Undercurrents I

Dust Sand Palace.

Boom!!

A silvery burst through the wall and shot out.

Looking through the breach in the wall, one can see that the entire Dust Sand Palace is shrouded in a gray-white mist.

There seemed to be a faint silvery glow in the mist.

"Go!" The silver wall burst open, revealing Silver Hair in tattered armor.

His entire body was covered in flowing silver liquid, but in some places the silver liquid had several holes.

These holes are trying hard to heal, but to no avail.

Following him out of the hole was another Black Hair Whiskers.

He carried three different weapons on his back, a deep palm print was etched on his chest, and there was faint blood at the corner of his mouth.

But it does not diminish its wild nature in the slightest.

"The green hills remain unchanged, and the clear waters flow on forever. Yue Sect Leader, I have learned a lot today!"

He quickly took out a packet of powder from his waist bag, opened it, and poured it into his mouth.

He glanced back at the mist in the Dust Sand Palace, let out a long laugh, and in the blink of an eye chased after the Silver Hair who had left earlier.

Just then, all the doors and windows Dust Sand Palace shattered and exploded outwards.

With a deafening explosion, a large plume of grayish-white mist shot out from it.

Large cracks also appeared on the palace gates.

Then, with a snap, the door collapsed.

Yue Dewen was the first to step out, looking displeased. A faint silver glow seemed to linger on his body, but it was fading rapidly.

"You've got some skill! No wonder there are so many strange and wonderful things about you being called 'Heavenly Artisan'."

He had just fought with his opponent and felt like he was being targeted at every turn. His opponent had clearly made thorough preparations to deal with him in advance.

The various troublesome weapons and tools caused him a lot of trouble.

"Jin Hong was also a top figure of the previous era. He personally created the Imperial Tutor's Emperor Earth. He should not be underestimated."

Jin Yuyan slowly walked out from behind.

"Is Martial Uncle still angry? Hahaha, it's nothing really. I was just being reckless before. My Great Dao Sect can't possibly dominate the world by relying on the strength of just one side. But if you and I join forces, it'll be a different story," Yue Dewen laughed.

"I don't know what your plans are, but after this integration is completed, I will lead people back to the Jade Void Palace."

"We've avenged most of the grudges from back then, and most of the people who hunted us are dead. My purpose is fulfilled," Jin Yuyan replied calmly.

"Doesn't Uncle-Master want to stand at the pinnacle of the world with me, overlooking everything?" Yue Dewen asked in surprise.

"From the very beginning, my goal has been revenge! How they treated me back then, I will treat them the same way now! The rest is your business." Jin Yuyan more; she was increasingly unable to understand Yue Dewen.

Or perhaps she suddenly felt that she might have never truly understood this person.

Moon King? Yue Dewen? Or some other identity?

This person has too many things on their mind.

She's just using him now.

Watching her departing figure, Yue Dewen's smile remained unchanged, but he turned back to look at the Dust Sand Palace.

"What's the point of building such a large palace in this desert?"

He said softly.

"People should go to the most prosperous places; you can't achieve great things by running away."

Suddenly, he turned around with a flick of his sleeve, transforming into a gray shadow that swiftly disappeared into the distance.

Several dozen breaths later, people from the surrounding area quickly approached the place.

Upon entering the Dust Sand Palace, the three Worship God Great Grandmaster, who had long since turned to black ash, were immediately presented before everyone's eyes.

The leader of the Great Bright Teaching Alliance, Kexiwo, has long since disappeared.

On this day, the entire Teaching Alliance suddenly lost its core leadership.

The Teaching Alliance then began to gather people to prepare for the reversal of the secret manual revision.

The fire was extinguished as soon as it started.

***Five days later.

At the Linghua Mountain.

Two tall figures, as if playing hide-and-seek, kept chasing each other back and forth in the open space on the mountaintop.

This is Zhang Rongfang chasing after Ostandin.

He has already activated the Blood Lotus, and for him, the Blood Lotus state can be kept active indefinitely.

Ostandin had also reached his Limit State, and the superposition of the two Limit State greatly increased his strength and speed.

In this position, and by anticipating the Enemy Anticipation, he was able to easily evade Zhang Rongfang's pursuit.

Just five days ago, he could have predicted Zhang Rongfang's actions using only normal methods.

Now, he has to increase his movement speed in order to keep up with the reactions in time.

Because Zhang Rongfang was giving him less and less time to react.

This level is already close to the realm of a typical grandmaster.

This is something that should have taken those genius martial artists more than ten years to achieve.

Even Ostandin himself was over forty years old when he reached this level.

But... whoosh! Slightly distracted, Ostandin slowed his pace and lost sight of Zhang Rongfang.

He immediately narrowed his eyes and dodged to the left.

But it was too late.

He turned around abruptly and raised his hand to block a palm strike coming from behind.

Bang! The two separated at the same time.

"I lost," Ostandin sighed, his eyes filled with complex emotions.

He was the one who suggested this chasing game.

Because of the nature of Zhang Rongfang's poisonous blood, as long as he comes into contact with the Worship God, he can cause them huge and permanent damage.

