Nine Abyss God-King

The Eighth Abyss, Mortal Realm. Central Province Divine Land. Qingyang City, the Lu Family’s West Courtyard.

The early morning light, like diluted milk, spilled over the tall courtyard walls of the Lu family in Qingyang City. Beyond the walls stretched the undulating Qingyang mountain range; its shadow, like the spine of a colossal beast, lay across the northern frontier of Yunlan Commandery. On this Central Divine Land ruled by the Great Yin Empire, Qingyang City was nothing but a speck of dust at the mountain’s foot, and the Lu Family — just an inconspicuous corner upon that speck of dust.

Upon the bluestone slabs of the training ground, a bare-chested youth was practicing the Body Tempering Stance Technique again and again.

The boy’s face was handsome and sharply defined, his nose bridge high and straight, his lips a hard-set line of resolve. Yet those eyes, which should have shone as bright as stars, were now veiled with an impenetrable gloom, lending his entire bearing a somber yet sharp quality — like a keen sword hidden in its sheath, yet still sent a chill through those who looked upon it.

Sweat slid down his distinctly contoured back muscles, splattered onto the stone slabs, spreading a small dark stain that was swiftly absorbed by the rough ground. His movements were so precise it was as if measured by a ruler, every muscle’s exertion perfectly placed, yet his entire frame displayed not the slightest glow of spiritual light that should have accompanied such practice.

He was called Lu Chen.

Five years ago, that name had been the brightest star of the Lu Family in Qingyang City. At twelve, the ninth level of the Body Tempering Realm; at thirteen, about to knock upon the gate of the Qi Gathering Realm — declared by the clan elders as a genius who could lead the Lu Family to greater heights and even enter the Azure Cloud Sect in the future.

Now, he was the biggest joke in the entire city.

His cultivation was eternally locked at the “ninth level of Body Tempering.” According to the records in theVast Sea Scripture – Body Forging Chapterwithin the Lu Family’s Scripture Pavilion, the first step of cultivation was to resist the body’s “shackles” — that is, the Body Tempering Realm, which was divided into ten levels from low to high. Lu Chen was stuck at the ninth level for five whole years.

No matter how madly he trained, the spiritual qi he absorbed from heaven and earth would, once entering his dantian, vanish like clay oxen entering the sea — disappearing without a trace, as if there were a bottomless black hole deep within his dantian.

“Whoosh—”

Lu Chen slowly withdrew his fists, his chest heaving violently, sweat dripping from his chin, splashing dark stains upon the bluestone. Exhaustion surged over him like a tide, yet strangely, after every training session, there always lingered deep inside his body an indescribable sense of clarity and comfort. He leaned against the cold wall, sensing the dead stillness brought about by that dark vortex within his dantian, his gaze dim — this comfort, after all, could never fill the void left by his stagnant cultivation.

Five years ago, he was the genius personally promised a bright future by an elder of the Azure Sun Sect. At that time, the Lu Family’s standing in Qingyang City had been enough to suppress the Zhao and Li families by a head. But now, less than four months remained until the Azure Sun Sect’s annual “New Sprouts Induction Ceremony.” If he failed to break through to the Qi Gathering Realm, not only would he become a complete laughingstock, the Lu Family would also lose its most critical resource allocation, and in this tripartite balance of Qingyang City, they would plummet straight to the very bottom.

“Young Master, the medicine is done. You must rest now.”

A clear, sweet, and melodious voice rose, like a spring of pure water, instantly diluting the oppressive stillness in the courtyard.

A young girl in a light green dress came to the moon gate carrying a tray, upon which sat a bowl of steaming black medicinal broth.

She was around fifteen or sixteen, her hair simply styled into double buns, a few stray strands falling over her forehead, lending her a playful charm. Her skin was fair, her brows curved gently, with bright eyes and white teeth. She couldn’t be counted a peerless beauty, yet she radiated a clean, refreshing spiritual aura. At this moment, she was gazing unblinkingly at the sweat-drenched Lu Chen on the training ground, her fingers gently holding the edge of the tray, her eyes brimming with curiosity and concern.

