Chapter 2 | The Divine Ability Practitioner

After Jiang Ling, Zhang Yue, and their entourage departed, the atmosphere inside the meeting hall remained silent and oppressive.

In the end, the hot-tempered Lu Jinglei could no longer contain himself. His face was flushed with rage. “Father, are we really just going to let that ungrateful wolf walk away like this? Once word of this gets out, our Thunderfire Hall will become the laughingstock of Qingyuan Ward!”

A thick wave of killing intent flickered in his eyes. “Why don't we find a way to kill that ungrateful wolf before they make it back to the Great Golden Crow Hall?!”

Lu Jin ignored him. Instead, he pulled a black pipe from his robes, flicked a spark from his fingertip to light it, and waited for the smoke to curl upward before finally raising his eyelids. “And then? Wait for the people from the Great Golden Crow Hall to come and slaughter every last one of us in the Thunderfire Hall? The wrath of a Divine Ability Grandmaster is enough to reduce the entire Qingyuan Ward to ruins, let alone our tiny Thunderfire Hall.”

“Why do you always act without thinking? If I shared your temperament, the Lu family would have been wiped out long ago.”

Lu Jinglei choked on his words, the fierce look in his eyes reluctantly fading away.

“Being laughed at is still better than being exterminated. Impotent rage changes nothing. Since we lack the strength, we can only endure.”

At this point, Lu Jin fell silent for a moment before continuing, “However, I am also to blame for this. I was too impatient. Even though I had already sensed that Zhang Yue was deep and calculating—not one to show gratitude—I still clung to a sliver of hope.”

Lu Ming, who had remained quiet until now, could not help but speak up. “Grandfather, since you already knew Zhang Yue was not a good person, why did you still pour so much effort into him? You even diverted the cultivation resources of my father and second uncle to him.”

Even though Zhang Yue possessed an Upper-grade Divine Ability Bone, if he was ungrateful, nurturing him to greatness might not bring any blessings.

Lu Jin turned his gaze toward Lu Ming, his most beloved eldest grandson. His cold, stern expression softened as he asked gently, “Do you think your grandfather was very foolish to do so?”

“Your grandson would not dare.” Lu Ming shook his head, though the doubt in his eyes did not dissipate.

Lu Qingyan sighed. “A-Ming, you don't understand. Your grandfather naturally has his reasons.”

Even Lu Jinglei nodded, showing no trace of resentment or doubt toward Lu Jin's decision to drain the Thunderfire Hall and even divert their resources to nurture Zhang Yue.

This immediately made Lu Ming realize that his grandfather's complete devotion to nurturing Zhang Yue was likely not just to upgrade the Thunderfire Hall to a Tier 4 Divine Ability Hall. There was a hidden secret here that he did not know about.

Looking at the thoughtful Lu Ming, Lu Jin changed the subject. “Little Ming, have you already reached the late stage of the Qi Refining Realm?”

“Yes, just two days ago.”

“Not bad. Reaching this step in just a single year—this speed is much faster than any of us.” A gratified smile appeared on Lu Jin's aged face.

“Since you have reached the late stage of the Qi Refining Realm and are of the right age, you can now undergo the 'Bone-Opening.'”

The path of divine abilities began with two refinements: first, the refinement of Qi, and second, the refinement of bone. Once one mastered these two realms, they could be considered a true Divine Ability User.

Currently, Lu Ming had reached the late stage of the Qi Refining Realm. To step into the Bone Refining Realm, he needed to undergo Bone-Opening. The so-called Bone-Opening was actually the awakening of the Divine Ability Bone deep within one's flesh. This was the most critical hurdle in the cultivation of divine abilities.

It was also the moment that decided the fate of countless cultivators of divine abilities.

Some took a single step to ascend to the heavens here, becoming highly admired geniuses of divine abilities, soaring to the clouds from then on, and becoming existences feared and respected by countless cultivators. Others fell into the abyss, branded as useless, wasting their lives away as they faded into mediocrity.

