far greater than expected.
Seeing this, Wu Hao finally understood how small he truly was. The title of "Best Mortal Hunter" meant nothing here.
But he never once thought of giving up on Feng Xinyi.
With the savings he had, he bought the Planetary Cultivation Path and began cultivating while working for the clan.
Time passed. Wu Hao watched Feng Xinyi grow from afar. She spent most of her time cultivating inside her room, so he rarely saw her, but he was satisfied just knowing she was fine.
In four years, he reached Core Formation. He became a head servant, allowed to meet higher figures of the clan. But the more he saw, the more he realized that even Nascent Soul wasn't enough. To protect her… he needed to stand at heights far beyond that.
Still, when he saw the loneliness in Feng Xinyi's eyes—so similar to Wu Xinyi's—his motivation sharpened.
He attempted to break into Nascent Soul… and failed.
He tried again. And again. Four more years passed.
On his eighth attempt, he failed once more. Exhausted, he lay on a field of grass, staring at the sky, unable to understand what he lacked.
"You're so pathetic. Do you not even know you need Qi² and S¹ to reach Nascent Soul?"
He turned. The voice belonged to Feng Xinyi herself.
Gu Chaun leaned forward. Qi² and S¹? What were those?
"What do you mean, young master?" Wu Hao asked.
Feng Xinyi sighed deeply. "How can someone be this dumb? Fine, I'll explain…"
But the voice blurred. Ten minutes passed in silence.
When Gu Chaun checked Wu Hao's memory, the explanation didn't exist. It had been deliberately erased.
Was the method to step into Nascent Soul so valuable they refused to reveal it in the inheritance? Gu Chaun wondered.
A year later, Wu Hao broke through.
After ten full years, he finally became a Nascent Soul cultivator.
His goal did not end there.
He became the strongest servant of the Feng Clan. He was granted authority over 1% of the clan and earned 100,000 Qi stones per month. He had enough wealth to buy Feng Xinyi's freedom, but he wasn't allowed to. They knew his intentions, but they didn't interfere—because it made no difference.
They would never hand her over.
And now Wu Hao understood why. The reason made him tremble.
Feng Xinyi was a candidate to become the next System Master of the Transcend Star System.
To take her back… he would have to fight the entire star system.
Nine more years passed.
Wu Hao remained stuck at Early Nascent Soul. He gave up his attempts. The weight of reality crushed him. Feng Xinyi's twentieth birthday was near—she would be married into another family soon.
His eyes were dull, lifeless. He walked out of his mansion—gray and empty in his sight—and went to see Feng Xinyi. She had returned home before going to the inheritance.
"Hey, do you know I found someone willing to buy me? He said he wants nothing in return. Today might be the best day of my life."
She looked genuinely happy.
Wu Hao's colorless eyes regained life. At that moment, she looked exactly like Wu Xinyi on the day she married him.
He felt alive again.
No matter what, Feng Xinyi would have a life better than the one Wu Xinyi had.
Even if he had to fight the entire Transcend Star System.
Wu Hao made a promise.
He went to the same grassy field where he had begun his cultivation journey. He closed his eyes and remembered everything—Wu Xinyi's smile, Feng Xinyi's lonely gaze, every scar he had earned, every failure, every humiliation.
His eyes slowly opened.
They were golden.
The sky darkened. Winds roared. His long-suppressed cultivation erupted all at once.
Nascent Soul — Mid!
Nascent Soul — Late!
Nascent Soul — Great Circle!
Only one final step remained.
He had everything he needed.
He stepped forward.
A crushing pressure, a hundred thousand times heavier, exploded outward. The dark clouds unleashed nine devastating bolts of heavenly lightning.
They slammed into him one after another.
His blood painted the grass. The final bolt struck.
The clouds dispersed.
A voice echoed across the entire Transcend Star System:
"Cultivator Wu Hao of the Feng Clan has broken into the Soul Formation Realm!"
Wu Hao laughed.
"So this is what you meant… using weakness to grow stronger."
Then he became deadly calm.
"So what? I'll become so strong that I never feel powerless again."
Wu Hao's Dao—The Dao of Powerlessness.
Multiple powerful presences rushed toward the field.
Wu Hao looked at them and smiled.
He took one more step.
Soul Formation — Mid Stage.
Soul Formation — Late Stage.
Soul Formation — Great Circle.
He stood tall, blood-soaked, golden-eyed.
"Shall we talk now?" he asked.