Her name was Xiaocui, Lu Chen’s personal maidservant.She was originally a homeless orphan. Ten years ago, her hometown was plundered by pirates, and she fled all the way to Qingyang City, barely alive when she was discovered by the then-young master Lu Chen. At that time, Lu Chen was only seven, yet he stubbornly tugged at his father’s sleeve and brought her back to the Lu family, begging his father to take her in.

Lu Tianxing could not refuse his son, so he arranged for her to serve as a maidservant by Lu Chen’s side. Lu Chen treated her extremely well, never regarding her as a servant. When there were delicious treats, he would secretly slip her some; when there were fun things, he would share them with her. Even when she caught a wind-chill, Lu Chen would find someone to treat her.

Five years ago, Lu Chen’s cultivation stagnated, he fell from genius to laughingstock, and the West Courtyard gradually grew desolate. Seeing the unfavorable turn, some servants pulled strings to transfer to the main courtyard, while others simply quit and left. Although the Lu Family elders did not openly drive her away, they hinted several times that she should “seek a future elsewhere.” Only Xiaocui never left. She knew why those servants had departed and understood the elders’ intentions, but she remembered Lu Chen’s kindness, remembered how he, just a boy of seven, had pulled her up from the mud and the mire. She simply quietly tidied the West Courtyard, brewed medicine on time every day, cleaned, and guarded this courtyard that had long ago lost its former bustle, guarding the youth who still practiced his punches every day.

But few knew that this desolation was, to a large extent, a result deliberately crafted by the family head, Lu Tianxing. Apart from Lu Chen’s mother, he was the only one who understood the root cause of the anomaly in Lu Chen’s dantian. He was deeply aware that the predicament his son faced far exceeded that of ordinary people, and the path ahead was destined to be lonely and perilous. Therefore, he intentionally reduced the number of servants and guards in the West Courtyard, and even tacitly approved of those “clever” servants leaving. He wished for Lu Chen to personally experience, in the most genuine circumstances, the alienation, cold eyes, and even malice brought about by the lack of strength, so that in the deepest solitude, he would forge a heart that understood the cruel laws of the world and yearned to become immensely powerful.

“Chen’er,” he had once said to the young Lu Chen, his gaze complex, “some roads can only be walked by you alone. What your father can do is merely lay down for you the most rugged of starting points.”

Lu Chen stepped forward, lifted the bowl, and drained it in one gulp. The bitterness was laced with the faint, clean scent of wood and leaf. This medicine was called “Qi-Condensing Powder,” a welfare benefit given to merited outer personnel of the family, used to nourish the meridians and relieve post-training fatigue. But for Lu Chen’s bizarre dantian, its effects were negligible. Yet this bowl was different.

Lu Chen knew that, although the base was still Qi-Condensing Powder, several supplementary herbs within it were allocated extra to the West Courtyard each month with his father’s tacit approval.

And what truly set it apart was Xiaocui.Three years ago, when she first arrived, she couldn’t even light the medicine stove. In order to better brew this medicine, she had secretly begged the kitchen steward countless times, endured many cold shoulders, just to learn some rudimentary skills. She used her meager monthly allowance to buy better honey to neutralize the decoction’s bitterness; she adjusted the heat again and again, just to maximize the medicinal properties. This bowl of medicine contained no rare ingredients, yet it was infused with all the painstaking effort and perseverance of a young girl over three years.

“Cuier, I’ve told you, don’t call me Young Master anymore.” His voice was hoarse, tinged with a self-mockery that would not fade.

“In Cuier’s heart, you will always be Young Master.” Xiaocui looked at him, her eyes reddening slightly, “And the Family Head once said, your foundation is more solid than anyone else’s — it’s just… just a temporary obstacle.”

Lu Chen smiled bitterly. An obstacle? This was more than an obstacle — it was an impassable chasm. In this world, cultivators were many, but how many had ever heard of spiritual qi vanishing into thin air inside the dantian?

The medicinal liquid entered his stomach, bringing a faint trace of warmth. Yet, just as this warmth was about to spread —

Hum—!

