The Bridge of Helplessness, Meng Po's Soup

"So this man's name is Yuan Tian Gang," Xu Ying thought.

But he had no idea who Yuan Tian Gang was.

He was just a country boy, unaware of court affairs, nor did he know that Yuan Tian Gang once had a glorious past.

Yuan Qi, having read extensively, knew of Yuan Tian Gang's great name and exclaimed in disbelief, "It's actually this legendary figure!"

The man with the coiled beard threw his head back and laughed, "I am under the command of the Martial Sage Emperor to sever your dragon脉, lest you gain power and wreak havoc upon the world. This is a public grievance, unrelated to personal matters! However, if you wish to fight, then fight! Why should I, Yuan, fear anything?"

A beam of light shot out from his sword box. Instantly, the wind and rain ceased, the sky cleared for thousands of miles, a brilliant blue, as if one had returned to the Mortal Realm from the Underworld!

Xu Ying and Yuan Qi were utterly shocked. They looked up and saw the man with the coiled beard holding his sword aloft, soaring into the sky to battle the giant in the air. Sword light intertwined like lightning!

Suddenly, the giant's form shifted drastically, transforming into a colossal stone dragon, tens of miles long, its movements earth-shattering. However, after only a brief struggle, the man with the coiled beard raised his sword, and a sword energy like a long rainbow struck the dragon's vulnerable neck. With a single blow, its head was severed!

The dragon's head plummeted down with a thunderous roar, crashing not far from the houses, causing blood to flow like a river.

Xu Ying and Yuan Qi stared, dumbfounded. They watched as the man with the coiled beard landed, and his sword light returned to its scabbard. The sword box closed, and the light vanished.

The man with the coiled beard said, "This dragon was formed from a mountain range, with a mother and child. I killed the mother back then. It coveted the Imperial Destiny, and upon its birth, it was destined to sow chaos in the Divine Land, but I slew it before it could become Emperor. Its offspring cultivated successfully and came seeking revenge. You may bathe in the dragon blood; it will bring you benefits."

Xu Ying and Yuan Qi approached the dragon's head and bathed in the blood. They immediately felt their injuries rapidly healing, faster than any Elixir could achieve!

Xu Ying's left shoulder, which had been wounded, was now fully healed. He felt his Blood Essence surging, stronger than before!

He quickly placed the Great Bell into the dragon blood as well, letting it soak. "I hope the Great Bell can also absorb the Primal Qi from the Dragon Blood and recover quickly," he thought.

The man with the coiled beard watched this, marveling. He examined the bronze bell and chuckled, "This treasure has a significant origin, but it also carries significant entanglements. If you, little brother, do not have profound fortune, you might be implicated by it. It would be best to discard it sooner rather than later."

Xu Ying's heart stirred. The Great Bell was forged by someone to suppress an ancient well in a stone mountain. Within that well was a black coffin, and a maiden escaped from it when the River of Oblivion changed course.

Could the entanglement the man with the coiled beard spoke of refer to this?

The man with the coiled beard offered no further explanation. "The dragon blood contains Dragon Essence, which can heal your injuries, but absorbing too much Dragon Essence is detrimental to the human body. Once your injuries are healed, little brother, it is best not to absorb any more Dragon Essence to avoid future troubles. As for the Strange Snake, it would be beneficial to absorb more Dragon Essence; it will be of great use."

Xu Ying stopped bathing in the dragon blood, letting only the Great Bell soak in it.

Yuan Qi, on the other hand, immersed himself entirely in the dragon blood. He felt the pure Primal Qi from the dragon blood pouring into him. He assumed this was the Dragon Essence the man with the coiled beard had mentioned, and he was both surprised and delighted!

"A Ying, it won't be long before I can Transform into Human Form!"

Yuan Qi exclaimed joyfully, "Once I transform, I can properly practice the Elephant Strength Bull Demon Fist!"

Xu Ying was also quite expectant. He inquired, "Xiao Qi, after you transform, will you be male or female?"

"What do you mean male or female? It should be male or female!" Yuan Qi shouted, "Of course, I'll be male!"

"What a shame," Xu Ying said regretfully.

Yuan Qi glared at him, "Xu, I consider you a brother, what are you thinking?"

Xu Ying stammered, "Of course, I consider you a brother too. What else could it be?"

"You're not being sincere! You must have some other dirty thoughts!"

"I don't! Don't slander me!"

"Slander you? Your Old Xu family has never had a good reputation among our snake tribe!"

Yuan Qi absorbed the Dragon Essence from the dragon blood until he reached his body's limit. He felt his body on the verge of exploding. The man with the coiled beard said, "On the path of cultivation, do not be greedy. Absorbing too much will be detrimental to you."

