Starting with the creation of the Immortal Clan through the compilation of the family genealogy.

Chapter 87 We are all born of mortal bones, who says immortals are unattainable?
Time passed second by second, and for the four people in the courtyard, each second felt like a year.

Their skin went from initial stinging to numbness, and then to excruciating pain as if being burned by fire. Every inch of their skin felt as if it had been torn apart and forcibly stitched back together, wave after wave of pain, endless.

Finally, in the darkest hour before dawn, when Ji Beichuan had finished tempering the last inch of skin on the soles of his feet, he felt a sense of relief wash over him. He collapsed to the ground, completely exhausted, not wanting to move a single finger.

"It's done..." he murmured to himself. Although his body was exhausted, his mind was unusually excited. He could clearly feel a new power flowing slowly beneath his skin, strong and elastic.

Zhang Xianghua and He Wu also completed their tempering one after another, and were equally exhausted, lying on the ground panting heavily.

Just then, He Wen, who had been struggling to stay awake in the corner, suddenly trembled, couldn't catch his breath, and fell straight backward.

"Awen!" He Wu exclaimed, struggling to crawl over.

"Don't move!" Meng Xihong said coldly.

"He walks his own path. If he can overcome it with his own will and mind, and use this pain to break through his mental barriers, he will be able to stand taller than any of you in the future."

If you can't get through this... then go home now and live a peaceful life as a sickly child who needs your protection for the rest of his life!

"I've paved the way for him. Whether he's a dragon or a worm, let him choose for himself!"

He Wen collapsed to the ground, his consciousness already blurred. The mocking voices of his childhood friends, calling him a "sickly child" and a "pedantic scholar," echoed in his ears, piercing his soul with excruciating pain.

No... I can't fall!

He didn't have the strong physique of his older brother He Wu, nor did he have the profound martial arts foundation of Ji Beichuan and the others.

At this moment, his only reliance was his unyielding will and his extraordinary intellect.

In the midst of excruciating pain, he forcibly condensed his scattered consciousness into a single point, no longer the flesh and blood enduring the suffering, but the person holding the pieces, overlooking the chessboard.

The surging blood and qi were a chaotic mess of black and white, violent and disorderly, while his will was the pointer that set things right, searching for a glimmer of hope in the chaos and making moves in order!

He broke down the methods taught by Meng Xihong into countless steps in his mind, using his mind as a guide, no longer forcibly resisting, but instead guiding and sorting them out.

The process was several times slower, and the pain was also several times longer.

When the last breath returned to its proper course, He Wen let out a suppressed groan and completely lost consciousness.

But he did it.

"Yunniang, prepare the medicinal bath!" Meng Xihong called out.

Bai Muyun, Li Shi, and Wang Shi, who had been waiting for a long time, immediately poured pot after pot of boiling hot medicine into four large wooden buckets prepared in the courtyard.

"Get in!"

Ji Beichuan and the other two struggled to their feet. He Wu hoisted his unconscious younger brother onto his shoulder, and the four of them, supporting each other, limped toward the wooden tub.

When they immersed their tormented bodies in the scalding medicinal liquid, an indescribable feeling of comfort instantly spread throughout their limbs and bones!

"what……"

All three of them couldn't help but let out a satisfied groan.

The scalding hot medicine did not burn them; instead, it felt like countless gentle little hands soothing their ravaged skin.

Streams of pure medicinal power seeped into their bodies through their dilated pores, repairing damaged tissues and nourishing new life. They could feel their skin becoming firmer and more resilient at an incredible pace.

The skin, which had turned red due to the tempering of qi and blood, gradually returned to its normal color and even had a faint jade-like luster.

"This...this is body tempering?" Ji Beichuan clenched his fist, feeling the unprecedented power, his eyes filled with utter shock.

He picked up a piece of bluestone from the ground and slashed it hard against his arm.

"Thorn-"

After a screeching sound, not even a white mark was left on his arm.

Instead, the bluestone in his hand broke off with a "crack".

Ji Beichuan stared blankly at his unharmed arm, then at the broken corner of the bluestone on the ground. His heavy breathing was particularly clear in the quiet dawn.

He wasn't unfamiliar with powerful individuals; as a former Grandmaster of Internal Energy, he believed he had a thorough understanding of the limits of the physical body. But what was happening before his eyes completely overturned his decades-long understanding.

This is no longer within the realm of ordinary martial arts!

Zhang Xianghua and He Wu also snapped out of their shock, their faces flushed with excitement.

They pounded each other's chests and backs, making muffled "thump" sounds. The tough touch and the rebound force made them grin like two fools.

"Patriarch...we...we've become immortals?" He Wu stammered, touching his chest, which was as thick as an old cowhide.

Meng Xihong looked at them with a gentle smile on his face: "This is only the first level of skin tempering, the beginning of the path of body tempering. When you reach the third level of bone forging, your bones will be as hard as metal, and ordinary swords and blades will no longer be able to harm you in the slightest."

Upon hearing this, the three were even more excited, their eyes filled with boundless anticipation for the future.

Ji Beichuan slowly raised his head, his gaze passing over Meng Xihong, and looking at the gray sky that was about to break through the dawn.

He recalled the powerlessness and insignificance of a mortal martial artist in Wufeng County, facing those lofty cultivators; he remembered the Lin family's Azure Scale Guards massacring the Meng residence, where he could barely hold them off despite his best efforts, watching helplessly as his comrades fell; he remembered the fear and unease of his family's relocation; he remembered the excruciating pain of last night, as if his bones were being scraped out...

Scenes flashed through my mind: bitterness, humiliation, resentment, pain... all sorts of emotions intertwined and surged, eventually turning into a scorching torrent that rushed to my eyes.

This seven-foot-tall man had tears in his eyes.

But instead of crying, he grinned and let out a low, suppressed laugh.

The laughter grew louder and louder, more and more unrestrained, making one's chest buzz, and finally it turned into a long howl to the sky!
As the howling subsided, Ji Beichuan abruptly lowered his head, his tiger-like eyes fixed on his own fists, weathered yet now brimming with newfound power. He opened his mouth, his voice hoarse, yet each word resounding.

"We are all born with mortal bones, who says that immortals cannot be reached!"

The sound, like a thunderclap from a clear sky, exploded in the courtyard.

The silly grins on Zhang Xianghua and He Wu's faces froze instantly. They looked at Ji Beichuan, who seemed to have gone mad, and their eyes burned with the same raging fire.

Yes, so what if they are immortals? They were once mortals too!

And now, we have the potential to stand shoulder to shoulder with them!

(End of this chapter)