Deep within his dantian, the grey-gold vortex, which had lain dormant for so long, gave an abrupt, violent shudder without the slightest warning!

As if a giant rock had crashed into a calm lake, an unspeakable, violent wrenching pain originating from the depths of his soul exploded from his dantian and instantly swept through his entire body!

“Urgh—!”

Lu Chen let out a muffled groan, his face instantly turning as pale as paper, veins bulging on his forehead, cold sweat gushing out like thick fluid. His legs gave way, and with a “thud,” he crashed heavily to his knees!

“Young Master!!” Xiaocui, frightened out of her wits by this sudden turn, let the tray in her hands clatter to the ground. She cried out and rushed forward to support him, only to see him curl up entirely, his right hand pressed fiercely against his lower abdomen, his left hand clenched into a fist, pounding the hard ground with every ounce of his strength!

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The dull impacts echoed on the bluestone before the moon gate. His knuckles split open and bled instantly, yet he seemed utterly oblivious to the pain, using this almost self-destructive method to fight against the emptiness and that agony which seemed intent on tearing him apart and swallowing him whole.

“Young Master! What’s wrong?! Stop it! Please, I beg you, stop!” Xiaocui’s voice was choked with sobs. She knelt beside him, at a complete loss, wanting to pull his hand away yet afraid of hurting him, so anxious that tears streamed helplessly down her cheeks.

Lu Chen clenched his jaw, emitting a suppressed, beast-like growl from his throat. He could vividly “sense” that damned vortex in his dantian, violently and erratically shaking and trembling, as if it would collapse and scatter at any moment! With each tremor, an icy cold and an agony worse than death flooded through his entire being.

Time seemed to stretch and elongate.

Xiaocui watched his pain-twisted profile, the shocking blood upon his fist, his body shivering faintly from the excruciating pain, and an unprecedented panic and heartache seized her. No longer caring about the distinction between master and servant, she suddenly stretched out both arms and from the side, tightly embraced his curled upper body, gently pressing his trembling head against her own soft, warm bosom.

“Young Master… Young Master… It’s alright, it will be alright…” Her voice broke, one hand clumsily yet gently patting his back, the other firmly wrapping around his shoulders, using her own warmth and embrace to give him a sliver of insignificant support and comfort. “Cuier is here, Cuier is staying right by your side…”

The faint scent of honey locust soap and medicinal herbs on the young girl, mingling with her warm body heat, passed through the thin fabric of her clothes. This sudden yielding tenderness and unreserved embrace made Lu Chen, trapped in agony and icy cold, feel a brief moment of daze. The madly tearing pain seemed to pause for an infinitesimal instant because of it.

After a long while.

The violently shaking vortex within Lu Chen, which had seemed on the verge of falling apart, appeared to finally have “exhausted its strength.” The amplitude of its tremors slowly lessened, ultimately resuming its normal rotation. That soul-ripping, wrenching pain also ebbed away like the tide.

His taut body slowly relaxed. His right hand, pressed against his abdomen, fell limply. His left fist, which had battered the ground, loosened as well, leaving only faint tremors and freely flowing fresh blood.

His heavy, ragged breaths sounded exceptionally clear before the moon gate.

Sensing that the body in her arms no longer quaked violently, Xiaocui’s tensed heartstrings finally eased a fraction, yet she still dared not let go. She simply maintained the embracing posture, gently patting and soothing him.

After another moment, Lu Chen’s breathing finally steadied.

He stirred, wanting to rise from her embrace.

Only then did Xiaocui wake as if from a dream, hurriedly releasing her arms and retreating a small distance. Her face was still streaked with tears, her eyes filled with lingering fear and worry. “Young Master… are you… are you feeling a little better?”

Lu Chen did not answer immediately. He lowered his head, gazing at his own bloodied and mangled left hand, then sensed the vortex inside his dantian which had returned to dead silence yet felt somehow even more “unfathomably deep” than before. An icy sense of powerlessness and an even deeper despair stealthily spread through his heart.

But when he raised his head and saw Xiaocui’s tear-stained face, written all over with concern and alarm, that bone-deep chill seemed to be diluted, just a little.

