Five Steps of Martial Dao

Da Qing 277: The Cultivation Dissipation of the Flowing River Technique, whose depth had merely reached "Major Accomplishment," proceeded quickly. With your related martial arts experience as well, you completed the dissipation within a year.

Since you had not used the Primordial Chaos Art, 19% of your Foundation settled. With your current Foundation Amplification at 253%, that meant a Foundation equivalent to half that of an ordinary person (0.19 × 2.53) had been locked away and rendered useless.

You knew well that once you finished dissipating your cultivation, Zhu Baowen would most likely leave. Thus, throughout that year, you repeatedly questioned him.

The reason lay in the Sound Transmission Technique Zhu Baowen had revealed on his own initiative. Seizing upon that point and refusing to let go, you pestered him relentlessly as before, and your questions gradually delved deeper.

At first, you asked, "Master Zhu, to transmit your voice directly into my ear, your cultivation must be above Grandmaster level, right? Are you some great master from elsewhere? I couldn't find you in the Records of Jianghu Affairs."

Later, it gradually became, "Master Zhu, in your esteemed eyes, is a Grandmaster truly the limit of martial arts? I'm guessing you're actually a Grandmaster, aren't you? Are there even higher mountains on the Martial Path beyond that?"

Most of the time, Zhu Baowen casually fobbed you off with stock answers such as, "I'm just an ordinary Martial Master who knows a few little tricks," and "Martial Arts Have No End."

However, when you told him that you had completed your Cultivation Dissipation, you discovered that his bearing had changed.

The Zhu Baowen you had known had been nothing more than a little old man who taught children how to train their bodies, with a touch of greed for money. Yet at that moment, he revealed a domineering aura that lorded over Heaven and Earth, like a Supreme Martial Saint descending into the world!

You stood rooted to the spot, not daring to move—and unable to move—because this stretch of Heaven and Earth seemed to have been locked down, every inch of air frozen in place, no longer flowing!

Zhu Baowen said that he was preparing to leave. Before that, he pressed the "Primordial Chaos Art" to your forehead and passed it on to you.

Yun Shou said, "Good thing I'm not an electronic device. Otherwise, if he discovered while pasting that 'file "Primordial Chaos Art.txt" already exists, replace it?'... that would be awkward."

Afterward, Zhu Baowen answered your earlier questions. Yet to keep you from despairing over martial arts, he only revealed part of the truth.

"The Martial Path is long, yet also short! Of all the martial arts I know, there are only five steps in total. But far, far too many martial artists struggle their entire lives without ever setting foot on the first step."

Then he glanced at you and comforted you, saying that you still had a great chance of stepping onto that first step.

Yun Shou said, "...A First-rate Martial Artist doesn't even count as the first step?"

Zhu Baowen withdrew the imposing aura that had Frozen Heaven and Earth, and you pressed him for answers. What counted as the first step, and which step had Master Zhu reached?

This time, Zhu Baowen's answer was clear: when Essence, Qi, and Spirit were completely fused into one, that was the first step—Grandmaster. The second step lay beyond Grandmaster, while he himself had only just stepped onto the third.

Knowing that Zhu Baowen was about to leave and likely would not mind your persistent questioning, you wanted to ask as much as possible at once. So you asked again: What was the second step like? And what about the higher ones?

Zhu Baowen pointed to the sky, then pointed to the ground. "This is the second step." He did not explain further, because it was basically impossible for martial artists of a higher realm to be born in this world. And also because martial arts could not be passed on lightly!

This was the Universal Consensus.

Yun Shou felt that the narration had revealed something utterly incredible.

As for what exactly the third step was, Zhu Baowen merely smiled, turned around, and walked away.

Taking advantage of the fact that he was still putting on airs and had not yet gone far, you slowly called after him with one final question: Martial Dao had five steps, yet the human world had never even seen the second. Was this land simply too remote, or was there a Heaven Beyond Heaven?

