The Sixteenth Ancestor's words hung in the air like a sword about to fall. Li Juntian felt his entire body go cold. The weight of what was being suggested finally hit him.
"Ancestor... are you really willing to go that far? For a child?" Juntian's voice was barely a whisper.
Everyone in the room seemed to hold their breath. The ancestor's eyes gleamed with determination that had been forged over three centuries of living.
"Why not?" the ancestor replied simply
Juntian's face went pale.
"Ancestor, are you saying you'll undergo coffin rebirth? Just for him?"
Coffin rebirth was one of the most extreme cultivation techniques in existence. A cultivator would seal themselves inside a specially prepared coffin with no outside contact, no food, no sunlight, nothing.
It was brutal, reserved only for those at the highest levels who needed to break through impossible barriers or survive catastrophic injuries. And the ancestor was suggesting he do it for a newborn.
The ancestor's expression was completely serious.
"Not just to protect his physique. The blood of our Li clan must be protected and honored. How much longer are you willing to hide in the lower ranks? How much longer will we remain mediocre?"
"Understood, ancestor. All of the clan's major resources will be directed to his growth."
"Good," the ancestor said. "But there's something else. Give him the Zeroth Principle."
The entire room erupted in silent shock. Elders' eyes went wide. Even Juntian's composure cracked.
"Ancestor... the Zero—"
Man, please explain what's going on, Li Fang Ren thought desperately. These people are talking in riddles and everyone's losing their minds.
The ancestor continued calmly, as if he hadn't just made a decision that would shake the entire family.
"It was his father who held it previously. It's only right that the child receives it."
One of the elders finally found his voice. "Ancestor, the Zeroth Principle is something people undergo countless trials just to be considered for. Even then, only a select few ever receive it. To give it directly to an infant..."
"Let them complain," the ancestor waved his hand. "Ten thousand people in this clan and not a single one with real courage. If they have complaints, they can come voice them to me."
Did this old man just set up a bunch of death flags for me?
The ancestor's stern expression suddenly softened. He reached down and carefully lifted the baby from Li Juntian's arms, cradling him with surprising gentleness for someone so ancient and powerful.
"Upsy daisy,"
"Hoho, do you like my beard, little one?"
Everyone watched in disbelief as the three-hundred-year-old patriarch acted like he was playing with a grandchild for the first time.
Jiang Soso, Li Fang Ren's mother, stepped forward. "Sir, please allow me to at least feed him and care for him for a few days. After that, you can take him wherever you need to."
The ancestor looked reluctant to hand the baby back, but he eventually agreed. "Very well. I'll send word a day before the coffin rebirth arrangements are ready."
I'm doomed, Li Fang Ren thought as the old man finally returned him to his mother's arms. This guy is going to drag me away for who knows what.
* * * * *
Five years passed in what felt like a blink of an eye.
Li Fang Ren had spent those five years sealed away with his ancestor in the coffin rebirth chamber, a place of absolute isolation and intense cultivation. It was meant to stabilize his foundation and help him grow stronger rapidly.
But without being able to use his system sign-ins during seclusion, his progress had been slower than expected.
Now he was in a quiet stone room, his ancestor sitting across from him with a patient expression.
"Fang Ren, listen carefully," the ancestor said,
"The stages of cultivation are important to understand. You start with the physical realm, where your body becomes stronger. After that comes the foundation realm, where you build your inner structure. Then there's the divine realm, where things get more complex. Finally, the nascent soul realm is where you condense your true spirit energy into a form that can exist both inside and outside your body."
"How long does it take to reach the divine realm, ancestor?"
"For most people, around ten years," the ancestor replied.
"Someone like you could probably do it much faster. And please, call me grandpa. How many times do I have to tell you?"
"But grandpa, I feel like I could reach the divine realm right now."
"Hoho, aren't you being a bit overconfident, child? Show me your current cultivation then."
Li Fang Ren closed his eyes and began to meditate. As he did, something extraordinary began to happen.
All the accumulated cultivation sign-in rewards from the past five years, things he hadn't been able to use during their seclusion suddenly activated all at once.
His body began to glow. Lights of different colors erupted around him as he broke through one cultivation rank after another.
His outer clothes couldn't withstand the power and tore apart, falling away as his body transformed. The energy in the room became almost unbearable, making the very air vibrate.
The ancestor sat in complete awe, unable to move or speak.
When Li Fang Ren finally opened his eyes, the transformation was complete. He looked at his ancestor calmly.
"How's that?"
The old man took several moments to process what he'd just witnessed. His hands were actually shaking slightly.
"You... you really are the dragon of this family," the ancestor said slowly.
"Your talent is truly off the charts. I've never seen anything like it."
Li Fang Ren walked over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Are you alright?"
The ancestor looked at him with eyes that held both pride and wonder. "Ho, I'm fine, child. I'm just... surprised."
