William Brooks did not believe that Emily Brooks would lie to him at a time like that. When a person is about to die, their words are kind; when a bird is about to perish, its song is mournful. Moreover, at that moment, the two of them were not just about to die—they were already, without a doubt, dead and truly walking the road to the underworld. Emily Brooks really had no reason to deceive him anymore!

Gathering up the miscellaneous thoughts in his mind, no matter what, he had already been reborn. Everything from the past would have nothing to do with him anymore! From now on, he had to work hard to adapt to his new identity, striving to become, in this new world, a “nine-haves” newcomer: someone with ideals, culture, discipline, morals, power, wealth, influence, martial arts, and the love of beautiful women!

He took a deep breath—no, he was choked again by the amniotic fluid in his mother’s belly. William Brooks once again began his efforts to use innate qi to transform his meridians... striving to become invincible from the moment of birth... William Brooks fantasized wildly in his heart. Hmm, it seemed that in his memory there was such a super awesome person, maybe... Nezha from “Investiture of the Gods”... As soon as this thought appeared, William Brooks was startled by himself: Damn! Could I be that super god? But I clearly don’t have that golden hoop or that rainbow-colored sash... Weren’t those supposed to be brought at birth?

In the womb, there is no sense of time; the years pass unnoticed.

William Brooks had no idea how long he had been in his mother’s belly. Every day was just practicing, sleeping, sleeping, practicing, over and over again. William Brooks knew that once he was born, he would never again have such pure innate qi to absorb, so he cherished this time especially, using almost all his time except for sleep to practice. The changes he could feel were that his arms and legs were gradually growing out, slowly becoming plump, and with constant training, his limbs were quite strong. Occasionally, when he gave a little kick, he could always hear a drum-like sound and a woman’s gentle laughter and scolding...

The effects of the pure innate qi gradually became apparent as well. William Brooks’s tiny body now had completely unobstructed meridians, and the foundation of his internal strength was already quite deep. Occasionally, when he touched his own head with his little hand, it seemed to be getting a bit hard. William Brooks knew that his time in his mother’s belly was running out. It might not be long before he would truly be “born.”

At this moment, William Brooks suddenly thought of a rather serious problem: he had been practicing like crazy in his mother’s belly, making his body healthy and his meridians strong, but now he was probably a bit too big... By his own estimation, he was at least eight or nine jin in weight—how was he supposed to get out? And his head was harder than that of an average baby because of his training... What if he couldn’t get out...?

Damn it! How could this happen! William Brooks wanted to cry but had no tears! Just as he was at a loss, a flash of inspiration struck. Hmm, it seemed that in his previous life, when he was in the Ling family’s Martial Arts Hall reading martial arts manuals, he had memorized some secret techniques, and among them was one about the art of bone-shrinking... Heaven never seals off all exits. William Brooks couldn’t help but be moved to tears! There was no time to lose. William Brooks hurriedly retrieved that bone-shrinking technique from his mind and even used his sleeping time to practice... Life and death were at stake—he had to hurry.

Now, William Brooks had only one thought: being from a collateral branch is great! The direct descendants of the Ling family had the right to enter the Martial Arts Hall and consult the manuals at any time; but someone like William Brooks from a collateral branch only had one day each month to enter. So every time he went in, William Brooks would first hurriedly memorize the techniques and martial arts he was interested in, then study them in detail back in his own little courtyard. Over time, he developed this habit, memorizing a bellyful of various techniques and martial arts, which finally came in handy at this critical moment.

William Brooks asked himself: if he had been a direct descendant back then, knowing he could enter the Martial Arts Hall at any time, would he have gone to such lengths to memorize these martial arts manuals? The answer was, of course, no! For the first time in his life, William Brooks felt genuinely grateful to be a collateral branch member of the Ling family and not a direct descendant! A lifesaver... The tragedy of “one corpse, two lives” was finally avoided...

Book One: Star Youth

Chapter Five: Entangled and Confused

After a bout of struggle, he finally got the hang of the bone-shrinking technique. William Brooks could finally set his mind at ease. Judging by the time, it was almost there, so William Brooks’s thoughts became lively again. All day long, he pressed his little ear against his current mother’s belly, listening to the sounds of the outside world. Every time he heard his mother’s voice, William Brooks would feel a kind of blood-deep intimacy in his heart. Perhaps this was the natural bond between mother and child, William Brooks thought.

On this day, feeling bored, William Brooks pressed his ear against the belly again, only to hear that the outside seemed rather noisy. Then, a somewhat aged voice sounded: “Madam, there’s no need to worry. I have a prescription here. If you brew and drink it, both mother and child will be safe, and the delivery will go smoothly.”