Zhao Yuan saw the bloody 'sweat' drenching his body. However, he knew it was neither blood nor sweat, but the tainted essence from within him!
The first step of Marrow Cleansing was to expel these substances, making way for new, pure essence.
It was a perfect example of the saying, "Out with the old, in with the new."
As the tainted essence was expelled, waves of crushing pain assaulted every part of his body. Zhao Yuan felt as if his limbs, bones, and organs were being run over by a ten-thousand-ton steamroller, breaking and shattering inch by inch! Then, the scorching heat released by the Marrow Cleansing Pill incinerated it all until not even ash remained!
The agony he'd suffered while practicing the Four Saints Technique was nothing compared to this inhuman torture!
If Zhao Yuan hadn't known the principle that 'when Heaven is about to confer a great responsibility on a person, it first tests their resolve with suffering, taxes their muscles and bones, and starves their body,' and also read this passage in the Marrow Washing Technique's introductionā'The first time you practice the Marrow Washing Technique, you will endure incomparable pain and must persevere with great willpower'āhe probably would have given up long ago.
'I never thought Marrow Cleansing would feel like this.' Forcibly enduring the agony, Zhao Yuan gritted his teeth so hard they ground together. His features contorted, making him look as ferocious as an Evil Ghost.
He gasped for breath, cheering himself on internally. 'Hang on! I have to hang on! Marrow Cleansing isn't even the first step on the Witch Doctor Dao. If I can't even get past this, what right do I have to walk that path? I'm the man who's going to become a Witch Doctor! How can I be defeated by something as simple as Marrow Cleansing?'
Ever since receiving Wu Peng's legacy and embarking on the path of the Witch Doctor's Cultivation, Zhao Yuan had gained more than he could have ever dreamed of! This not only strengthened his resolve to continue his Cultivation, but it also filled him with anticipation and hope for the Witch Doctor Dao!
Under these circumstances, as long as he had breath in his body, as long as he wasn't dead, Zhao Yuan would keep going! No matter how great the pain, no matter how many dangers and obstacles he faced, he would not give up, would not stop moving forward!
However, Zhao Yuan didn't know that Wu Peng had actually omitted something in the legacy's description of Marrow Cleansing.
Upon beginning Marrow Cleansing, everyone experiences this agonizing torture! And this torture has no end; it continues until the person can no longer bear it and passes out!
The reason Wu Peng omitted this part from the legacy was to see just how long Zhao Yuan could last without knowing the truth!
Because the longer one could endure the agonizing pain of Marrow Cleansing, the farther one could go in their future Cultivation!
This torment was a test!
A test not only of talent, but also of willpower!
In Cultivation, talent is important, but willpower should not be underestimated!
The path of Cultivation is never smooth. It is fraught with twists, thorns, difficulties, and obstacles. Without extraordinary willpower, even the greatest talent cannot lead to great achievements!
The longer one endured the torture of Marrow Cleansing, the stronger their willpower, and the higher their aptitude!
Enduring for one minute meant you were qualified for Cultivation.
Enduring for three minutes meant you had average aptitude; with great opportunities, Ascension to Immortality was not out of the question!
Enduring for ten minutes meant you had superior aptitude! In the Cultivation Realm, such people were always regarded as geniuses, fought over by the Major Sects! Just like the top scorers of the college entrance exams, they were coveted by all the top universities!
Zhao Yuan was completely unaware of all this. He still thought the torture, like practicing the Four Saints Technique, had a time limit. He believed that if he just held on, the bitterness would turn to sweet! So he fought with everything he had, just trying to endure and endure!
But during this ordeal, time seemed to pass with excruciating slowness.
Finally, one minute passed.
Zhao Yuan's face was white as paper and he was gasping for air, but he kept his teeth clenched, desperately holding on while circulating the Marrow Washing Technique.
Three minutes passed.
A large pool of foul, red essence had formed at Zhao Yuan's feet. His strength was completely drained, and his legs trembled uncontrollably. He could collapse from exhaustion at any moment. Even so, he was still holding on! He still hadn't given up!
Ten minutes passed.
Zhao Yuan's mind was a complete blank. Under the dual torture of crushing pain and scorching heat, his organs had all grown incredibly weak. His vital signsābreathing, heartbeat, and moreāwere rapidly fading and failing! They had even fallen into the danger zone; his life was on the line!
But he was still holding on, still refusing to give up!
His blank mind held only a single thought: 'Endure, endure, and endure some more!'
Time continued to pass.
Fifteen minutesā¦ twenty minutesā¦ thirty minutesā¦
Thirty minutes! In the Cultivation Realm, over tens of thousands of years, only a hundred or so people had ever managed to endure the inhuman torture of Marrow Cleansing for this long! And of those hundred-plus people, aside from a few who died young, every single one had become a legendary figure! Even the weakest among them had reached the level of a Supreme True Immortal!
And Zhao Yuan was still holding on, still continuing!
Forty-five minutes passed! This was the record set by Wu Peng himself during his own Marrow Cleansing!
By now, Zhao Yuan hardly looked human. His heart rate, breathing, and other vitals had all dropped to their lowest point! A normal person would have been dead long ago. But thanks to the Turtle Breath effect of the Four Saints Technique's Black Tortoise Form, he had forcefully held on and continued to grit his teeth against the torment!
"Hold onā¦ I refuse to believeā¦ I can't make it to the endā¦"
Zhao Yuan's vision began to blacken as an overwhelming sense of suffocation and shock washed over him. He couldn't stop it; all he could do was keep cheering himself on in his heart, forcing himself to continue!
Forty-six minutesā¦
Fifty minutesā¦
Fifty-five minutesā¦
After the agonizing torture of Marrow Cleansing had lasted for a full hour, Zhao Yuan could no longer hold on. His body, which had been trembling for so long, finally collapsed to the ground with a THUD. His vision went black, and he fell into a coma!
In the instant he lost consciousness, Zhao Yuan sighed with immense regret. 'I still failedā¦ It seems my achievements in Cultivation won't be very high. Sigh, with talent like mine, I'm afraid I've failed to live up to Master Wu Peng's expectations.'
It was a good thing he was the only one in the factory, with no other Cultivators around. Otherwise, his words would have made them cough up blood from sheer rage!
You endured the torture of Marrow Cleansing for an entire hour, and you still have the nerve to say your talent isn't good enough? Do you have to rub it in like that?! If you're not good enough, then what are we? Utter trash? Please, get a dose of reality! You're obviously a monstrous super-genius with talent that defies the heavens!