Chapter 1: The Azure Pouch Manuscript
Starlight Domain!
Night fell, the moonlight poured down, and the entire starry sky appeared profound and ancient.
The Ancestral Dragon Mountain Range stretched like a vast chasm across the land, dividing the expansive Starlight Domain into two halves.
Within the heartland embraced by the Azure Dragon Mountain Range, the source energy was abundant. Cultivators progressed by leaps and bounds; compared to the world beyond the Ancestral Dragon Range, it was akin to a paradise on earth.
The Li Family!
An ancient clan with a long-standing heritage, weathered by time. As generations of ancestors returned to the primordial chaos, the Li bloodline diluted and gradually declined into obscurity.
Li Xuan, the only male heir of the Li family, had been paralyzed from the waist down for three years due to a voyeurism incident. He had been in a deep meditative slumber ever since, sustained only by sheer willpower.
“Cough, cough, cough...”
Coughing echoed from Li Xuan’s room—after three years of slumber, he finally regained consciousness.
Li Xuan tried to open his eyelids; it felt as if his eyelashes were stuck together. After several attempts, his eyes finally opened.
“What is this...?”
Li Xuan murmured. Before him lay a scene of antiquity and elegance, the luminous sheen resembling a bronze mirror’s surface reflecting his pale, haggard face. Memories flooded his mind.
It was the mid-21st century when the Interstellar Alliance delved deeper than ever into cosmic civilizations, provoking ancient taboos. Alien species quickly adapted to Earth’s environment, infiltrating and living among humans.
Disappearances of humans were often reported in the news, though the human race regarded them as mere gossip.
Li Xuan had taken no heed. His nightlife was vibrant, his wealth boundless. Amidst the neon-lit decadence of bars, entangled with the alien beauty Sheng Yan, he was suddenly possessed.
Filled with resentment, his soul unwilling to accept this fate, he drifted through the endless darkness of the cosmos, wandering in the cycle of reincarnation.
Li Xuan lamented his ill fate but was drawn by a flickering light of life about to extinguish. His soul involuntarily floated toward it.
“Sigh, after millions of years of waiting, I can finally be released. Though you are not who you once were, the cycles of reincarnation cannot escape Heaven’s decree. It shall be you. Let fate take its course!”
A towering figure, like a mountain seated amidst the reverse flow of time and space, sensed Li Xuan’s soul and imprinted a mark upon it.
“Celestial Alignments Seal the Altar, Universal Transformations Ascend the Path to Immortality. Li Xuan, remember this: Heaven is merciless, treating all things as straw dogs. Only by becoming stronger can one find truth!”
“Wait... Elder!”
Li Xuan shouted loudly, but the enormous figure of the old blind man blurred and vanished into the depths of space.
When Li Xuan awoke again, he cried out, “Sheng Yan, don’t...”
At that moment, someone forcefully pushed open his door. A beautiful figure embraced him tightly, tears streaming down her face.
“Xuan’er, you’re finally awake! Your sister thought...”
Li Chenxi!
Li Xuan depended on his second sister to survive. Seeing him awake, her eyes reddened, voice choked with emotion, tears silently falling.
Li Xuan felt unfamiliar. In his past life, he was a rare investment prodigy of the 21st century, sweeping the entire financial world at a young age, surrounded by countless admirers.
Now, reborn with the same name and identity, how could he not feel conflicted?
Li Xuan licked his cracked lips and asked hoarsely, “Are you... second sister, Li Chenxi?”
Li Chenxi’s heart, previously held in suspense, raced violently again. She thought, “Could it be that after three years of slumber, he’s become a fool?”
Li Xuan adapted and smiled faintly, gently wiping the tears from Li Chenxi’s face.
“Second sister, I survived against all odds. Please don’t be sad.”
He harbored bitterness; in his past life, he had been possessed by Sheng Yan, and in this life, he had slept for three years because of a woman.
“Heaven has not been unkind to me. Given the same fate, I must be cautious and tread carefully.”
“Little brother, you’re not a fool? What did you just say?”
Li Chenxi was alarmed, fearing he might have suffered some incurable trauma.
“I said Sheng Yan...”
Li Chenxi’s face tightened as she hurriedly covered Li Xuan’s mouth with her delicate hand, whispering, “Xuan’er, some things can’t be spoken carelessly, or great taboos will arise!”
A chill ran down Li Xuan’s spine. Unpleasant premonitions surfaced, but he restrained his suspicions.
Clenching his fists, cheeks puffed out, he then smiled kindly.
“Understood. I won’t mention it again.”
Yet, in his heart, he cursed every ancestor of Sheng Yan’s clan.
Li Xuan tried to rise but found no sensation in his legs. Stunned, he looked at Li Chenxi.
She secretly grieved and wiped her tears.
