The country where Zhang Ruochen is currently located is called "Yunwu County", which is just one of the thousands of counties in the eastern domain of Kunlun Realm.

  So-called vassal states were actually the first prefectures of the First Central Empire, which had to pay tribute and taxes to the First Central Empire every year.

  The ruler of the commandery and state is called "Commandery King".

  Zhang Ruochens current identity is the ninth son of Yunwu County King.

  Lying flat on the cold and hard wooden bed, Zhang Ruochen was still thinking about tomorrows sacrificial ceremony.

  "The original owner of this body, until the age of sixteen, hadnt even activated the Divine Martial Mark. He must have been abandoned by the gods. What do I need to do to have a greater chance of activating the Divine Martial Mark?"

  In Kunlun Realm, to activate "Divine Martial Mark", one must gain recognition from the divine spirits.

  Referred to as "Martial Right Divine Grant"

  During the grand ceremony of worship, a Heavenly Bridge will appear between the Divine Realm and the Kunlun Realm, connecting the two realms. After enjoying the offerings, the gods will bestow upon some humans with innate talents the "Divine Martial Mark", helping them to open the door to cultivation.

  The higher the innate talent, the earlier one can obtain the "Divine Martial Mark".

  Zhang Ruochens previous life, while still in his mothers womb, had already activated the "Divine Martial Mark", and could be said to be a born genius.

  In this life, until the age of sixteen, he hadnt even activated his "Divine Martial Mark", which basically meant that he was a person abandoned by the gods. Even if he were to participate in the Grand Ritual tomorrow, it would be almost impossible for him to obtain a "Divine Martial Mark".

  Zhang Ruochen couldnt fall asleep, so he sat up in bed, holding a white crystal stone shaped like a date pit, with two sharp ends and a three-dimensional middle, crystal clear and transparent, without any impurities.

  He began to study this white crystal stone, perhaps it could help him gain the recognition of a certain deity and unlock the "Divine Martial Mark".

  This white crystal was a gift from Emperor Ming on his sixteenth birthday when he came of age.

  Zhang Ruochen didnt know what this white crystal was, only that he had been wearing it close to his body. Unexpectedly, after 800 years, it was still on his person.

  "I will come from eight hundred years ago to eight hundred years later, and maybe it has something to do with it."

  Zhang Ruochen tightly grasped the white crystal stone, closed his eyes, and in his minds eye appeared the figure of his father, Emperor Ming. He didnt know if his father was still alive or not.

  That night, it snowed heavily in Wangcheng.

  The next morning, the entire imperial city was covered with thick snow, and the crimson palaces, pavilions, and kiosks were all wrapped in a layer of icy snow.

  The winter solstice, the coldest day of the year.

  The warriors of the entire royal city gathered outside the ancestral temple of the princes, led by the king, to worship the gods.

  Outside the ancestral temple, a ancient altar was piled up with huge stones. On the altar, not only were there tens of thousands of livestock, cattle, sheep and pigs tied up, but also many powerful ferocious beasts locked in iron chains.

  Civil and military officials, martial artists, princes and princesses, countless young men and women waiting to unlock the Divine Martial Mark, even some infants still in their swaddling clothes.

  This is a national grand ceremony, not just the royal city, but also every castle in Yunwu Prefecture, every town, and every village will hold sacrifices.

  "Geez, Ninth Brother, youre already 16 years old. Even if you participate in the grand ceremony of worship, its impossible to obtain the Divine Martial Mark. Why bother coming here and making a fool of yourself?" The Eighth Prince Zhang Ji said with his hands behind his back, a cold smile on his face.

  The sixth prince stood beside the eighth prince, his face cold and expressionless. "Its said that dragons give birth to nine sons, each different from one another. Our father, a great hero, gave birth to you, a useless thing. Youre already sixteen years old, yet you still havent opened your divine martial mark. Youve disgraced the royal family. What are you living for? Why dont you just go die?"

  This sentence is somewhat exaggerated, but it is indeed the inner voice of several princes present.

  The affection of a royal family is the thinnest, and this moment has fully revealed it.

  In Kunlun Realm, the number of people who can activate "Divine Martial Mark" is extremely small, with at most one person out of ten. It can be said that every martial artists status is extremely high.

  Of course, for the strong martial artists, it is another matter. The blood of a high-ranking martial artist is powerful, and their descendants will also inherit this powerful bloodline, increasing the chances of unlocking the "Divine Martial Mark".

  Yunwu County King had a total of nine sons, eight of whom activated the "Divine Martial Mark", only Zhang Ruochen, who was already 16 years old, still hadnt activated the "Divine Martial Mark" and became the laughing stock of the royal family.

  Many people jokingly call him "Tiger Father and Dog Son".

  There were even rumors circulating in the imperial court that Zhang Ruochen was not the biological son of Yunwu Duke. Although it was just a rumor, it still made the faces of the royal family members lose their luster.

  So, those other princes mostly thought that Zhang Ruochen was a shame to the royal family and didnt consider him as their own brother, wishing he would die sooner.

  In recent years, even the King of Yunwu has become somewhat estranged from Zhang Ruochen and Lin Fei. Under the squeeze of other consorts and princes, last night, Zhang Ruochen and Lin Fei were finally expelled from the main hall and forced to move to a side hall.

