Chapter 2: Spiritual Vein Awakening, Rapid Progress

"I am willing to be your servant, anything you wish—please, I beg you, spare my life."
Ye Wushuang fell to his knees with a dull thud, pleading desperately.

"Heh, Ye Wushuang, spare your life? You and Ye Jingyue are alike—both deserve to die."
"Once I've killed you, I'll settle the score with Ye Jingyue and reclaim everything that belongs to me."
"I, Ye Junlin, will make Ye Jingyue pay dearly for all she's done."
With bloodshot eyes, Ye Junlin let out a furious roar.

The gigantic demon ape's palm crushed Ye Wushuang's skull without mercy.
As Ye Wushuang's headless corpse collapsed into a pool of blood, the enormous shadow of the demon ape faded away behind Ye Junlin.
Ye Junlin himself felt utterly drained, slumping powerlessly to the ground, gasping for breath.

"I… I actually killed them all?"
"What just happened? How could there be such terrifying power within me?"
"Could it be that I, Ye Junlin, have awakened the legendary bloodline of the ancient demon ape?"
"Isn't the awakening of the ancient demon ape bloodline something only the ancient ape clan has the faintest chance of achieving?"

Recovering from his shock, Ye Junlin, who had always yearned for strength, felt his heart blaze with excitement.
He quickly sat cross-legged and checked his body.
To his astonishment, in the region of his dantian, there now stood a demon ape towering ten thousand meters high. The dantian, shattered and wounded by Ye Jingyue, seemed like a mere speck of dust before this mighty ape.

"Ancient demon ape? Is it truly the ancient demon ape?"
Staring at this awe-inspiring scene, Ye Junlin's breath came in quick gasps.

Suddenly, a mysterious little tower, glowing with seven-colored light, shot out from within the demon ape.
What was this?
Ye Junlin's heart skipped a beat, his shock deepening.

Just as Ye Junlin wondered why a small tower would emerge from the demon ape, the ape abruptly devoured the broken dantian within him.
The dantian was refined, and in the next instant, three golden serpents surged skyward from within the demon ape.
These golden serpents, formed from golden energy, radiated an overwhelming, terrifying power.

"What domineering energy!"
"I wonder if such potent energy could help me, Ye Junlin, awaken the spiritual veins in my body?"
The thought flashed through Ye Junlin's mind.

He had endured endless ridicule for his inability to awaken his spiritual veins, and now, filled with excitement, he sat cross-legged, guiding the three golden serpents to strike at his spiritual veins.

To become a martial artist, the first step is to awaken the body's spiritual veins.
Only by awakening all nine spiritual veins can one hope to enter the Spirit Gathering Realm and become a true martial artist.
Beyond Spirit Gathering lie the Foundation Building, Golden Core, Nascent Soul, and the legendary Divine Transformation stages.
The path of martial cultivation is a rebellion against fate; every breakthrough is fraught with difficulty.

Take spiritual vein awakening, for example: typically, it takes a year to awaken a single vein.
Under normal circumstances, a martial artist awakens their first vein around the age of thirteen or fourteen.
At a rate of one vein per year, awakening all nine would take until about age twenty-five.

Ye Jingyue, on the other hand, awakened her first vein at ten, and by sixteen, had awakened all nine, becoming the outstanding figure among the younger generation of both the Ye family and Black Dragon City.

Under the impact of the golden serpents, Ye Junlin's spiritual veins were gradually opened.

"My spiritual vein has awakened? In just one day? I, Ye Junlin, awakened a spiritual vein in only a single day?"
After expending the energy of one golden serpent, the first spiritual vein was awakened.

Two days passed.

"The second spiritual vein is awakened too?"

On the third day.

"Heavens! In only three days, I, Ye Junlin, have awakened three spiritual veins?"

The energy of the three golden serpents was completely depleted, and three spiritual veins had awakened. Ye Junlin was utterly stunned by this astonishing speed.

"Hahaha, this ancient demon ape bloodline truly is domineering! At last, I, Ye Junlin, can cultivate."
"At last, I am no longer the useless one you all mocked, incapable of awakening even a single spiritual vein."
"Hahaha, Xiaoya, Uncle Fu—I imagine you'll be thrilled when you hear of this!"

With the awakening of his spiritual veins, Ye Junlin, who had suffered countless humiliations over the years, laughed wildly, almost madly.
Clenching his fists, he released the pent-up emotions, tears glistening at the corners of his eyes.

"Ye Jingyue, you destroyed my dantian and seized my Dragon Tiger Token. Heh, it won't be long before you regret it."
After calming his emotions, Ye Junlin gave a cold laugh and set off down the mountain toward the Ye residence.

On the path downhill, an elderly man with graying hair, limping as he walked, appeared in Ye Junlin's sight.

"Uncle Fu? What happened to you? How did you get so badly hurt?"

Seeing Uncle Fu, Ye Junlin rushed to his side, where the old man's robes were stained with blood and his body was covered in wounds.

"Young master? You—you survived? That's wonderful!"
Upon seeing Ye Junlin, Uncle Fu's clouded eyes sparkled with joy.

"Young master, it was Ye Jingyue. After taking your Dragon Tiger Token, she came for Xiaoya and me. She beat me and expelled me from the Ye residence, then sent me here to the mountain to collect your corpse."
"Young master, please save Xiaoya!"

What? Xiaoya is in trouble?

Seeing Uncle Fu's anxious expression and hearing his urgent words, Ye Junlin felt as if struck by thunder.

"Uncle Fu, tell me quickly—what happened to Xiaoya? What's wrong with her?"

—
"Young master, ever since the patriarch ventured to the Longevity Secret Realm and his fate became uncertain, Grand Elder Ye Nantian has taken complete control of the Ye residence."
"His daughter Ye Jingyue, upon obtaining the Dragon Tiger Token, has enabled Ye Nantian to establish contact with the Dragon Tiger Academy."
"Once Ye Jingyue enters the academy, Ye Nantian will have the powerful backing of the Dragon Tiger Academy."
"Now Ye Nantian's ambition is fully exposed—he's making his final preparations to seize control of the Ye family."
"His unruly son Ye Xuan Yi has become increasingly reckless. He wants Xiaoya to be his bed servant and is currently forcing her to warm his bed."
"Young master, in these years, Ye Xuan Yi has ruined no fewer than eighty or a hundred young girls. Please, save Xiaoya."

Uncle Fu finished his urgent explanation in one breath, then collapsed to the ground, panting heavily.

Hearing these words, Ye Junlin's forehead throbbed with veins and his fists clenched tightly.