It was at this very hurdle that Zhang Yue had awakened an Upper-grade Divine Ability Bone, allowing him to stand out from the many disciples of the Thunderfire Hall. He was not only taken in as a personal disciple by Lu Jin but was also given vast amounts of resources, completely altering his fate.

“There is no better day than today. They say that extreme misfortune breeds good luck. Today, our Thunderfire Hall was humiliated to the extreme by that ungrateful wolf. Perhaps with Little Ming, we will welcome a turn of fortune.”

Lu Jin stood up. At this moment, he was actually in the mood to joke. After all, over the past several decades, he had experienced countless trials to build the Thunderfire Hall single-handedly. Before a resilience tempered like thunder and fire, the setback and humiliation brought by Zhang Yue was merely a passing gust of wind in his long life.

“Ah? Bone-Opening today? So suddenly? Aren't we going to make some preparations first?” Hearing this, Lu Ming actually became a bit nervous. After all, awakening the Divine Ability Bone was far too important. Anyone facing this hurdle would inevitably feel anxious.

Lu Jin burst out laughing. “Preparations? What kind of preparation can change the grade of a Divine Ability Bone? If you had that kind of ability, our Lu family would have soared to the heavens long ago.”

Beside him, Lu Qingyan and Lu Jinglei could not help but laugh as well, which eased the previously oppressive atmosphere.

Teased by the three of them, Lu Ming could only feel a bit sheepish.

“Come, let's go to the ancestral hall.”

Lu Jin reached out his withered hand, smiling as he rubbed Lu Ming's head. He then instructed someone to take Lu Mengmeng to her mother first, before turning to lead the way out of the main hall, heading toward the deepest courtyard of the Thunderfire Hall.

“The ancestral hall?”

Lu Ming was somewhat surprised. Their family's ancestral hall was the most heavily guarded place. Normally, even juniors like them were not allowed to approach it at will.

The group of four passed through the backyard, finally stopping outside a blue-tiled ancestral hall deep within the Thunderfire Hall.

Lu Jin waved his sleeve, and a crimson light shot out, landing on the bronze doors of the ancestral hall. Instantly, crimson light flowed over the doors like a layer of burning fire, igniting numerous glowing runes before they quietly faded away.

The doors slowly creaked open.

The interior of the ancestral hall was not spacious, and the lighting was somewhat dim. At the very back, rows of spirit tablets were neatly arranged. Lu Jin lit some incense, and plumes of blue smoke curled upward, lingering inside the hall.

Lu Ming stared at the spirit tablets. In fact, he had always found it strange why their Lu family had so many spirit tablets. Such a grand display was typically only seen in large, thriving clans with a massive lineage.

Yet their Lu family, spanning three generations, did not even have ten members in total... they could not even be considered a prominent household.

When he was young and ignorant, he didn't think much of it, but now that he had grown, he could faintly guess that their Lu family might have had some unknown history in the past.

“Sit down.”

Lu Jin pointed to a futon in front of the spirit tablets, then pulled a sandalwood box from his robes and handed it to Lu Ming. When Lu Ming opened it, he saw a perfectly round, dark red pill resting inside. Broken golden patterns flowed across the surface of the pill, emitting a faint, exotic fragrance.

Lu Ming recognized the pill at a single glance, and a look of pleasant surprise appeared on his face. “An Upper-grade Bone-Opening Pill?”

To awaken a Divine Ability Bone, one also required the assistance of external items, which would make the Bone-Opening process smoother and help develop the grade of the Divine Ability Bone as much as possible.

Thus, a Bone-Opening Pill was practically an essential item for awakening a Divine Ability Bone, making it highly sought-after and scarce in the market.

An Upper-grade Bone-Opening Pill, in particular, would trigger a fierce scramble among various Divine Ability Halls the moment it appeared.

