Chapter 2: The Martial Arts Heart Palace

Chapter 2: The Martial Arts Heart Palace

"Ning the Sickly actually came back to life. His resilience is truly something!"

"That kind of sickly wretch is nothing but a burden. If the old marquis hadn’t spent vast amounts of Earth Martial Essence to keep him alive all these years, he would’ve surely broken through to a higher realm by now."

"Wouldn’t it have been better if he’d just died? Living like this only harms himself and others."

Ning Xiaochuan’s death and subsequent revival caused a stir in the Jian Pavilion Marquis House. Many sighed in dismay, as if a harbinger of misfortune had returned instead of being sent away.

Unaware of the commotion in the marquis house, Ning Xiaochuan, exhausted from the day, returned late and immediately fell asleep upon lying down.

In his bed, Ning Xiaochuan’s soul drifted out of his body, gradually shrinking into a speck of light that flew into his brow. Passing through a network of intricate blood vessels, it arrived at the location of his heart.

"Am I dreaming?"

Ning Xiaochuan felt dazed as he stared at the pulsating heart before him.

"Why does my heart look like this? Three atria and four ventricles—is this the legendary Seven Orifices Divine Heart?"

A normal human heart has only two atria and two ventricles.

But in the Yuanxu Daning world, suffused with Heaven and Earth Profound Qi, things are different. A rare few possess hearts far more powerful than ordinary people’s, with three atria and two ventricles.

The extra atrium, located at the very center of the heart and about the size of a glass bead, is called the "Martial Arts Heart Palace." It serves as the reservoir for Martial Arts Profound Qi.

Only those with a Martial Arts Heart Palace can absorb Heaven and Earth Profound Qi, temper their bodies, and cultivate martial arts divine abilities, eventually becoming peerless experts capable of soaring through the skies and overturning mountains and seas.

Yet, those who possess a Martial Arts Heart Palace are exceedingly rare.

Out of a hundred people, only one might have it.

The other ninety-nine are doomed to live as commoners their entire lives. Even if they practice martial techniques, they’ll only ever be slightly stronger than ordinary people, never able to rival those with a "Martial Arts Heart Palace."

Of course, besides the Martial Arts Heart Palace, there exist other extraordinary heart palaces—Blood Crystal Heart Palace, Dao Heart Divine Palace, Five-Colored Heart Palace, and so on. Some people’s hearts undergo mutations in the womb, transforming into shapes like divine lotuses, prayer beads, qilins, or even human figures.

Those who possess such miraculous heart palaces are vanishingly rare, each a peerless prodigy. They become highly sought after by noble houses and martial sects, destined for unimaginable achievements.

Ning Xiaochuan’s Martial Arts Heart Palace belongs to this category—three atria and four ventricles, known as the "Seven Orifices Divine Demon Heart Palace."

When Ning Xiaochuan was born, it was discovered that he possessed the "Seven Orifices Divine Demon Heart Palace." The old marquis was overjoyed for days and immediately imposed a gag order, forbidding anyone from spreading the news, fearing Ning Xiaochuan might be assassinated in his cradle. Thus, aside from Ning Xiaochuan’s parents and the old marquis, almost no one knew he had the "Seven Orifices Divine Demon Heart Palace."

Yet no one could have predicted that Ning Xiaochuan’s heart meridians would become blocked, afflicted with a congenital illness that rendered him incapable of cultivating martial arts divine abilities.

This led the old marquis to expend enormous wealth and effort, secretly inviting the greatest Heart Nurturing Masters of the Yulan Kingdom to treat Ning Xiaochuan. But the conclusion was always the same: "The heart is powerful, but the meridians are blocked. No method can open them. He won’t live past the age of ten."

Even the Heart Nurturing Masters felt regret. The Seven Orifices Divine Demon Heart Palace was a once-in-a-millennium phenomenon. If one could cultivate it, they would undoubtedly attain the titles of Venerable or Saint. Yet, heaven envied such talent, shutting the door to cultivation for him.

