Chapter Five: My Little Li’er Is Missing

The process of breaking through to the Foundation Establishment was far easier than Wang Li had imagined.

As the spiritual energy continuously expanded his meridians, gradually strengthening and widening them, by the twentieth day of his meditation atop the giant stone, his meridians had reached their limit. Compared to when he had first entered the first stage of Qi Refinement, his meridians now resembled a river instead of a trickling stream. The flow of spiritual energy within him was smooth beyond compare, and the amount of energy had multiplied several times over. So much so, that the absorbed energy, unable to be consumed, began accumulating in his meridians and dantian, slowly liquefying into a dense spiritual liquid.

Wang Li had never seen any mention of spiritual energy liquefying in the books, so he nervously asked Old Sheng.

Old Sheng merely replied, "It's normal," and paid him no mind.

Left with no choice but to trust Old Sheng, Wang Li waited until the liquefied spiritual energy in his meridians and dantian reached saturation. Following the methods recorded in the books, he attempted to guide the energy in his meridians to impact the Baihui acupoint.

He barely tried, and easily broke through the Baihui acupoint. Everything flowed as naturally as water finding its way, almost without any resistance.

Looking inward, he saw the formation of a grand cycle of spiritual energy: the rich, almost overwhelming liquefied energy started from his dantian, passed through the twelve principal meridians and the eight extraordinary vessels, converging at the Niwan Palace. After passing through the Niwan Palace, the spiritual energy condensed further, transforming into spiritual power—a force entirely different in nature from spiritual energy. Spiritual power then replaced spiritual energy, beginning a new round of refinement across his body.

Wang Li found it novel, almost unable to tear himself away from his introspection.

"Look at you, as though you've never seen the world—it's only Foundation Establishment, what's so fascinating?" Old Sheng reminded him, "There's only seven days left until the agreed time. Unless you want to be thrown into the volcano behind?"

Wang Li suddenly remembered he had important matters to attend to, and snapped back to himself.

"What should I do?"

"Relax your mind, and I'll take over your body."

Wang Li hesitated, "Is that really alright?"

He genuinely worried Old Sheng might have designs on him.

Going along with things as they came had been his strategy for survival—he didn't want to be possessed for real.

Old Sheng said, "You’re quite cautious, aren’t you?"

"Isn’t that what you taught me—never let your guard down?" Wang Li replied sheepishly.

"Nonsense. It seems all those books you read were a waste. I'm just a remnant soul—tell me, how would I possess you? I'd honestly like to try!" Old Sheng said, disgruntled.

—

"Uh... my mistake. Please, go ahead!"

Possession required a complete spirit; without it, there was no way to merge into a new body, unless the possessor sought only to trade one death for another.

Old Sheng truly was only a remnant soul—Wang Li could distinguish that much.

Realizing his error in basic knowledge, Wang Li immediately admitted fault and relaxed his mind.

—

In a cave behind the Library Pavilion.

Master Chu Xuan opened her beautiful eyes, awakening from her cultivation.

Like many female cultivators, Master Chu Xuan had taken the Youth-Preserving Pill early in her life. Nearly a millennium had left no trace on her exquisite features, and her peak Divine Transformation cultivation lent her beauty an air of dignified elegance.

"Peak Divine Transformation?" A rare smile blossomed on her face. "I truly must thank the one who helped little Li return to normal!"

Three hundred years ago, she had already entered Divine Transformation. With her talent and the resources of the Pure Yang Temple, she should've reached the peak over a decade ago. But after encountering Wang Li—who looked identical to her prematurely deceased brother—she poured most of her cultivation resources into prolonging his life. For nearly ten years, she neglected her own cultivation in search of ways to repair Wang Li's soul, causing her progress to stall at the late stage of Divine Transformation.

Her brother’s loss was a shadow in her heart. When the Wang couple, after many connections, stood before her, she initially refused to accept a disciple whose soul was incomplete. But when little Wang Li peeked out from his mother’s arms, she lost focus, her steadfast path wavering.

She decided to take Wang Li in, to heal him!

Even knowing it was against heaven’s will, she pressed on without hesitation.

Her feelings for Wang Li were deeply complex; after some time together, she even fell into a demonic obsession.

As Wang Li grew, his soul grew weaker—so similar to her brother’s fate.

With Wang Li's daily decline, her heart chilled; she mechanically fed him spiritual power and rare treasures.

Countless renowned medical cultivators declared Wang Li incurable.

She refused to accept it, and with the Wang family, poured into him enough resources and treasures to nurture several cultivators at the Nascent Soul stage.

Master Liu Guang, seeing her stubbornness, tried to persuade her after every sect meeting, urging her to let Wang Li go. Friends within the sect also tried to convince her to prioritize herself.

—

Yet she persisted, investing her time and resources into Wang Li.

A month ago, Wang Li’s soul reached the verge of collapse, death looming. Her heart was about to die with him, her path showing signs of extinction, her foundation becoming unstable.

Luckily, Wang Li survived, his soul repaired, and he became a normal youth.

Upon learning he was safe, she immediately began a closed-door retreat to stabilize her path, emerging only today.

After years of hardship and delay, she advanced in one fell swoop—not only achieving Divine Transformation’s peak, but also gaining insights into the mundane world, sparing her the trouble of tempering her heart before the tribulation. A blessing in disguise.

But Wang Li’s soul repair was riddled with strangeness—completed in an instant, achieving what countless medical immortals could not. It was impossible not to suspect something unusual.

Before her retreat, Master Liu Guang had hinted that Wang Li might have been possessed by a powerful soul; otherwise, there was no way his soul could recover without a trace of anomaly. Broken mirrors cannot be made whole again, and souls are even more complex and mysterious—repair would inevitably leave marks. With Liu Guang unable to spot any clues, the possessor must have been at least equal in power.

Yet, Wang Li’s behavior was perfectly normal; neither she nor Liu Guang found any signs of possession. With Liu Guang busy and she needing to stabilize her foundation and repair her heart, neither could afford to investigate Wang Li further. She instructed the Library Pavilion’s steward to monitor Wang Li, to respond to any change.

After all, a newly possessed soul, freshly reborn, could hardly stir up any trouble.

Thinking of Wang Li, Master Chu Xuan’s heart was filled with both joy and concern.

She rejoiced that Wang Li no longer hovered at death’s edge, but worried—was he still her little Li?

She wanted to confirm whether Wang Li had truly been possessed.

She released her spiritual sense to search for Wang Li within the Library Pavilion, but found nothing. The joy in her heart vanished.

Wang Li had never left the protective array of the Library Pavilion; now, his absence could only mean one thing...

She immediately contacted Liu Wanjin, the steward monitoring Wang Li, using a messaging talisman. The reply confirmed her suspicion.

"My little Li is gone!"

Master Chu Xuan was momentarily stunned, but quickly composed herself, heading to the Grand Hall to seek Master Liu Guang.

Though the facts were clear, she still held a sliver of hope until she could confirm it herself.