The Devil is Always One Step Ahead of the Tao

"My soul has only just reached the stage of Night Roaming, yet the things I visualize are already this intense. If I were to reach the level of Object Manipulation, wouldn't those demons appear directly as Yin spirits the moment I visualize the Asura Hell?" Hong Yi rose and walked to the window. He pulled out the arrow and discovered that the louse on the tip had been driven deep into the wooden lattice, dead as could be.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

"The first time I passed through it so smoothly, so why was the second time ten times more intense? My soul has grown stronger, yet I couldn't pass through? What is going on? Could it be... the stronger the spirit, the stronger the demons? That must be it."

Countless fireworks streaking into the sky seemed to signal that the Great Gan Dynasty had reached the peak of its true golden age. Hong Yi had gained experience; he knew that the dizzy, muddled feeling in his mind meant his soul had been injured. At this moment, having discarded the bow, his fists felt liberated, possessing a sharp, rapid sensation as if they could fly.

"I've been busy practicing martial arts these past few days and haven't tried to let my soul leave its shell. Besides, the archery and strength training these days have also helped nourish my spirit. I should practice the visualization method from the Amitabha Sutra again."

After buying the bow from the Guan Shi Shop, Hong Yi had completely shut himself away for bitter training. Every day, aside from sitting in meditation to calm his spirit and contemplating the Amitabha Sutra, he practiced drawing the bow using the methods of the Ox Demon Great Strength Fist.

The New Year of the sixtieth year of the Great Gan Dynasty had finally arrived.

The higher the path, the stronger the demons!

"How could I not even endure the first stage, injuring my soul like that?"

"These days of closed-door training in archery were not in vain."

However, Marquis Wuwen Hong Xuanji was not in the manor today; he had been summoned by the Emperor to watch the magnificent night view of the capital from the Five Phoenix Tower. This was a supreme honor.

The Ox Demon Great Strength Fist is the world's most exquisite martial art for training the flesh, tendons, and membranes. It naturally includes a specific set of archery postures that allow one to knot the muscles of the entire body together during the draw, focusing all power into the hands before shaking it out with the snap of the bowstring.

After seeing clearly, Hong Yi stood up abruptly from the bed, grabbed the bow nearby, nocked a wooden arrow, and pulled the Chestnut-Wood Ox-Horn Silk Bow into a full moon. With a twang, the arrow shot straight out.

Clatter!

When cultivated to the end, the visualized demons will condense into physical entities to appear, eating your flesh and drinking your blood! The stronger the soul, the stronger the various demons visualized will be. This is because the demons are themselves manifestations of one's own thoughts.

"Drawing the bow to the left and right!"

With the head of the household away, the various branches did not gather together to keep watch on New Year's Eve, but instead separated. The main residence of the first branch was one group, the Yunting Studio of the second branch was another, and the Lanting Studio of the third branch was yet another.

But Hong Yi did not stop. He twisted his waist violently, his tongue blooming like spring thunder as he let out a roar. He drew the bow once in every direction—up, down, left, right, and all around. The immense tension from his arms caused the chestnut wood of the bow to creak and crack, as if the air-dried wood were shattering.

Amidst the repeated drawing and dry-firing, this fine bow finally could not withstand Hong Yi's pulling. In an instant, the string snapped and the bow body shattered.

But he fell into deep thought.

Moreover, the archery within the Ox Demon Great Strength Fist actually incorporated visualization methods for the soul.

The stove on the fire pit was stewing a chicken, emitting a savory aroma; it was already cooked. This was a set of techniques for training accuracy and the stability of one's spirit.

The Marquis Wuwen manor was also very lively.

The feeling of a cool breeze brushing against his body today was ten times more intense than the first time!

Practicing visualization can temper the soul, but if one cannot hold onto it, it will severely damage the soul.

The archery technique within the Ox Demon Great Strength Fist transforms into a striking method for the fist, known as the "Ox Demon Chaotic Arrow Style." Every time the bow is drawn, it is equivalent to twisting, wringing, tightening, and vibrating the muscles of the entire body once.

In truth, he was silently channeling his thoughts, focusing his spirit onto his eyes, before suddenly opening them to look at a louse hanging by a thin thread on the window lattice.

On this night, everyone was intoxicated with excitement. Commoners had their own way of celebrating the New Year, taking to the streets to join the festivities, while wealthy families gathered together to keep watch, roasting charcoal, eating various snacks and fruit platters, and drinking milk and tea.

Hong Yi finally could not endure it. With a groan of relief, he collapsed onto the bed. It was a long time before he woke up, covered in cold sweat, his mind muddled and dizzy.

On the Five Phoenix Tower of the Imperial Palace, the Emperor, accompanied by the Empress, numerous concubines, and many princes, observed the lights filling the city.

With Hong Yi's current level of mental focus, he was actually unable to fend it off, and he was on the verge of becoming lost in this sensation.

