Moreover, based on Emily Bennett's earlier display of skill, even if his predecessor was completely useless, he couldn't possibly have been unaware that his own cultivation was far inferior to Emily Bennett's. Compared to Emily Bennett, for Henry Clark it would be difficult not just to offend her, but even to get close to her, right? It seems suspicious that his predecessor supposedly offended Emily Bennett and ended up imprisoned.

The white-robed man named Walter Hayes, having just been rebuffed by Emily Bennett, immediately looked embarrassed. But then he recognized Henry Clark, “Huh, you’re Henry Clark? You’re actually still alive? Senior Sister Bennett, this guy…”

Walter Hayes ultimately didn’t dare to call out the name Emily again, but his words were once more interrupted by Emily Bennett, “That’s none of your business. All you can do is ride your domesticated single-horned Stone Howl Beast through the bustling streets.”

With that, Emily Bennett turned and shot Henry Clark a cold glare. “If I were you, I’d hide in a corner like a turtle, rather than have the nerve to stroll around town.”

Henry Clark sneered inwardly and ignored Emily Bennett, turning to leave.

“Ingrate.” Walter Hayes, seeing that Henry Clark actually ignored Emily Bennett, immediately cursed at his back in annoyance.

Emily Bennett noticed that Henry Clark, who usually tried to please her, now ignored his own savior. She frowned slightly, but didn’t say anything more to Walter Hayes, instead turning in another direction and leaving as well.

Henry Clark no longer had any desire to keep living as he had before. In a place like this, if you can’t cultivate and have no strength, the hope of survival is truly slim. How could he be in the mood to stroll around? He needed to cultivate—even if he couldn’t, he still had to try.

“Dad, he’s the one who saved me.” A young, clear voice sounded nearby. Henry Clark turned and saw the little boy he had just saved from under the unicorn’s hooves. Because of what had just happened, Henry Clark had momentarily forgotten about the boy, but the boy hadn’t forgotten him.

At this moment, the boy was being pulled along by a middle-aged man whose face was covered in scars—obviously the boy’s father.

Henry Clark thought the man was coming over to thank him, so he stopped, ready to exchange a few polite words. Unexpectedly, as soon as the man saw him, his expression turned panicked and he quickly bowed to Henry Clark, saying, “Young Master Clark, I’m so sorry, my child was ignorant and bumped into you. I’ll take him away right now…”

Without waiting for Henry Clark to reply, he hurriedly dragged the boy away, quickly disappearing into the crowd.

Henry Clark touched his now-thinner face and shook his head. He didn’t know this man, but could sense that the man was clearly very afraid of him, the so-called Young Master Clark.

Such a trivial matter didn’t weigh on Henry Clark’s mind. For him, the most important thing now was to return and cultivate. If he couldn’t cultivate, he’d have to find another way—either leave the Cangqin Kingdom or look for some other solution.

Chapter 0004: The Secret Within the Body

Back in the stone hut, the first thing Henry Clark did was recall the cultivation techniques he had learned before. His predecessor had never liked cultivating, and with poor aptitude and no progress, he became even less motivated. Now, even recalling the Clark family’s inherited cultivation methods was a struggle for Henry Clark.

Fortunately, although Henry Clark’s grandfather Charles Clark had spoiled him, he had insisted that Henry Clark memorize the Clark family’s techniques and the basic elements of cultivation.

After repeatedly going over it in his mind, Henry Clark finally remembered the first level incantation of the Clark family’s cultivation method, as well as some of the acupoints and meridian pathways.

Following the cultivation incantation he recalled, Henry Clark cautiously tried to sense the faint spiritual energy in the outside world, hoping to generate a sense of qi in his meridians. He was already prepared for a long period without any sensation—he knew his own aptitude. If it were that easy to sense qi, he wouldn’t have gone so long without even gathering it.

“Buzz…” As soon as Henry Clark began gathering spiritual energy, his entire meridian system buzzed audibly, a sound he could clearly hear, while intense pain flooded his whole body.

In the next moment, a thick and gentle force spread throughout his body, almost tearing him apart. At this point, Henry Clark felt that if he was even a little careless, all the meridians in his body would be completely torn apart, and he would become a cripple.

Shocked, Henry Clark didn’t dare relax for a second. He focused his mind to guide the sudden influx of qi, using the cultivation incantation he knew to direct the energy through all his meridians. With his careful guidance, his body, which was on the verge of exploding, finally began to calm down.

As time passed, Henry Clark became immersed in the sensation of qi flowing through his meridians, like threads of warm water slowly spreading throughout his body. He vaguely sensed that some blockages in his meridians were naturally being cleared, and some impurities in his body were being pushed out by the warm, circulating qi, expelled from his meridians.

A cozy warmth rose within Henry Clark’s body. In that state where even his consciousness seemed shielded, Henry Clark always felt that his cultivation was somehow different from what others had described. In his memory, cultivation was about absorbing spiritual energy from outside and transforming it into his own true qi through his body’s meridians.