"Tell me, is there something you want? I've been teaching you constantly without thinking about what you might actually need or want. Normal children don't live like this, sealed away in a chamber."
Li Fang Ren thought for a moment. "A gift, you mean?"
The old man's face turned slightly red, almost embarrassed by being called out so directly. "Kuku, yes, you could call it that."
"Then I want to know how strong I really am,"
"Do we have some kind of device that can measure strength? Something that shows actual numbers?"
The ancestor's face brightened immediately. "Ah, measure your strength? Yes, I know exactly where. The family arena has everything you need. Come, let's go."
In the martial arena of the Li family compound, younger disciples were gathering for their daily strength training. The arena was a wide, open space surrounded by stone walls, with various training equipment scattered around.
A girl named Ling Feng, who came from one of the branch families, stepped up to a tall stone tablet and struck it with all her strength. The tablet glowed with numbers, displaying the result: 150,000 catties of force.
The watching disciples gasped and applauded. It was an impressive result for someone her age.
Li Yunling, another young disciple, watched with jealous eyes. She stepped forward with a sneer.
"Your improvement is slowing down. You've only gained twenty thousand catties since last year."
Some of the other girls looked shocked. Even gaining five thousand catties over a year was considered excellent progress for someone their age. But Ling Feng simply ignored the comment.
"I heard you rejected an apprenticeship under Master Fujian," Yunling continued, trying to provoke a reaction.
"That's true" . "A real master is important. I won't just take anyone."
Yunling's jealousy turned into anger. "You think you're better than everyone else, don't you?"
"Shoo, shoo," Ling Feng said, waving her hand as she walked away.
Suddenly, a breeze swept through the arena. Everyone turned to see a young boy standing near the strength tablet, seemingly appearing out of nowhere.
It was Li Fang Ren, who had just used the system sign-in upon arriving at the arena.
A system notification appeared:
[SIGN IN: Divine Imprisoning Technique Acquired]
Li Fang Ren realized something important. It seemed like the location of the sign-in actually did matter. He'd received a divine-grade reward, just like when his physique was awakened.
Maybe the more important the location, the better the rewards,
Yep, let's do it, he told the system mentally.
Every eye in the arena turned toward him. Yunling frowned, not recognizing the boy.
"Hey you, brat!" Yunling called out. "Where did you come from? You shouldn't be here without an adult. Go play somewhere else!"
"I have permission. The ancestor allowed me to come."
Yunling scoffed. "The ancestor? Who even are you? Nobody in this family knows you."
"This place belongs to my family anyway. I'm Li Fang Ren of the Li family. My father is the Divine Sword."
The entire arena went silent.
The color drained from everyone's faces. Not just because of the Li family name, but because everyone knew who the Divine Sword was a legendary cultivator who had single-handedly destroyed countless unorthodox sects, leaving a trail of devastation in his wake.
Disciples started whispering frantically, their voices rising in urgency.
"Could this be the child who made the Sixteenth Ancestor leave his seclusion?"
"Bow! Bow immediately!"
"He has the ancient sacred physique!"
People quickly dropped to their knees, bowing deeply. Ling Feng pulled Yunling down with her, forcing her to bow as well.
"Descendants of the Li family pay respect to the divine born, the holy child!" they said in unison.
Yunling's face was completely red with embarrassment and confusion. She had no idea what was happening or who this child actually was.
Li Fang Ren stood there, feeling awkward and not entirely sure how to respond to all this sudden crap. This wasn't what I expected. I thought maybe they'd try to challenge me, and then I could use my authority like wealthy people do in these stories. Oh well, I'm here to test my strength anyway.
He turned toward the strength tablet, positioning himself in front of it. Taking a deep breath, he began to channel his cultivation energy.
He chanted the words that would increase his power output, letting his body glow with red and yellow auras as his qi flowed through him.
"Let me use the imprisoning qi,"
The divine imprisoning technique the system had just given him manifested in his hands as he threw a punch at the tablet.
The disruption in the air was so massive that everyone gasped. Even though he was just a child, the power behind that strike was unmistakable.
The tablet glowed and displayed: 17,000 catties.
Several disciples looked disappointed, whispering among themselves.
"Is that all? He doesn't seem to live up to his reputation."
"Isn't that kind of low? Even my little brother had five thousand catties after just a few months of training."
Li Fang Ren smirked slightly to himself. Come on, give me a moment for the dramatic buildup.
He turned to face the crowd. "Did I hear someone squirming"
Without waiting for a response, he released the imprisoning qi in a completely different way this time.
Instead of focusing it into a single punch, he spread it across the entire arena. The wave of pure energy expanded outward, covering the ground completely. He mixed it with his inner qi, making it even more powerful and visible.
The effect was immediate and devastating. Weaker disciples actually fainted from the pressure. Colored particles of qi hung in the air like they'd been frozen in place. The very ground beneath their feet trembled.
Everyone realized in that moment exactly how powerful the young man standing before them truly was.