Yuan Qi reluctantly crawled out of the dragon blood pool, then lay by its edge, gulping down several mouthfuls of dragon blood.

The man with the coiled beard shook his head at this, "You're needlessly adding obstacles to your own transformation into human form, how foolish. Little brother, follow me. Although this path is a way to survive, once we reach the River of Oblivion, whether the Old Woman there will let you pass is still unknown. It will depend on your fortune at the bridgehead."

Xu Ying cradled the Great Bell in his left hand and quickly followed him.

Yuan Qi glanced back at the dragon's head, a hint of regret in his heart, but still followed, thinking, "If only I could eat it..."

The man with the coiled beard led them on, searching for paths. Whenever they reached a dead end, he would discover a new route. Xu Ying and Yuan Qi followed him, witnessing a terrifying and gloomy underworld on either side of the path, filling them with dread.

If they had tried to navigate this path on their own, they might not have made it out alive!

Finally, the River of Oblivion appeared before them. A rope bridge spanned the river, connecting to the opposite bank.

However, the River of Oblivion was now empty, with only a riverbed shrouded in mist.

The man with the coiled beard brought them this far and said, "Cross the rope bridge ahead, and you will reach the Mortal Realm. If there is an Old Woman selling tea at the bridgehead, do not drink her tea. Simply cross the bridge. If you drink her tea, you will never return to the Mortal Realm! Remember this, remember it well!"

Xu Ying thanked him, bowing respectfully, "Thank you, senior. Do you have any unfinished wishes? If I can return alive, I will surely repay you!"

The man with the coiled beard hesitated. "I came to Hometown Gazing to prolong my life, but here I am, neither alive nor dead, trapped. Although I can often see my home, my family doesn't know if I am safe."

He took out his sword box and said, "Take this sword box and wear it. If you encounter my family, the sword box will fly to their hands. It will be a token of my longing."

Xu Ying agreed and strapped the sword box to his back.

The sword box had leather straps on the top and bottom, which could be fastened across his chest, making it easy to carry.

Xu Ying bid farewell and, with Yuan Qi, walked towards the rope bridge over the River of Oblivion.

The man with the coiled beard watched them cross the bridge and murmured, "This young man has good fortune. I hope he can return to the Mortal Realm. Absolutely, absolutely, do not drink the Old Woman's tea!"

Xu Ying and Yuan Qi stepped onto the rope bridge and walked forward without incident. They did not encounter any tea-selling old women.

The man and the snake gradually let down their guard, walking forward and chatting. As they neared the end of the rope bridge, they saw many people queuing by the side of the bridge, blocking their path.

Xu Ying and Yuan Qi were at the back of the line, watching the crowd slowly shuffle forward.

After a long while, they saw the people in line walking to a tea stall to drink tea. The tea vendor was an old woman, her hair white as snow, her body stooped, her face a thousand wrinkles deep. She held a teapot, pouring tea bowl after bowl.

Yet, the amount of tea in the teapot never seemed to decrease.

When Xu Ying and Yuan Qi arrived, their minds were muddled. They had already forgotten the instructions of the bearded man. They only felt an unbearable thirst, and their sole purpose in queuing was to drink a bowl of the old woman's tea to quench their thirst!

Finally, the line reached Xu Ying.

On the other side of the bridge, the bearded man saw Xu Ying pick up the tea bowl and sighed softly. He whispered, "His fortune is, after all, a bit too shallow. Though his parents were strong, they couldn't protect him to live..."

Just as Xu Ying was about to drink the tea in one gulp, the old woman selling tea sized him up, her expression suddenly changing. She snatched the bowl back and sneered, "You brat, you've drunk my tea countless bowls, countless times already. You still want to trick me into giving you more tea? Get out!"

Xu Ying suddenly came to his senses, cold sweat beading on his forehead. He grabbed Yuan Qi's tail, who was about to drink tea, and dragged the large snake off the rope bridge.

On the other side of the bridge, the bearded man was also dumbfounded, frozen in place.

After a long pause, he finally realized, "Meng Po's Soup can erase all memories, returning one to ignorance and chaos! The old woman just said he drank countless bowls of Meng Po's Soup. Does that mean his past memories have been washed countless times, or that he has lived countless lives?"

Unfortunately, Xu Ying had already left Wangxiang and his whereabouts were unknown. He couldn't chase after Xu Ying to find out what story had unfolded around him.

Xu Ying dragged the Snake Demon Yuan Qi off the rope bridge. Yuan Qi also finally woke up, feeling a wave of lingering fear.

