Rebirth From Fire

Back in the Silver Lining Sect...

When they got back to the sect the news of Hao Ren's death spread throughout the entire sect. A lot of people were shocked when they heard the news as it was unexpected for him to lose his life. The Elders of the sect immediately called Wu Chen over to get the exact details of what happened since they knew how the sect leader highly valued Hao Ren.

Wu Chen repeated the same story he told Xu Que and the other disciples since he has already said it that way, he knew the elders must have already heard about what happened from the other disciples.

Elder Wu's Courtyard

Immediately after everyone returned, Elder Wu called Wu Chen over to know what really happened. He knew that things weren't just as simple as Wu Chen said, everyone also suspected but since there's nothing they can do about it they just let it slide

When Elder Wu heard everything from Wu Chen he was shocked, especially when he heard about the involvement of the wolf

"It's impossible for an uncontracted beast to corporate with a cultivator, but I never saw him with any beast at the time he was in the sect" Elder Wu said thoughtfully

"How confident are you that he's dead" Elder Wu asked looking at Wu Chen

"I'm not sure but he's most likely dead because I made sure to ruin his dantian when we were battling, so for him to recover is almost impossible without the help of an expert" Wu Chen said firmly

"I'm still surprised that the wolf helped him. It won't jump to its death, so there's most likely a place that it'll be able to hide there. It's just that we don't really know what's down there so taking the risk of going down is not really a good idea. There are some beast that even I can't handle in that forest" Elder Wu said

"That was why I didn't go down to confirm if he's dead or not, but since the wolf is also badly injured it won't be of much help to him" said Wu Chen

"Lets just hope that little vermin is out of our lives, it's great that you were not seen by the rest disciples or else the sect leader will have a reason to take you down since he thinks highly of his father. You should know the sect leader is a very sentimental person" said Elder Wu

"Yes father I do, I'll be going into seclusion now. With the help of the fruit I'll be able to make a breakthrough soon" Wu Chen said while walking out

Elder Wu looked at his son leaving with pride written all over his face

"I'll do anything to ensure your growth" Elder Wu said with all seriously while looking at his son's fading shadow

Wu Chen was his only son, his wife died when they were on a trip. Since then he vowed he'll do everything in his power to make sure his son was safe and also treated with care. He has always provided him with anything he wanted and when he saw his talent he was also greatly pleased, since then he has cultivated him with all his heart.

Elder Li's courtyard...

Elder Wu was in his courtyard sitting together with his disciple Xu Que staring at the sky. Both were looking sad with the thought of the death of Hao Ren

"Did you see him in the forest?" asked Elder Li

"No master, I only heard of him from them. He said I was going but throughout the time we were there I didn't catch a glimpse of him. I suspect what they said is real about him appearing there but I don't really know what happened, after they left I waited a while longer but he didn't show up" replied Xu Que

"Even though Wu Chen doesn't really like him, I don't think he'll spread false rumors. So it's most likely the truth. Sigh, this was why I never wanted him to go alone but he was just so stubborn" said Elder Li with melancholy

"How am I going to explain to the sect leader once he leaves seclusion now. The sect leader is going to be sad once he finds out that Hao Ren died" said Elder Li

"Master, I'll go and recover. I have some benefits from the battle so I'll go into seclusion for some time" Xu Que said while cupping his fist and bowing down towards his master before leaving

'He'll most likely breakthrough once he leaves seclusion. Sigh, why did this have to happen to such a great kid. Though his death was completely confirmed, from what they've said, the chances of him surviving is really slim. I hope a miracle happens' Elder Li thought looking at Xu Que's back

Back in the cave...

Hao Ren was walking deeper into the cave following the call he was hearing from the depths of the cave

As Hao Ren went deeper into the cave, he started seeing light from the depths of the it. When he got closer, he saw an orb which was shinning with great splendor. He was mesmerized when he saw it and couldn't take his eyes off it. He knew it was something special but to the current him, it didn't really have much use since his dantian was already ruined.

He has never heard of anyone that was healed after having his dantian ruined. He looked at it from a distance without thinking of getting close to it since he didn't know if it was safe or not.

"You're here" said the voice

When Hao Ren heard the voice, he looked at the cave more closely but still couldn't find who was speaking. "Who are you and why did you call me here?" Hao Ren asked

Hao Ren has always had a bold personality so even though his cultivation is already ruined he still acted the same way and never felt scared. But he also keep a safe distance from the orb in case any problems occurs he'll be able to retreat at the fastest speed.

"I've been watching you since you were brought in here by the wolf. I must say, you're really very tenacious" the voice said

Hao Ren still looked around suspiciously, "How long was I unconscious?" Hao Ren asked the voice

"You were brought here nine days ago. It's really amazing that you were able to survive from such injuries, even though you're not completely healed yet, just being able to walk so soon is a miracle. I expected you would be down for another five days or so but who knew you'll stand up almost immediately after gaining consciousness" the voice said in a praising tone

Hao Ren couldn't detect any animosity from the voice but he still kept his guard up since he still wasn't sure about what's going on

"Why can't I see you, where are you?" Hao Ren asked

"I'm already dead kid, you can't see me" the voice said

"You're dead, how come you're still able to converse with me even though you're dead?" Hao Ren asked, at first he was shocked by the statement made by the voice but later thought the voice was probably lying to him.

