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Zhang Xuan, after a moment of contemplation, responded, "Your strength is immense, and your energy flows throughout your body. When you punch, your bones resonate in unison. It appears that the bone-refining technique you\'ve cultivated is quite special, with a gradual and progressive effect. At first, it doesn’t seem to show much, but as time passes, your bones are refined to an impressive degree. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be able to deliver such powerful punches as you just did."

"You... How did you figure that out?" Lu Mingrong asked, clearly astonished.

His bone-refining technique was so impressive that even Yu Longqing had praised it. However, the technique had a major drawback: it required an extremely long time to show results. Back when Chen Xiao was at the Muscular Stage, Lu Mingrong had already reached the Jade Bone Stage. But while Chen Xiao advanced, Lu Mingrong remained stuck in the Jade Bone Stage, even to this day.

It was as if he was doomed to remain at this stage forever. He had been stuck at the peak of the Jade Bone Stage for ten years, and from the moment he entered this stage until now, it had been nearly thirty years.

This was why he felt hopeless about breaking through. But to his surprise, after just watching him perform a set of punches, Zhang Xuan had correctly identified the situation. Even though Lu Mingrong had always prided himself on his composure, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of disbelief.

Zhang Xuan continued, "This technique is indeed powerful, allowing you to refine all your bones to an unimaginable degree, making you unbeatable among your peers. However, the drawbacks are equally significant. If you don’t train your joints properly, they can become stiff. You likely have to soak in medicinal baths for at least two hours each day to maintain your body’s flexibility."

Lu Mingrong was stunned.

Earlier, he had only been surprised. Now, he was outright terrified.

Everyone knew that his bones were as hard as steel, capable of withstanding even attacks from those at the Divine Soul Realm. What they didn’t know was that he had to soak in medicinal baths daily to keep his body functioning smoothly.

Over the years, this condition had worsened, and to prevent others from finding out, he had avoided taking on students and spent most of his time in seclusion, officially claiming to be focused on breaking through to the Divine Soul Realm. In reality, he was trying to manage his condition.

The day when Wu Yunzhou and the others discovered Zhang Xuan’s talent and sent Teacher Zhou to call on him, Lu Mingrong had been soaking in such a bath.

"Just now, your punches were powerful, but they lacked flexibility, which shows that your condition has become quite severe. If you don’t address it, breaking through to the Divine Soul Realm will be nearly impossible," Zhang Xuan said, shaking his head.

It wasn’t that the technique was flawed, but that Dean Lu had made some mistakes in his training, leading to the complete solidification of his joint cartilage.

"This..." Lu Mingrong clenched his fists. After a moment, he knelt down, his face full of sincerity. "Teacher Zhang, please help me. If you can resolve this hidden danger and help me break through, I will immediately give you the Destiny Disk."

Whereas before he had doubted Zhang Xuan, now he began to believe that this young man might truly be able to help him.

After all, the top physicians in White Roc City had failed to diagnose his condition, yet Zhang Xuan had accurately described it after merely observing him for a few moments. It was as if Zhang Xuan had been with him for years. It was impossible not to be impressed.

"If you want my help, there are two things I need to know in advance," Zhang Xuan said. "First, why did you continue practicing this technique even after noticing that something was wrong? As the dean of White Rock Academy and a teacher, you should have recognized the issue after decades of practice. Why did you keep going?"

"I..." Lu Mingrong hesitated.

Zhang Xuan continued, "Second, I need to see the bone-refining technique you’ve been practicing. Only by understanding the nature of the flaw and how it came about can I accurately diagnose the problem and prescribe a solution. If you can’t provide this information, there’s nothing more I can do."

The Library of Heaven’s Path could identify all flaws, but it wasn’t omnipotent. Without knowing the technique and the specific issues in Lu Mingrong’s training, it couldn’t provide a cure.

Lu Mingrong frowned, deep in thought.

Both the reason for his mistake and the bone-refining technique were his deepest secrets, things he was reluctant to reveal. However, Zhang Xuan’s reasoning was sound: without knowing these details, even the most skilled physician couldn’t hope to treat him.

After a moment of reflection, Lu Mingrong sighed and took out a book from his robe, handing it to Zhang Xuan. "You can look at it. But be warned, mastering this technique isn’t easy."

"Thank you for your understanding," Zhang Xuan replied.

As his fingers touched the book, Zhang Xuan silently commanded, "Identify flaws." In the next moment, the Library of Heaven\'s Path gathered hundreds of books containing Heaven\'s Fate Energy, which quickly merged into a single volume.

The title on the cover read Tidal Bone-Refining Technique.

With a single thought, the technique’s contents and flaws were transferred into Zhang Xuan’s mind, and he instantly understood everything.

Meanwhile, unaware that Zhang Xuan had already fully comprehended the technique he had spent decades mastering, Lu Mingrong steeled himself and began to explain.