That question finally made him regard you in a new light. Before leaving, he gave his Registered Disciple one last piece of guidance: if you attained Unity of Heaven and Man, head east—go to that Heaven Beyond Heaven!

On that day, Zhu Baowen tore open an entirely new world within your understanding of the world. Your knowledge of martial arts and the world deepened further, and some of your earlier guesses were confirmed!

Yun Shou also let out a long breath. As expected of the Simulator—everything condensed within it was pure essence.

Clearly, what was written was probably less than one percent of what had happened at the time, and even the characters' dialogue had been abbreviated. Yet somehow, the core elements had allowed even someone like him, who had only read the text, to understand it.

The Martial Dao Realm above Grandmaster was the realm of sensing Heaven and Earth. According to the mid-level wuxia novels he had read, this realm was called Heavenly Man, taken from "Unity of Heaven and Man."

And sure enough, this place was merely some small corner of the world. Upon reaching the realm of "Heavenly Man," one could travel east—perhaps cross the sea—and there might be an Ascension Platform or a World Rift there, leading to a higher martial world!

In that higher martial world, martial arts had a full five steps. Grandmasters who could live for two hundred years were merely at the first step, while Zhu Baowen, who could quell ten thousand troops with a single palm, was only at the third!

"Martial Arts Have No End!"

Yun Shou sighed with emotion.

Although he was only a First-rate Martial Artist, a small fry who did not even count as half a step, he could not help feeling fired up.

"I will become a Martial Emperor, immortal through all ages!"

Da Qing 278: Grandmaster-level martial art: Sunday Art—initiation.

Da Qing 279: You were surprised. A Grandmaster-level martial art truly was different. The Sunday Art had merely reached initiation, yet the Foundation it transformed was already comparable to the Foundation of the Flowing River Technique plus the additional amplification from Minor Accomplishment.

Da Qing 280: A twenty-three-year-old young hero came to Qingcheng to challenge First-rate Experts and renowned figures of the martial world. He won battle after battle, and finally challenged you, who were known as the "Second Young Hero" of a certain generation.

Then you struck him with five consecutive saber blows, hacking him until he spat blood, flew backward, and conceded defeat.

Da Qing 281: At twenty-six years old, your Vital Energy Infused into Bone progress reached sixty-five percent. You felt as powerful as a monster.

For the past few years, you had remained settled in Qingcheng. Although Zhu Baowen had displayed strange phenomena when he left four years ago, no one suspected you.

Da Qing 282: You set out for East Forest City. Your Force Qi now shone Radiant White and carried a Scorching Aura. The Sunday Art had reached Minor Accomplishment, making you practically invincible among First-rate Martial Artists.

Just as you had not gone to bully the Fierce Tiger King last time for its meat, you had not come to deal with the bandits this time because you coveted the Grandmaster-level martial art in their hands. Rather, you wished to verify the gap between your current strength and that of the previous simulation. (Note: simulation plot from Chapter 17.)

However, that bandit gang had many members, so you decided to join the Bandit Suppression Squad assembled by the City Lord under the identity of "a passing hero."

Yet when you arrived, you awkwardly discovered that you had come too early—the bandits had not moved here yet.

You could only stay in the city for the time being and challenge several First-rate Experts within it.

Relying on vague memories, you made inquiries and found a grand residence. Within lived a renowned figure of the martial world: Heart-Observing Spear—He Yi.

He Yi was forty-seven years old. He was not one of those "Grandmaster-material" geniuses who became First-Rate at twenty. Rather, only three years ago, when he was already in his forties, had he achieved External Qi Projection. He was the most ordinary kind of First-rate Martial Artist.

You invited He Yi to a private battle. It would not damage his reputation, and he agreed—yet in a sparring match of merely twenty exchanges, even though you only used sixty percent of your strength, He Yi still had to give his all with every move, each step fraught with danger. In the end, he voluntarily conceded.

"You've fallen behind, old brother," Yun Shou sighed. "Last time, you were still an old brother fighting shoulder to shoulder with me. Now, you can't even make me—the one in the simulation—get serious."