“Xuan’er, as long as you live, just continue the Li family lineage.”
Li Xuan was stunned, thinking, “This life, I’ve become a breeding machine.”
He immediately understood the situation and smiled wryly.
“Second sister, please go. I want to rest.”
Li Chenxi nodded slightly and, before leaving, kissed Li Xuan’s forehead firmly.
“All right, Xuan’er, rest well.”
After Li Chenxi left, Li Xuan struck his knee with a fierce punch, cursing, “Truly, those outside the family harbor ill will. Sheng Yan, one day I will drive all your kind away.”
Suddenly, he recalled the divine light the old blind man had imprinted on his soul. Concentrating his divine sense, the radiant glow appeared, and ancient scriptures unfolded in his mind.
“Yes, the ‘Sacred Emperor Azure Lotus Codex’ originates from primordial times, encompassing the heavens and earth, compiling the essence of all martial arts, including source arts, rare techniques, alchemy, astrology... Among them, the ‘Azure Pouch Scroll’ is the sacred scripture for healing.”
Li Xuan examined it carefully. Except for the ‘Azure Pouch Scroll,’ the profound techniques were inaccessible, leaving him discouraged.
At this moment, the ‘Azure Pouch Scroll’ was exceedingly practical. He immediately harnessed source energy and began cultivation.
His spirit clear and detached, source energy slowly circulated through the extraordinary meridians. Many blocked acupoints burst open under the influx, surging like mighty rivers.
“Heaven and earth set the stage, wind and thunder clash, mountains and marshes breathe…”
A wave of heat assaulted the still-blocked acupoints. The intense pain caused Li Xuan’s body to convulse.
The agonizing sensation, as if thousands of ants gnawed relentlessly, reshaping his meridians, was like a rebirth, a complete transformation of sinew and bone.
Several times he wanted to give up, but recalling the moment of possession and the Li family’s current plight, he summoned the courage to fight death and persevered.
Exhaling deeply, Li Xuan tried moving his feet. Sure enough, sensation had returned. Previously shattered meridians and bones began to heal.
“The old blind man did not deceive me. The ‘Sacred Emperor Azure Lotus Codex’ is truly miraculous. Not only are its techniques heaven-defying, but its healing arts are unprecedented, illuminating the heavens and countless worlds!”
Elated, his meridians cleared, source energy flowed without obstruction. He accelerated the ‘Azure Pouch Scroll’ healing technique, which proved remarkably effective. By dawn, he could walk again.
Calculating the time, he realized he had been enrolled in the Sacred Dao Academy for three years and should now be a student of the Fourth Dao Institute. He wondered about his classmates’ progress.
According to the academy’s standards, students of the Fourth Dao Institute cultivate from low to high, starting at the Spirit Awakening Realm, then Foundation Establishment. Once source energy is abundant, they break into the Martial Breakthrough Realm, progressing further to God-Slaying Realm. Entering the Profound Realm signifies very advanced cultivation.
To graduate from the Sacred Dao Academy, Li Xuan must reach the early God-Slaying Realm. To ascend to the Profound Realm requires immense talent and a strong family foundation.
Currently, Li Xuan was only at the early Spirit Awakening Realm. Achieving God-Slaying Realm within half a year was unheard of in the entire outer star domain.
His task was daunting—losing three years of cultivation meant catching up would be extraordinarily difficult.
Flipping through the ‘Sacred Emperor Azure Lotus Codex’ in his mind, he found that all rapid advancement techniques bore red source seals—clearly forbidden arts, carrying great risks for future cultivation.
After long contemplation, he reluctantly abandoned them.
“The path of cultivation is to seize the creation of heaven and earth, using yin and yang as fuel, enduring tribulations, tempering oneself. There are almost no shortcuts.”
He muttered to himself but was deeply intrigued by the source rune formation and the Azure Pouch Scroll. After thorough study, he made notable progress.
Li Xuan believed that with source rune formations and the Azure Pouch Scroll, even at the early Spirit Awakening Realm, he could contend with those at the Martial Breakthrough Realm.
Finally seeing a glimmer of hope, his lake-blue eyes gazed at the rising sun surging in the distant sky. Taking a deep breath, he noted the time was late and went to his sister Li Chenxi’s chamber, his face beaming with warmth as he watched her sleep.
He smiled wryly, murmuring, “Such a grown woman, and you still kick off the covers!”
Looking at Li Chenxi peacefully asleep, he was suddenly overcome with the urge to hold her close. She was so radiant and delicate, yet bore the heavy burden of the Li family alone.
Feeling guilty, he gently kissed her forehead.
“Second sister, rest well. I won’t disappoint you, nor the Li family. I will become a man who stands tall and strong. From now on, I will protect you!”
Having said this, dressed in the Sacred Dao Academy uniform, he limped toward the academy he had been absent from for three years.