  Zhang Ruochen just stood there silently, ignoring the Fifth Prince and the Eighth Prince.

  Before having enough strength, any verbal dispute will only make others look down on you more.

  Lin Fei and other princesses stood together, seeing Zhang Ruochen being ostracized, their hearts ached endlessly, but they had no way to help.

  "The grand ceremony of sacrifice has begun."

  The national master of Yunwu County stood on the altar, holding a volume of blessings, and began to recite.

  Then, above the altar, a conch shell was blown, and a large horn sounded. A beautiful palace maid in colorful clothes struck sixteen kinds of musical instruments, including bianqing, bianzhong, and naozhong.

  Then slaughter livestock and offer blood sacrifices to heaven.

  "Wow"

  A dense bloody aura transformed into a thick beam of light, shooting straight up to the sky, shattering the clouds and bursting into the vast expanse of the heavens.

  Suddenly, a starlight flew down from the sky and landed on the brow of a six-year-old boy, merging with his body to form a crimson "Divine Warrior Seal".

  "In the crowd, a shout was heard, Xue Dou Tongs youngest son has activated his Divine Martial Mark at just six years old!"

  "Flame God Martial Mark, one of the Fourth-Grade Martial Marks. Its too terrifying, with a boundless future ahead."

  The Divine Seal also has levels, from level 1 to level 9.

  The first rank of the Divine Martial Mark is the weakest, while the ninth rank of the Divine Martial Mark is the strongest.

  Everyone gazed at the six-year-old boy with envious eyes.

  At six years old, he activated the Four Supreme Warrior Imprint, and can be called a proud son of heaven. His future achievements will definitely not be low.

  Among the many generals of Yunwu County, a tall and sturdy man patted his chest, laughed loudly and excitedly, "Its really worthy of me, Xue Liangs son! Tonight, the governors mansion will host a banquet, everyone must come to honor us. Haha!"

  "Wow"

  In the sky above, countless starlights flew down and fell onto the eyebrows of each young man and woman, transforming into divine martial marks.

  Among them, the one with the most first-rate divine martial mark was extremely rare, and even fewer were those who could unlock a second-rate divine martial mark. The most formidable person was still that one son of Xue Dou Tong, with a fourth-rate divine martial mark, leaving everyone else in the dust.

  The people who activated the Divine Martial Mark were, after all, a minority, probably only about one-tenth of the total number. Everyone was excited and inexplicable, finally getting the recognition of the divine spirit and opening the door to martial arts.

  Those young men and women who did not activate the Divine Martial Mark were all extremely disheartened, with some even wailing in despair, a scene of joy for some families but sorrow for others.

  Just as the ritual was about to end, Zhang Ruochen still hadnt activated the Divine Martial Imprint.

  At sixteen years old, he still hadnt activated the Divine Martial Mark, it was almost impossible to activate the Divine Martial Mark anymore, from now on he could only be an ordinary and mediocre person.

  Everyone ignored him, just like a speck of dust in the corner, completely unnoticed.

  Lin Fei initially had a glimmer of hope, wishing that her child could create miracles and unlock the Divine Martial Mark. Even if they couldnt become a powerful martial artist, at least they would be strong and healthy, no longer tormented by illness.

  As the sacrificial ritual is nearing its end, Lin Feis hope once again turns into despair.

  Just as Zhang Ruochen thought he couldnt activate the Divine Martial Mark, the white crystal in his hand faintly lit up.

  In the last moment before the sacrifice ended, a starlight descended from the sky and landed on Zhang Ruochens brow, transforming into a white circular divine seal.

  "Wow"

  A scorching sensation came from between his eyebrows and instantly spread throughout his body.

  Started

  Zhang Ruochen was overjoyed and finally activated the Divine Seal of the Gods.

  As long as the Divine Martial Mark is activated, no matter if its a First-Rank Divine Martial Mark, he doesnt care in the slightest.

  Originally, no one paid attention to Zhang Ruochen, but when Zhang Ruochen activated the Divine Martial Imprint, he attracted everyones gaze.

  "Thats not the Ninth Prince, hes already sixteen years old and frail, yet he can actually activate the Divine Martial Seal." Many people stared at Zhang Ruochen with disbelieving eyes, finding it unbelievable.

  The Sixth and Eighth Princes standing beside Zhang Ruochen also widened their eyes, revealing a look of astonishment.

  How is this possible?

  Lin Fei looked at Zhang Ruochen and saw the divine mark on his brow, then tears of joy flowed down her face. She immediately rushed to Zhang Ruochens side and tightly hugged his physical body, "Chen Er, you finally did it! You finally did it!"

  An old eunuch beside the King of Yunwu walked up to Zhang Ruo Chen, smiling and said: "Congratulations to Princess Lin, congratulations to the Ninth Prince for unlocking the Divine Martial Mark. The Queen has asked me to invite the Ninth Prince over, she wants to personally inspect the grade of the Divine Martial Mark that the Ninth Prince has unlocked."

  Queen

  Lin Feis smile on her face immediately froze, and she tensely protected Zhang Ruochen behind her.

  "Mother, lets go see the queen."

  Zhang Ruochen sensed Lin Feis subtle change and secretly thought to himself, "It seems that this Queen Mother is not a kind person, I must be more careful."

  Hope for collection and votes, hope everyone can give more support to this book, thanks a lot.