In the end, the old Marquis also gave up searching for renowned physicians. However, unable to bear watching his ill-fated grandson perish young, he spent vast amounts of Earth Martial Essence every month to nourish his heart meridians and strengthen his body, along with considerable wealth to purchase Heart Nurturing Pills and Heart Nurturing Liquid for him to consume. Only then did Ning Xiaochuan survive to the age of sixteen.

"Indeed, the heart meridians are severely blocked."

Ning Xiaochuan stood before his own heart, gazing at this powerful and mystical organ!

In his previous life, Ning Xiaochuan had been a top-tier cardiovascular specialist. During his doctoral exams, he had scored first in "Cardiac Anatomy," understanding the human body's vascular structure and heart composition better than anyone.

Although the hearts of martial artists in this world differed from those of ordinary people, the general structure remained the same. With a single glance, he identified the root of his ailment.

"If only I had a scalpel and local anesthetic, I’d challenge myself to perform surgery on my own heart." Such thoughts crossed Ning Xiaochuan’s mind. He was bold yet meticulous, daring to attempt what others wouldn’t.

Just as this idea formed, he suddenly saw a crimson sword light.

An extremely tiny sword flickered within his heart.

Wrapped in blood, the small sword would have been invisible had it not shimmered. Even when the old Marquis had examined his constitution back then, it had gone unnoticed.

The small sword dissolved into strands of blood-red qi, seeping out of his heart and gathering in Ning Xiaochuan’s palm before reforming into a palm-sized crimson sword. Strange patterns flowed across its surface, resembling ancient sacrificial inscriptions used to worship deities and demons.

"This… It seems I really am dreaming. This isn’t scientific! But since it’s a dream, nothing should hurt, and I won’t need anesthesia. Then today, I’ll perform surgery on my own heart!"

"Will operating in a dream affect my real body? Ah! It hurts…"

With just the first cut, Ning Xiaochuan gritted his teeth in agony, his entire body trembling.

"Is… is this really a dream?"

Of course, it wasn’t a dream!

This was known in martial arts as "Internal Control."

Only martial artists who had reached the Divine Body Realm could achieve this—condensing a Martial Soul, entering their own body, and controlling the flow of their blood, even briefly stopping their heartbeat.

Some warriors with exceptionally powerful Martial Souls could continue fighting even after being decapitated, using their Martial Soul to control their body.

Though Ning Xiaochuan hadn’t reached the Divine Body Realm, he could still perform "Internal Control" because his soul had only recently fused with this body and remained unstable. Thus, his soul left his body to manipulate the small sword and repair his heart meridians.

Once the surgery began, there was no turning back—no matter how excruciating the pain, he had to endure it.

By the time he finished, Ning Xiaochuan was utterly exhausted and fell into a deep, genuine slumber.

The next morning.

When Ning Xiaochuan woke up, he felt no post-surgical pain in his heart and wore a bitter smile. "Seems it was just a dream. Huh? Wait—why is there a flow of energy inside my heart?"

To his shock, Ning Xiaochuan realized that closing his eyes allowed him to "see" everything inside his body. Unbeknownst to him, he had already reached the Profound Qi Realm and gained the ability of Internal Vision.

Though he had never cultivated martial arts since childhood, the old marquis had regularly used Earth Martial Essence to nourish his heart meridians every month. He had also consumed large quantities of Heart Nurturing Pills and Heart Nurturing Liquid. Most of this Earth Martial Essence and heart-nurturing medicinal energy had not dissipated but instead lay hidden in his blood.

The previous night, he had used the small sword to repair his heart meridians. The wound was already minor, and after being nourished by the heart-nurturing medicinal energy overnight, it had fully healed—hence the absence of pain.