“I’m fine now.” His voice was terribly hoarse, forcing out a smile uglier than a grimace. “Cuier, I scared you.”

Xiaocui shook her head vigorously, tears falling afresh. “As long as you’re alright… Your hand… your hand…”

Only then did Lu Chen register the stinging pain from his left hand. He casually wiped the seeping blood with his hem, then pushed against the ground, trying to stand. But the agony from enduring the inner vortex had left his legs weak, and his figure swayed.

Xiaocui hurriedly stepped forward and, almost instinctively, extended both hands to support his arm. Her hands were soft, yet they steadily bore him up.

“Young Master…” Her voice carried undisguised worry and heartache. Even after helping him stand steady, she still wouldn’t let go, her fingertips exerting a slight pressure, as if wanting to pour all her strength into him.

The courtyard fell silent for a moment, save for the faint, whimpering sound of wind passing through the round arch of the moon gate.

Then, Xiaocui hesitated. She recalled the gossip she had overheard in the front courtyard and thought that mentioning it might help distract her young master, and also remind him to be mindful of outside affairs. She drew a little closer, lowering her voice until it was almost a whisper by his ear:

“Right… Young Master,” her voice was fine and threaded with concern, “when Cuier went to deliver the laundry to the front courtyard earlier, passing by the corridor… I seemed to hear a few stewards muttering among themselves.” She paused, and seeing that Lu Chen was not impatient, continued quietly: “They were saying that the Zhao and Li families over yonder… have been quite smug lately, because among their younger generation, someone again is about to… break through.”

Lu Chen’s movement of wiping the blood paused briefly.

She did not explicitly name the “Zhao family” and “Li family,” but Lu Chen understood perfectly. In Qingyang City, only those two could contend with the Lu Family on equal footing.

Within Qingyang City, the three great families — Lu, Zhao, and Li — stood side by side. Their common backer was the cultivation sect in the Qingyang mountain range outside the city: the Azure Sun Sect. Every year, all three families were required to deliver vast amounts of resources to the Azure Sun Sect in exchange for protection and to secure precious quotas for their younger generation to enter the sect for cultivation.

The Lu Family had the deepest roots, primarily controlling the mineral veins on the west side of Qingyang City and part of the market district. The Zhao Family’s rise was the most ferocious, mainly relying on trade, exploring the fringes of the “Forbidden Lands” outside the city, and undertaking high-risk, high-reward escort or exploration missions to accumulate resources. The Li Family controlled the city’s major medicine shops, part of the equipment forging, and a portion of the intelligence network. All three sides jostled for family interests and for greater attention and resource allocation within the Azure Sun Sect, scheming openly and secretly, their relations tense. Such competition was tacitly permitted by the Azure Sun Sect.

The Lu Family relied on its deep heritage, unity, and the far-sightedness of successive family heads. The Zhao Family, by contrast, operated more aggressively, with an acute sense of competition, directly clashing with the Lu Family over resources, trade routes, and prominence within the Azure Sun Sect, resulting in strained relations. As for the Li Family, their style was smooth and tactful, usually maintaining neutrality, adept at navigating the clashes between the Lu and Zhao families, profiting by providing medicinal herbs, equipment, and intelligence, all while secretly amassing strength.

Lu Chen’s rise had once allowed the Lu Family to suppress the Zhao and Li families so heavily that they could barely hold their heads up. His fall, however, brought those two families back to the starting line, and in fact, within the younger generation, the Lu Family was now somewhat lagging behind.

Just then, steady and forceful footsteps came from outside the courtyard.

Lu Chen and Xiaocui both turned to look. A tall, imposing middle-aged man with a resolute and firm face walked in through the moon gate. He wore a dark-patterned Family Head robe, commanding authority without anger. The sedimentation of years had bestowed upon him a weighty presence born of being long in a position of power.