'Come on, how can dead people still talk. He's just bluffing me' thought Hao Ren

"I know you don't believe me kid but I'm truly dead. This is just a little portion of my spiritual consciousness, and it'll fade soon. Luckily I saw you before it faded away" the voice said

"Okay then, so who are you?" Hao Ren asked with a look of 'I'll play with you till the end'

"My name is Zhao Huang, I was from the Zhao clan at the center of the continent" the voice declared it's name proudly

"Okay Senior, it's nice meeting you" Hao Ren greeted with cupped hands. Although he hasn't seen the owner of the voice, he still felt it belonged to a senior so he paid his respects

Though the voice acknowledged Hao Ren's behavior of greeting it, it was still shocked by Hao Ren's response. While he was still alive he was very famous, especially after saving the world from catastrophe. He expected his tales to still be in the mouth of everyone even though it has been long

"Kid, don't you know who I am?" the voice asked

"Yes I do, you're Senior Zhao Huang from the Zhao clan at the middle of the continent" replied Hao Ren innocently

'Why is he still asking me who he is after already telling me, what a strange senior' thought Hao Ren

Zhao Huang was stunned by Hao Ren's response, if he had a body he would have vomited a mouthful of blood

"Haven't you heard of my name in the outside world" Zhao Huang asked confused

"No Senior" Hao Ren was already thinking of leaving since this senior seems to have some problems with his head

Hao Ren has read about this name in a book but he really couldn't think they were the same people since that man was the hero who saved the world, and it was very long ago and no one from that era is still alive. Although martial artist live long, they don't live that long.

"Do you know about the name Goku?" asked Zhao Huang

"Of course I do. That is a name that is rarely mentioned but it was the name of the man who wanted to destroy the world, why are you asking about him?" asked Hao Ren

"How come the one who wanted to destroy the world is still known. But I, the one who saved it is not known" Zhao Huang asked with a shocked look

"You're the Zhao Huang who saved the world?" asked Hao Ren weirdly

"Good, seems like I'm still well known in the world" Zhao Huang said with a pleased voice

"The Zhao Huang I've heard about is long dead, he's the legend who saved the world. He was the strongest expert of his time, I only knew of him from some books I read" Hao Ren said with respect. Though he wasn't like others who worshipped him, he still had a lot of respect for him

"Kid I already told you that I'm dead, do you really think I'm lying to you. My soul is only still here due to this orb, but even with it I'm still slowly fading away" Zhao Huang said emotionally

Hao Ren looked at the orb with curiosity but wasn't really that interested in it

"I've been here for a long time, that wolf accidentally came here and I helped it. I later sent it out to find a successor for me" Zhao Huang said solemnly

"You sent a beast to find a successor for you?" Hao Ren asked thinking this senior is definitely a weirdo, first he claimed he's the legend who saves the world. Now he's saying he sent a beast out to search for a successor for himself

"I know it's strange, but my confident in beasts when it comes to judging the characters of people" Zhao Huang said confidently

"Boy, would you like to be my successor and inherit my legacy?" Zhao Huang said solemnly

Hao Ren was surprised by the question, even though he's doubting the identity of this Zhao Huang, he can tell from his voice that he's very serious about the question he just asked

"Senior Zhao, even though I don't know if what you said is real or not, I'm already ruined as you can see. My dantian was ruined by an enemy, so there's no way I can cultivate even if I inherit your legacy senior" Hao Ren said respectfully

"I don't know if you'll be healed but I'm confident in this legacy. It's the most miraculously thing I've ever seen. I also inherited this legacy and it took me to the top of the world. Other things might not be able to help you but this might be able to" Zhao Huang said, even though he has not seen anyone being healed of a ruined dantian, it knew this legacy was not simple

"Senior I know you're trying to help but healing a ruined dantian is impossible" Hao Ren said dejectedly. Even though he wanted to be healed, he knew it was impossible

"There is no harm in trying, if you try and it works it'll be for your benefit" Zhao Huang said

"Okay senior, there's nothing to lose anyway" Hao Ren shrugged his shoulder

"Good, now come closer and touch the orb" Zhao Huang instructed Hao Ren

"Okay" Hao Ren complied and walked towards the orb

He stretched out his hand to touch the orb. Immediately after Hao Ren touched it, fire immediately gushed out of the orb and covered Hao Ren completely. Hao Ren was shocked by the situation and immediately tried to withdraw his hands but found out that the orb stuck to his hands without any sign of leaving him

When the fire covered Hao Ren, he felt warm. He was shocked by what happened as he knew that as long as one was covered in flames, one will be burned by it. But he only felt warmth from it, he was even comfortable in the fire

The fire invaded Hao Ren's body and started burning all over and within him, Hao Ren felt changes going on in his body that he couldn't explain

Zhao Huang was shocked by what was going on as he never expected things to be like this. When he inherited the legacy it wasn't like this

"This is...."