Hong Yi knew that by directly snapping the bow, he had firmly reached the realm of the Martial Student, steadily entering the tendon-training stage of the Martial Disciple.

After bathing, Hong Yi drank a bowl of soup and felt an indescribable sense of comfort throughout his body.

Every time before drawing the bow, Hong Yi would sit in meditation, calm his soul, and channel it to his eyes. Then, he would open his eyes and observe an object hundreds of paces away, focusing his spirit upon it—staring at birds in trees for half a day, watching the stars at night, and finally sitting in meditation to visualize his spirit piercing through the arrow, conquering fortified cities and killing powerful enemies. Only then would he rise to draw the bow.

After dry-firing to the left, Hong Yi flipped over, moved the bow to his left hand, drew the string with his right, and dry-fired to the right.

He threw the two halves of the bow onto the ground, took up a stance, and threw out his fists, performing the "Ox Demon Hoof Stamp" in every direction.

Amidst the rapid drawing of the bow, this Chestnut-Wood Ox-Horn Silk Bow had been pulled until it snapped.

Drawing a sixty-pound silk bow up, down, left, right, and in all directions—this was the standard for the "Martial Hall" of the army to assess the Martial Student realm.

He was using the exact same technique he had just used for archery to throw his punches. Each punch involved twisting the muscles of his entire body, as if he were pulling an invisible bow, and then the fist would strike out, shooting forth like an arrow.

He sat cross-legged on the bed, eyes gently closed, his body straight and motionless, as if he had already entered a state of stability.

However, none of this had anything to do with Hong Yi. The overwhelming liveliness outside only served to highlight how exceptionally cold and quiet his own courtyard was.

Yujing City was the greatest city in the world, and its New Year customs were different from elsewhere, emphasizing liveliness. From New Year's Eve to the fifteenth, the dragon lanterns and fireworks every night were enough to make foreign envoys feel the power and prosperity of the Celestial Empire.

Bang! Crack!

The streets were decorated with lanterns and colored streamers, with people performing dragon dances, singing and dancing, and selling food. Commoners, merchants, and scholars from every household all took to the streets to join in the fun and celebrate the national fortune that had been established for sixty years.

Hong Yi finally understood: for every realm he advanced, the Amitabha Sutra became ten times harder to practice.

Boom!

But fortunately, there was the visualization of the Amitabha statue to repair his soul. Hong Yi felt that his spirit and energy were full, his body had become stronger, and his soul had been nourished and grown. Thus, he sat motionless and began to practice the visualization method of the Amitabha Sutra.

But as Hong Yi looked, it seemed as large as a fist, its shell clearly defined; he could even see its six legs exerting force, violently springing its body up. This louse was still alive, swinging back and forth in the air. Added to the fact that it was smaller than a grain of rice and the light was dim, even someone with excellent eyesight would find it hard to see clearly.

Close eyes, calm the spirit, store the starry sky within one's thoughts; infinite light shot over, entering the brain inch by inch.

The stronger the spirit, the stronger the demons!

"Although it was only within ten paces, it has already shown my achievements. These days, the effort was not in vain."

Throughout Yujing City, from the start of the night, the sound of firecrackers rang out incessantly, never stopping until the midnight hour!

With this series of rapid shots, the explosive sound of the bowstring and the snapping vibration seemed to cut through the air. Hong Yi's entire body was soaked, dripping with sweat; veins bulged, and large muscles swelled, squeezing and connecting with each other.

After finishing the strikes in all directions, Hong Yi finally felt his physical strength exhausted. He immediately rose and returned to his room to avoid catching a cold. After his breathing evened out, he would boil water for a bath.

Hong Yi prepared to hold out, but who would have thought that this feeling would not pass because of his persistence; instead, it became increasingly intense!

After shooting this arrow, Hong Yi placed the bow across his knees, silently channeling his spirit, waiting for his spirit and strength to be full. He picked up the bow, walked out the door, and looked up at the starry sky. He did not nock an arrow, but merely dry-fired the bow.

Sure enough, once it entered his brain, all sorts of illusions followed one after another. The first to arrive was still the sensation of a cool breeze blowing over his entire body, with pure energy emerging from his pores, making him feel as if he were floating like an immortal.

After visualizing the Amitabha statue once, Hong Yi fell into a deep sleep. The next day, he felt refreshed and clear-headed.

Hong Yi gasped rapidly, looking at the damaged bow body and string in his hands. In his heart, there was not a shred of regret for this bow, which was worth seven taels of silver; on the contrary, there was only joy.

Crack!

The arrow struck the hanging louse squarely, pinning it directly to the wooden lattice of the door and window.

For some reason, the livelier it was outside, the more tranquil and distant his heart became.

In the void of the starry sky, he drew the bow three times. Amidst the sound of the string, Hong Yi flipped over, moved the bow to his right hand, drew the string with his left, and dry-fired to the left.

In this round of cultivation, Hong Yi had failed to hold on, and his soul had been injured.