He looked back and saw the rope bridge shaking like mist, gradually dissipating until it was nowhere to be seen.

This trip to Wangxiang felt like a dream. Besides a sense of melancholy, Xu Ying still had some unresolved questions. He thought to himself, "Why were the faces of my parents that I saw in Wangxiang different from the faces of my parents in my memory?"

Although there were still the Underworld mountains on both sides of the River of Oblivion nearby, the sky was gradually clearing, no longer filled with mist. Xu Ying carried his sword box on his back, feeling a faint sword energy lingering within it. It would occasionally flicker before his eyes, like two swords clashing in the air, colliding!

Xu Ying asked Yuan Qi, but Yuan Qi seemed completely unaware.

"I've studied since I was young. Books say that from the Martial Sage Emperor to the Supreme Dao Great Sage Emperor, martial arts flourished. Among the Official Nuo, nurturing swords with qi was popular. This Yuan Tian Gang was a Great Nu Master who nurtured swords with qi, eventually becoming a legend."

Yuan Qi guessed, "This sword box still contains his sword qi. Carrying it on your back will be influenced by his sword qi, hence why you see sword shadows."

Xu Ying became interested and inquired, "Then, can one comprehend his sword techniques from his sword qi?"

Yuan Qi burst out laughing, "A Ying, what nonsense are you talking about? Even if someone gave you a true scripture, you wouldn't be able to cultivate it. How could you possibly comprehend the mysteries of sword techniques from sword qi?"

What he said was true. Many people wanted to cultivate but couldn't find the right method, and even if they found it, they might not be able to master it. Even after years of dedicated study, they might misunderstand and embark on the wrong path.

A prime example was the Old Niu family, three generations of whom had tried to cultivate the Elephant Strength Bull Demon Fist but never succeeded in mastering it, failing to reach the fourth level.

Only Yuan Qi, with Xu Ying's guidance, quickly cultivated to the fifth level and was now close to breaking through to the sixth.

From this, one can imagine the difficulty of comprehending sword techniques from sword qi!

Xu Ying, full of enthusiasm, continued to research on his own. The young man picked up a straight willow branch, gesturing with it casually as he walked, practicing the flickering sword light he sensed.

Gradually, Xu Ying's Blood Essence flowed through the willow branch. Unknowingly, as he performed his moves, his Blood Essence also circulated in a peculiar manner. Upon reaching the willow branch, it transformed into sword qi, sharp and imposing!

He thrust the willow branch forward, sometimes drawing it back like a cloud sword, sometimes flicking it with his wrist, sometimes chopping, slicing, hacking, or pointing. The sound of sword qi whistling grew louder and sharper!

Sword techniques are composed of many simple moves, roughly divided into thrusts, flicks, clouds, chops, slices, points, pokes, hooks, sweeps, chops, blocks, cuts, flourishes, coils, and glides. Xu Ying had never learned sword techniques before, but as he sensed the sword qi, he intuitively mastered these basic sword moves without a teacher!

As he practiced with growing excitement, his Blood Essence circulated more and more smoothly. The willow branch actually grew a sharp sword aura that lengthened and shortened with the circulation of his Blood Essence!

This sword aura, condensed from sword qi, emitted a cold radiance, sharper than any real sword, and utterly unstoppable!

Yuan Qi was startled and thought, "Could he really comprehend a set of sword techniques from the sword box?"

Suddenly, Xu Ying held up a great bell and leaped into the air. While in mid-air, he swung the willow branch, unleashing torrents of sword qi!

Yuan Qi was startled and quickly dodged. Dozens of holes appeared on the ground; even stone was pierced through by the sword qi!

"This guy, he's still so fierce even while holding up a great bell!" Yuan Qi was filled with envy.

Xu Ying landed, his heart filled with joy. He poked and prodded with the willow branch in his hand, wishing he could find something to stab.

Yuan Qi quickly moved further away from him.

Xu Ying asked, "Xiao Qi, I observe deities wielding swords, their flying swords leaving their bodies to travel dozens of steps, controlled as if they were an extension of their own arms. How do they control their flying swords?"

Yuan Qi corrected him, "Deities wield swords to kill, capable of taking a head from a thousand miles away, not just dozens of steps. Their flying swords are illusions formed from Incense Qi, not real flying swords, and they have no weight. Moreover, flying swords are their Magic Power. Isn't it natural to control Magic Power?"

Xu Ying was stunned and suddenly ecstatic, "You're right! Xiao Qi, you're too smart! How could I not have thought of that?"

Yuan Qi stared, dumbfounded, "Wait, which part was I right about? I'm a little confused..."