Lu Ming had not expected Lu Jin to prepare an Upper-grade Bone-Opening Pill for him. He had originally thought a Mid-grade one would already be extremely good...

“Your grandfather went to great lengths to secure this Upper-grade Bone-Opening Pill for you. When your second uncle and I underwent our Bone-Opening back then, we didn't receive such treatment,” Lu Qingyan said with a smile.

“Thank you, Grandfather!” Lu Ming thanked him happily.

“Although our hall's resources are scarce, no matter how tight our budget is, we cannot neglect my grandson. Alright, let us begin. We will guard you.” Seeing Lu Ming's delighted expression, a smile appeared on Lu Jin's aged face.

Lu Ming nodded. He pinched the Upper-grade Bone-Opening Pill between his fingers and took a deep breath, completely suppressing the anxiety in his eyes. He popped the pill into his mouth, and at the same time, his hands formed hand seals as he circulated his Qi Refining Technique.

Qi Refining Technique, Thunderfire Furnace!

The so-called Qi Refining Technique was the foundation of cultivation, used to refine the primordial energy of heaven and earth. The "Thunderfire Furnace" Qi Refining Technique that Lu Ming practiced was the foundational method of their Thunderfire Hall.

In an instant, a low rumbling of intertwined thunder and fire echoed from within Lu Ming's body. The thunderfire primordial energy within him carried the potent medicinal force of the Bone-Opening Pill, washing and flowing through his limbs and bones over and over again.

The flesh inside his body felt as if it were burning.

Amidst this burning, Lu Ming could faintly feel a structure filled with endless mystery slowly awakening from the deepest parts of his flesh.

The primordial energy of heaven and earth within him also became exceptionally active and boiling at this moment.

After about half an incense stick's time, a mysterious silver light emerged from Lu Ming's chest.

“A silver glow? A Mid-grade Divine Ability Bone?” Lu Jinglei remarked upon seeing this.

There was a common saying regarding Divine Ability Bones: white is Lower-grade, silver is Mid-grade, and gold is Upper-grade.

However, just as the words left his mouth, the expressions of the three onlookers instantly froze. They saw the silver glow on Lu Ming's chest begin to intensify at an astonishing speed.

Within a few short breaths, the silver light reached its peak, and then, a golden light suddenly burst forth.

Drawn by this, the primordial energy of heaven and earth inside the ancestral hall actually formed a vortex around Lu Ming.

The pupils of Lu Qingyan and Lu Jinglei suddenly contracted.

Even Lu Jin's hand holding the pipe could not help but tremble.

“An Upper-grade Divine Ability Bone?! A-Ming awakened an Upper-grade Divine Ability Bone?!” Lu Qingyan's steady face filled with excitement.

“Haha! I knew it! A-Ming already showed how extraordinary he was back in the Qi Refining Realm. He is definitely a genius!” Lu Jinglei laughed wildly with excitement, his fierce eyes turning red and faintly glistening with tears.

“That bastard Zhang Yue is nothing! He isn't even worthy of carrying A-Ming's shoes!”

Lu Jin did not speak. His breathing merely grew heavier as his eyes remained locked onto the dense golden light radiating from Lu Ming's chest. He noticed that the mysterious golden light was still rapidly intensifying!

His pupils shrank slightly.

Could it be... that an Upper-grade Divine Ability Bone was not even Lu Ming's limit?!

Lu Qingyan and Lu Jinglei quickly noticed this as well. Their excitement instantly turned to shock, and the latter began to stammer, “This... this...”

The golden light intensified to its absolute peak, and gradually, a different, wondrous light began to emerge.

The light was glazed, pure and immaculate.

At this moment, even Lu Jin sucked in a sharp breath, his body trembling slightly.

White is Lower, silver is Mid, gold is Upper... but in truth, there was another line above this:

Glazed is Heaven.

“Could it be... could A-Ming be awakening a Heaven-grade Divine Ability Bone?!” Storms raged in Lu Qingyan's eyes, and the intense rush of excitement made his head spin.