Moreover, his heart meridians were now restored, and the Earth Martial Essence hidden in his blood had been activated, transforming into the lowest-grade Martial Arts Profound Qi, which now resided within his Martial Arts Heart Palace.

This Martial Arts Profound Qi circulated with his blood, reaching every part of his body, nourishing his bones, muscles, skin, organs, and senses, gradually strengthening and transforming him.

After one full cycle, the blood returned to his heart, and the Martial Arts Profound Qi within the Martial Arts Heart Palace had actually increased slightly.

This process repeated endlessly.

Unable to comprehend the changes happening inside his body yet unwilling to confide in others, Ning Xiaochuan decided to seek answers on his own.

"Do you have a library here?" he asked.

Ning Xin'er's eyes widened in shock, completely baffled by his question.

Ning Xiaochuan quickly adjusted his phrasing and asked cautiously, "Does this estate have a book repository?"

Ning Xin'er remained stunned, studying him for a long moment before finally saying, "You mean the Book Repository? Brother, have you lost your memory?"

Ning Xiaochuan replied, "Medically speaking, brief clinical death can lead to partial brain death. If someone revives afterward due to special circumstances, memory loss isn’t impossible."

Ning Xin'er had no idea what he was talking about, but it sounded oddly convincing.

Without waiting for her to dwell on it further, Ning Xiaochuan asked her to take him to the Book Repository.

The Jian Pavilion Marquis House's Book Repository was vast, housing 12 million volumes encompassing all fields of knowledge, from ancient to contemporary works. There were bamboo scrolls, leather manuscripts, engraved texts, though the majority were paper-bound books.

Ning Xiaochuan spent the entire day there, with Ning Xin'er even bringing him lunch personally.

Seeing her brother suddenly so engrossed in study, Ning Xin'er felt a swell of relief. Standing by a distant bronze bookshelf, she secretly wiped away tears. "Brother... seems to have stopped wallowing in self-pity."

In the past, Ning Xiaochuan had been unable to cultivate martial arts, mocked by many as "Ning the Sickly." Though he refused to accept the label, over time, he had grown somewhat resigned to it.

That was why he had been persuaded by those spoiled young nobles to visit brothels with them.

But now, Ning Xiaochuan gave Ning Xin'er hope. Her brother had never studied so diligently before—perhaps he was aiming for a scholarly path instead.

Since martial arts were not an option, he could only turn to scholarly pursuits.

In the Yulan Kingdom, martial prowess was highly esteemed, making scholarly studies a less promising path. Still, it was far better than idling away one's time.

Ning Xiaochuan sat on the floor, leaning against a bookshelf, and closed the Basic Martial Arts Theory in his hands. He let out a deep sigh and murmured, "According to this book, I’ve already reached the Profound Qi Second Layer—where energy flows into the blood vessels, and blood nourishes the muscles. With a single punch, the Martial Arts Profound Qi carried within my blood can unleash a force of 800 jin (approximately 400 kg)."

"Good heavens! 800 jin! Even the boxing champion Tyson's punch is just over a thousand jin. Am I already approaching his level of strength?"

Ning Xiaochuan rubbed his head in disbelief. This was only the Profound Qi Second Layer. If he reached the Profound Qi Third Layer, his strength would skyrocket to 1,300 jin (approximately 650 kg), making him a powerhouse comparable to a boxing champion. An ordinary person wouldn’t stand a chance against a single punch.

"No wonder the book says that those who possess the Martial Arts Heart Palace are the true powerhouses, the rulers of the world. It’s hard to imagine just how strong the mightiest figures in this world can be. Could they truly burn the heavens, boil the seas, split mountains, and sever rivers?"

By the time he looked up, the sky had already darkened.

Ning Xiaochuan picked out three more books—Yulan Kingdom Geography Records, Heaven and Earth Profound Qi, and Jian Pavilion Marquis House Chronicles. After registering them with the Library Guardian, he carried the books back to the courtyard where he and Ning Xin'er lived.