Chapter 20: Human Shaped Spirit Embryo

The Village Chief’s expression was calm, and he smiled faintly. “Even before his Spirit Embryo awakened, his vital qi cultivation was already stronger than that of ordinary Spirit Embryo realm martial artists, almost on par with mine back then. Now that it has awakened, he will only become stronger. Mu’er has worked hard for so many years, and with the countless Four Spirits’ blood you used to nourish him, this level of achievement is not unreasonable.”

The Apothecary was still utterly shocked, muttering, “But, it’s even deeper than yours was back then, and you are...”

“I am merely an old cripple.”

The Village Chief cut him off, smiling, “You can’t use me to measure today’s youth. My current concern is how Mu’er’s vital qi, which has no attributes, can be made to unleash its power. Let’s go; we shouldn’t keep them waiting.”

The Apothecary’s heart trembled slightly. Vital qi gains power only when it has attributes. Qin Mu’s vital qi had no attributes, so naturally, it couldn’t unleash its power. Even though he had awakened his Spirit Embryo and his cultivation was far deeper than ordinary people’s, it was useless if he couldn’t unleash its power.

The two arrived at the bonfire. The Deaf man pulled out his iron ear, washed it in wine, then reinserted it into his ear canal. He then poured the remaining wine into the bonfire, which immediately flared up. He chuckled, “Village Chief, we just tested it out. Although Mu’er has awakened the Overlord Body, he can’t unleash the power of his Overlord Body vital qi. You’re so knowledgeable; you must know how to make it work, right?”

At that moment, the Apothecary felt utterly exasperated with the old man beside him.

The Village Chief looked up and then longingly at the Apothecary beside him, who, in turn, turned his head to clink glasses and drink with Elder Ma.

“So, is Mu’er’s Overlord Body vital qi strong?” the Village Chief asked.

The Deaf man understood his words and praised, “Strong! His vital qi is incredibly resilient and difficult to disperse.”

Others also deeply agreed, nodding repeatedly. When Qin Mu dueled with Senior Brother Qu, one of the Five Sons of Lijiang, they had already noticed the extraordinary nature of Qin Mu’s vital qi. When his vital qi was channeled into a small wooden stick, Senior Brother Qu’s precious sword couldn’t cut it, indicating the true resilience of Qin Mu’s vital qi.

The Village Chief continued, “Is his vital qi abundant?”

The Deaf man replied, “Terrifyingly abundant! At his realm, my vital qi cultivation wasn’t as good as his!”

As he said this, others also strongly agreed. Qin Mu’s vital qi was extraordinarily abundant, so much so that it seemed as if he had been cultivating for decades, even though his Spirit Embryo had only just awakened.

The Village Chief patiently guided them, saying, “Since his vital qi is so resilient and abundant, why can’t it unleash its power?”

This time, the Deaf man didn’t respond directly. Instead, he slapped his thigh and exclaimed, “That’s right! Village Chief, why is that?”

The Village Chief nearly choked, feeling as if the Deaf man had stabbed him twice in the chest. Fortunately, the Mute man beside him became excited, gesticulating wildly and uttering continuous “ah ah” sounds.

“The Mute man is right!”

The Deaf man realized, saying, “Mu’er’s vital qi is so resilient and abundant, yet it can’t unleash its power. This indicates that the problem isn’t with Mu’er’s Overlord Body vital qi itself, but rather that our cultivation techniques aren’t suitable for him, preventing him from unleashing its power. The problem lies with us!”

The Village Chief felt a wave of relief and was about to sigh, when the Deaf man continued, “So, the question is, how do we unleash the power of the Overlord Body vital qi? We don’t know, Village Chief, you’re so knowledgeable, what’s your insight?”

The Village Chief wished he had two more arms to strangle the fellow. However, he did know the reason why Qin Mu’s vital qi couldn’t unleash its power.

The vital qi of the Four Great Spirit Bodies each possessed their own unique characteristics. For example, White Tiger vital qi had metallic properties, allowing it to transform into weapons, providing strong defense and attack. When transformed into claws, it could tear opponents apart; when transformed into a shield, it could block attacks. Azure Dragon vital qi had the properties of lightning, allowing control over thunder and lightning, and also some healing properties. Vermilion Bird vital qi possessed fire properties, fierce and dominant. The Apothecary and the Mute Blacksmith both had this type of Spirit Body. The Apothecary’s alchemy and the Blacksmith’s forge all relied on their vital qi characteristics. And Black Tortoise vital qi, which primarily focused on defense and water control, exhibited water properties when unleashed.

However, because Qin Mu’s vital qi lacked these characteristics, its power couldn’t be unleashed. Although his cultivation was strong, it seemed to have little effect on increasing his overall strength. But knowing the reason didn’t mean he knew the solution.

“Mu’er, what does your Spirit Embryo look like?” the Village Chief asked Qin Mu.

Qin Mu described the strange Spirit Embryo within his Spirit Embryo Divine Treasure. Everyone around the bonfire was startled, exchanging bewildered glances. A human-shaped Spirit Embryo? It was the first time they had ever heard of such a thing as a human-shaped Spirit Embryo!