That's why there's the saying that you lose as soon as you make contact.

Ostandin's goal, of course, was to prevent Zhang Rongfang from making contact with him through foresight.

Unfortunately, this method is no longer feasible.

"Thank you for your hard work, senior."

Zhang Rongfang felt a hint of joy in his heart.

He was already pleasantly surprised to have made this much progress.

"Right now, you haven't reached the Grandmaster level, but in terms of simply Enemy Anticipation, you're already no worse than an ordinary Grandmaster. However, you can actually be even faster and stronger," Ostandin said frankly.

"What you're talking about is the concentration of will?" Zhang Rongfang understood immediately.

The other party has brought it up more than once in the past few days.

The biggest difference between ordinary martial artists and grandmasters lies in the concentration of their will.

A strong will allows one to always be at their peak, ready to unleash their potential.

But this will must not waver in the slightest; it must be forged through Thousand Refinements.

Therefore, the method of the Grandmaster Tournament was developed.

"Yes, you already have a foundation in martial arts, which allows you to Enemy Anticipation. Because of your naturally strong physique, you can already match the reaction speed of others at the grandmaster level."

"So what you lack is enough experience in martial arts and a quick enough reflex." Ostandin nodded.

"Please enlighten me, senior." Zhang Rongfang clasped his hands in greeting, ready to listen attentively.

"I have no advice to give you. From now on, you need to keep winning! Gain confidence from each battle! Only in this way can you learn confidence and willpower from the defeats of others, and strengthen yourself. This is a necessary process for solidifying your physical condition," Ostandin replied.

"So, all I need is to solidify my will." Zhang Rongfang thoughtfully.

"Actually, there's another way." Di Jiang appeared out of nowhere from behind Zhang Rongfang.

"What method?" Zhang Rongfang asked quickly.

"Adapt," Di Jiang replied.

He looked at Ostandin, gesturing for him to come.

Ostandin understood what he meant, his expression changed slightly, but he still stepped forward.

"There is one more crucial point in the transition from Grandmaster to Great Grandmaster."

He paused, noticing that he had attracted Zhang Rongfang's attention.

"That is the pressure of will, the clash of auras."

"A clash of auras." Zhang Rongfang narrowed his eyes, as if he had made a connection to something.

"The human spirit has its highs and lows, and is constantly fluctuating."

"To strike the opponent's low point from one's own high position—that is the clash of auras," Ostandin replied.

"Hesitation, indecisiveness, distraction, and other emotional changes beyond self-confidence can all affect your reaction. If you can adapt to this kind of confrontation, you will not be swayed by your opponent, which will help you strengthen your will to be self-reliant."

"It's not appropriate to say more, senior. Please demonstrate something," Zhang Rongfang said in a deep voice.

Ostandin nodded.

"The simplest way. Like this."

Laugh.

His entire body suddenly changed, transforming into his Final Form.

Its body grows taller, larger, and swells, while a row of exhaust vents appear on its surface.

A large bulge appeared on his back.

Whoosh! A wisp of air swept towards Zhang Rongfang, enveloping his entire body.

In an instant, a strong sense of oppression and pressure surged into Zhang Rongfang's heart.

"You and I both know that in this form, it would be very easy for me to defeat you," Ostandin.

"But I'm right here, not making a move. I'm just watching you. And if you were fighting someone else, or a master of the same level, wouldn't you spare a bit of your attention to keep an eye on me?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Rongfang seemed to be deep in thought.

"Yes!" he nodded firmly.

"This is one method. It's not about confidence, but about strategy, competition, tactics, and so on. But many Great Grandmaster are adept at using their special abilities to create an aura that can directly intimidate their opponents," Ostandin continued.

"Sound, airflow, words, environment, and even the creation of illusions—all these factors combined can create a sense of pressure in a person's mind. You need to understand this for yourself. The aura of martial arts is generated for similar reasons."

These words stirred up a series of emotions within Zhang Rongfang.

"That's right. It's equivalent to finding and creating weaknesses in the opponent's mindset!"

He gained some insights and had a new understanding of the realm of martial arts.

"Martial arts are the battle of strategies between people!" Di Jiang summarized from the side.

"The highest form of warfare is to win without fighting!"

Winning without fighting means instilling fear, cowardice, and collapse in the enemy before they even make a move, causing them to lose the ability to attack on their own.

Zhang Rongfang suddenly remembered the Worship God Grandmaster who had collapsed in front of him before.

At that time, he unintentionally touched the threshold of this realm.

He immediately ignored the two of them and sat down cross-legged on his own.

Close your eyes.

Open the Attribute Panel.

In five days, I accumulated another five attribute points.

At this moment, he pointed to the Illusory Image Talisman Method without hesitation.

'Illusory Image Talisman Method - Third Realm of the Three Voids: Evil Qi Emptiness.'

Without the slightest delay.

Attribute Points disappeared, Talisman Art improved, and he directly reached the third realm of the Three Voids.

That is, the level of Evil Qi Emptiness.