"As for why I made this mistake... It was the result of youthful impulsiveness. Since it happened so long ago, I don’t mind telling you about it now."

"About forty years ago, a genius emerged in White Roc City. He ranked first in the Source Pool assessments over the past century. After beginning his cultivation, he advanced rapidly, breaking through the Energy Storing Stage in just six months, reaching the peak of the Organs Easing Stage in five years, and entering the Jade Bone Stage in six years."

"At 24 years old, he was unmatched among his peers. Even within the surrounding ten cities, he ranked among the top three, enjoying immense fame and admiration," Lu Mingrong recounted.

Zhang Xuan listened, full of admiration. "I didn’t realize you were so talented, Dean Lu. No wonder you’re in charge of the academy."

Lu Mingrong shook his head. "That genius wasn’t me. It was City Lord Yu Longqing."

"What?" Zhang Xuan was stunned.

Seeing his confusion, Lu Mingrong continued, "At that time, I was an ordinary student with average talent and little recognition within the academy. While City Lord Yu and I were the same age, I was only at the early stage of the Organs Easing Realm, a nobody. Then, during a trial in Huaiyuan Mountain, I encountered danger and was saved by a girl from a nearby family."

"She was beautiful, gentle, and kind-hearted, always putting my needs first... As we spent more time together, I gradually fell in love with her."

"But at that time, I was very poor, with no powerful backing or family support. I wasn’t particularly outstanding among the academy\'s teachers, but I really liked her and was willing to give everything for her."

As he spoke, Lu Mingrong seemed lost in thought. "She said... if we were to be together, I would need to reach the peak of the Organs Easing Realm and provide a dowry worth at least a thousand gold coins to be considered a match. So, I trained day and night, participated in the most dangerous trials, and hunted the fiercest Source Beasts, all to improve faster and gather the resources needed for a proposal."

"After four years, I finally had everything ready. My cultivation had reached the peak of the Organs Easing Realm, and I was about to propose when I discovered that, while she was being affectionate with me, she was also involved with someone else..."

"Ah, this..."

Zhang Xuan was momentarily speechless.

No wonder Lu Mingrong didn’t want to talk about it. After four years of hard work, he had unwittingly walked into a love triangle.

"Could it be..." A sudden realization dawned on Zhang Xuan. "Was the person she was involved with City Lord Yu Longqing?"

A young hero with unmatched talent getting betrayed made sense.

"Of course not!" Lu Mingrong responded, his expression darkening. "If it had been him, I would have conceded, knowing I couldn’t compete. But it was actually some weak, unattractive guy who used to trail behind me during trials. I was the one who helped him pass the assessments and taught him to hunt. His cultivation was only at the fourth level of the Source Pool Realm, the Body Tempering Realm. In a crowd, he would have been completely unnoticeable."

"Then why...?" Zhang Xuan blinked in confusion.

If the other guy was so inferior, why would she choose him?

Lu Mingrong sighed. "I was just as baffled. I wanted to ask her directly, but she refused to see me and deliberately avoided me."

Zhang Xuan speculated, "Perhaps she had some secret reason, something to do with her family, or another pressing matter..."

Lu Mingrong nodded. "I thought the same. But her family was too powerful for me to approach, so I was left with no choice but to break in by force. However, my strength at the time was far from sufficient, so... I used a secret method to forcibly break through to the Jade Bone Realm."

"You’ve seen the Tidal Bone-Refining Technique. It requires gradual refinement over time to become powerful. But I was desperate to find her, so I disregarded the proper method and resorted to brute force..."

Zhang Xuan sighed.

He had already thoroughly understood the Tidal Bone-Refining Technique, including its flaws.

With careful and patient refinement, the technique’s power would be immense. But if one rushed the process, it could lead to joint stiffening, a condition that, once it set in, was nearly impossible to reverse.

Only by breaking through to the Divine Soul Realm and slowly nurturing the joints with soul power over ten or twenty years could the condition be cured. Otherwise, one would have to live with it forever.

However, having already made such a mistake, it was nearly impossible to achieve the mental state required to break through to the Divine Soul Realm.

"Through sheer force, I managed to gain extraordinary power within the Jade Bone Realm. I used this strength to fight my way into her family\'s estate, where I finally saw her..."

Lu Mingrong\'s face turned pale as he clenched his fists.

Zhang Xuan couldn’t help but ask, "Was she gravely ill, bedridden, and that’s why she avoided seeing you?"

"No!" Lu Mingrong looked at Zhang Xuan with eyes full of despair. "She was already pregnant with that other guy’s child... and had given birth! The child was three and a half years old by then!"

"???"

Zhang Xuan stood frozen in shock.

He had thought it was a tragic love story, but instead, it turned out to be a tale of deep betrayal.

"Wait a minute!" Zhang Xuan suddenly realized something. "Are you saying that while you were preparing for four years to be worthy of her, she was already with that weaker guy and had a child who was three and a half years old?"