Qin Mu was also somewhat puzzled, saying, “Grandma, Grandpa Ma, aren’t your Spirit Embryos the same as your childhood selves?”

Grandma Si shook her head, sighing, “No. No wonder it’s an Overlord Body; even the Spirit Embryo’s appearance is different from ours, making it hard not to envy. Grandma’s Spirit Embryo is a White Tiger Spirit Embryo, a small white tiger.”

“My Spirit Embryo is an Azure Dragon,” Elder Ma said.

The Blind man said, “My Spirit Embryo is a Black Tortoise.”

The Mute man again gestured with “ah ah” sounds, indicating that his Spirit Embryo was a Vermilion Bird.

The Village Chief narrowed his eyes, falling into contemplation. The Four Great Spirit Bodies were uniquely blessed; their Spirit Embryo Divine Treasures were naturally open, requiring only the awakening of the Spirit Embryo to become a martial artist. And even if there were differences among the Spirit Embryos of the Four Great Spirit Bodies, they were generally similar, never deviating from these four categories. Some Spirit Bodies might not be White Tiger, Azure Dragon, Vermilion Bird, or Black Tortoise, but they still fell within these four categories. Therefore, the vital qi of the Four Great Spirit Bodies possessed four different attributes.

Qin Mu’s Spirit Embryo was human-shaped and had no attributes, making it difficult to awaken, and thus its vital qi power was also difficult to unleash. The Village Chief sank into deep thought, trying to find a way to activate the power of the Overlord Body vital qi. Even with his exceptional intelligence, he couldn’t come up with an idea immediately.

Grandma Si saw his expression and instantly realized, chuckling, “So, the Village Chief knows Mu’er is an Overlord Body, but he doesn’t know how to cultivate an Overlord Body?”

The Village Chief’s face reddened slightly, and he nodded.

The villagers looked disappointed. The Blind man muttered, “You’re the most knowledgeable among us, and even you don’t know the cultivation method for the Overlord Body. So, is Mu’er’s Overlord Body going to be wasted?”

Silence fell among those gathered by the bonfire.

The Butcher suddenly said, “Overlord Body cultivation methods are created by humans, right?”

Puzzled, everyone looked at him.

The Butcher chuckled, “Since Overlord Body cultivation methods are created by humans, if others can create them, why can’t we? Even if we can’t create them, Mu’er himself can! I don’t respect anyone, which is why my Pig Slaughtering Blade Technique is my own creation. If you’re intimidated by the current difficulties, I’ll look down on you too! Mu’er, don’t let me look down on you!”

Qin Mu nodded heavily, feeling a surge of passion, and declared loudly, “Grandpa Butcher, don’t worry, I definitely won’t disappoint your great expectations!”

The Butcher laughed heartily, patting his shoulder firmly. Others also started laughing, and the previous solemn atmosphere vanished.

Seeing this scene, the Village Chief’s inner knot unknowingly untangled, and he burst into laughter. “I tricked them into believing Mu’er was an Overlord Body, to give them the courage to keep living. I didn’t realize I had gotten stuck in a rut, obsessed with how to cover up the lie. But I never imagined that they had already found their motivation, while I was still agonizing over the deception.”

With the knot in his heart untied, he felt physically and mentally at ease. Qin Mu’s arrival had given the villagers of Crippled Old Village a reason to live, and it had given him the motivation to strive!

The Apothecary looked at him and smiled. The Village Chief hadn’t been this happy, hadn’t shown such a smile, in a long time.

“I think we must push the Overlord Body to its limits to unleash the power of its vital qi.”

Illuminated by the bonfire, the Butcher’s face looked exceptionally fierce. He said menacingly, “Without madness, there’s no life. The Overlord Body is stronger than a Spirit Body, so its vital qi must also be stronger than Spirit Body vital qi. It’s just that the conditions for unleashing its power must be more demanding. Therefore, we must push it to its limits to force out its power!”

The Cripple nodded, “Mu’er’s iron shoes need to be thickened, more iron ingots need to be tied on. We must force him to run faster!”

The Blind man tapped his bamboo staff, saying, “His training used to be too easy. From now on, it definitely needs to be doubled to unleash his potential.”

Elder Ma said, “Exactly. To unleash his potential, we also need to double our efforts.”

The Mute man gestured, saying something with “ah ah” sounds.

Qin Mu was deeply moved, but at the same time, he felt a sense of unease. He was truly touched by how enthusiastic the grandpas and grandmas in the village were about his situation, but why did every one of their sentences include the phrase “force out”?

The Apothecary squinted, joining the discussion. He said, “Nourish! Continue to nourish him! Nourish him until his vital qi is so resilient that it can unleash its power! In the Great Ruins, I have plenty of rare beasts, wondrous flowers, and exotic herbs. I can brew miraculous elixirs, and my medicinal garden outside the village has all kinds of spiritual herbs! Enough to nourish him until he can squeeze out spiritual fluid just by pinching his skin!”

“Apothecary, you’re really going all out!” everyone laughed.