It was precisely the Lu Family Head, Lu Chen’s father, Lu Tianxing. In this world where strength was revered, his cultivation stood at the peak of the mid Spirit Sea Realm. He was not only the pillar of the Lu Family, but also the acknowledged foremost expert of Qingyang City. Yet he knew that on the vast map of Yunlan Commandery, a family without rising new-generation power, even guarded by a Spirit Sea Realm cultivator, was nothing but a solitary island on the verge of drying up.

The Spirit Sea Realm required opening a “Spiritual Power Sea” within the dantian. Cultivators of this realm possessed spiritual energy reserves and recovery ability far beyond those in the Qi Gathering Realm, who could only condense a “qi vortex” inside their dantian. At this stage, one could initially cast off the earth’s bindings, travel through the air, and, with one’s own spiritual power, stir the spiritual qi of heaven and earth into motion, thereby preliminarily condensing an “Aura” imbued with personal will. And this “Aura” was absolute control and suppression over the surrounding environment.

Upon seeing the person, Xiaocui’s expression tensed at once. She hastily curtsied, bowing her head deeply: “This servant Xiaocui pays respects to the Family Head.”

Lu Tianxing’s gaze lingered on her briefly. He nodded, his voice steady yet carrying an indisputable authority: “Mm. You may withdraw first.”

“Yes, Family Head.” Xiaocui answered quietly, casting a worried, hurried glance at Lu Chen. Then, lowering her head, she hastily exited the moon gate, her figure disappearing into the night.

Only father and son remained within the courtyard.

Lu Tianxing’s gaze fell upon Lu Chen. When he saw his left hand a bloody mess, fresh blood dripping from his fingertips and leaving dark red spots upon the bluestone, that customary calm in his eyes instantly shattered, replaced by a flash of undisguisable heartache and a deeper gravity. He strode forward and seized Lu Chen’s wrist.

“It flared up again?” Lu Tianxing’s voice was pressed very low, carrying a weighty certainty. It was not a question. He knew all too well how the wounds on his son’s hands came to be.

Lu Chen nodded silently, not pulling his hand back.

Lu Tianxing carefully examined the wounds, confirming they were only flesh injuries and nothing serious, before releasing his grip. He drew a deep breath, his gaze sweeping over the silent, desolate courtyard, before finally returning to Lu Chen. His eyes were complex, holding both worry and a resolution as if he had finally set his heart on some decision.

“Come with me,” his voice was low, brooking no refusal, “your father has something he must tell you now.”

Lu Chen followed behind his father in silence.

The gazes of the clansmen along the way made him extremely uncomfortable, but what concerned him more was where his father was leading him. The father and son did not head to the main courtyard, but instead turned into a narrow, increasingly secluded and overgrown path.

Finally, they halted before a cliff face that appeared naturally formed. In the center of the cliff, a stone door, neither gold nor jade, stood abruptly, its surface smooth as a mirror, reflecting the blurry silhouettes of father and son.

“Father, this place…?” Lu Chen couldn’t help but ask quietly.

Lu Tianxing did not turn around, his gaze fixed on the faint spirit patterns on the stone door that ordinary people would hardly notice. His voice was steady: “This is the true core secret chamber of our Lu Family. Aside from the successive family heads and a very few guardian elders, even the current council elders of the clan have never set foot here.”

He paused briefly, pressing his palm slowly against the center of the stone door. “What I am about to tell you concerns the very foundation of the family, and even more so, yourself.”

A stream of pure spiritual power surged from Lu Tianxing’s palm, infusing the stone door. In that instant, the dormant patterns upon the door abruptly blazed to life, countless fine and complex arrays circulating and humming like awakened blood vessels.

As the spiritual energy spread, the heavy stone door slowly opened inward with a crack, and a gust of cold, dry air mixed with the scent of aged books and scrolls rushed out to greet them.

“Come in.”

Lu Tianxing stepped first into that darkness, Lu Chen following closely behind.

Stairs extended downward. Inside the roughly ten-zhang-square chamber, only the dim glow emitted by suspended night pearls provided light.

In the center of the chamber, a black stone table sat quietly. On the stone shelves lining the four walls, besides jade boxes and scrolls, a few unlit bronze lamp stands were scattered.

Herein was stored the true secrets and foundation of the Lu Family.