Lu Jin stared fixedly at the mysterious light radiating through Lu Ming's flesh and said, “Legends say that a true Heaven-grade Divine Ability Bone possesses nine bands of Glazed Heavenly Light, which can amplify all divine abilities. Little Ming only has one band right now, so it cannot be considered complete yet.”

But despite his words, the prominent veins on the back of Lu Jin's withered hand betrayed his inner excitement. No matter what, the appearance of even a single band of Glazed Heavenly Light meant that Lu Ming's talent had already surpassed an Upper-grade Divine Ability Bone!

Furthermore, the changes in Lu Ming had only just begun!

Wait, no!

Oh no!

That thing!

Suddenly, Lu Jin recalled something, and the excitement in his eyes vanished instantly. He snapped his gaze toward the space between Lu Ming's eyebrows.

There, a spot of light that was red to the absolute extreme suddenly emerged from deep within his flesh, resembling a blood mole, radiating an eerie aura.

The moment this eerie "blood mole" appeared, a look of intense agony surfaced on Lu Ming's face. The single band of Glazed Mysterious Light condensed by his newly born Divine Ability Bone seemed to be drawn by some force, flowing along his body until it was swallowed by the "blood mole."

As the Glazed Mysterious Light was devoured, Lu Ming's Divine Ability Bone immediately began to turn gold. Yet, the "blood mole" did not stop, continuing to absorb greedily...

Gradually, the golden light grew dim, showing signs of degrading back to silver.

This scene struck Lu Qingyan and Lu Jinglei like a bolt from the blue.

“Dammit! Dammit!”

In the next instant, Lu Jinglei's furious roars echoed through the ancestral hall. His eyes nearly split as he watched Lu Ming's Divine Ability Bone continuously drop in grade. His roars were filled with intense hatred and rage: “It's here again! This cursed thing is here again! Does it want to wipe out the entire Lu family bloodline before it is satisfied?!”

Lu Qingyan's face turned deathly pale as he collapsed to the floor.

This "blood mole" was the nightmare of their Lu family bloodline.

When they had awakened their own Divine Ability Bones back then, they had also encountered this object. It was as if this thing existed solely to restrict their Lu family's bloodline below the Upper-grade Divine Ability Bone, ensuring they could never break through that boundary no matter how hard they struggled.

It was meant to deny the Lu family bloodline any hope of rising to prominence.

While Lu Qingyan and Lu Jinglei roared in pain and anger, Lu Jin remained unusually calm. He did not seem surprised by this scene at all; only the bloodshot veins crawling across his eyes revealed the turbulent emotions within him.

He stared intently at the "blood mole" on Lu Ming's brow, his faint murmurs echoing inside the ancestral hall.

“The Spirit-Sealing Curse...”

“It has been so many years. Our Lu family bloodline has been ground down generation after generation, yet it still refuses to disperse?”

Lu Jin clenched his fists so tightly that his nails dug into his flesh, bringing a sharp, stinging pain. He stared unblinkingly at the "blood mole" writhing like a living creature on Lu Ming's brow, and at the Divine Ability Bone whose golden light was thinning, on the verge of turning completely silver.

“Father, what do we do? Are we really just watch helplessly as A-Ming's Divine Ability Bone is reduced to Mid-grade?” Lu Qingyan's voice grew hoarse.

Bloodshot veins crept across Lu Jin's eyes, making his eyeballs look completely blood-red and terrifying. His cheeks twitched violently from his turbulent emotions before settling into a resolute murmur laced with madness.

“How could we?!”

“Once Little Ming is forced down to a Mid-grade Divine Ability Bone, our Lu family bloodline will be completely and utterly ground to dust.”

“This is the Lu family's absolute last chance!”

Lu Jin abruptly turned around and knelt down before the rows of spirit tablets inside the ancestral hall. His blood-red eyes resembled those of a desperate gambler about to wager his final possession.