Metal Generates Water

The next day, Luo Feng went back to continue his "cramming" training, while Thunder God returned to the Thunder Dojo.

Hong went to find Yin Congyang. "Let's go out for a bit and get some fresh air. There's something I'd like to talk to you about..."

The two flew out of Hongning Base City. After flying for a long while, they stopped high in the sky and gazed down at the towering mountains and winding rivers below. Hong smiled. "Congyang, you have tremendous talent. You're much stronger than I was back when I was at Planetary Level One. But I do have a few more years on you. In particular, I've read many ancient Chinese texts since then and gained quite a few insights. They've also helped improve my state of mind.

"I asked you out today mainly because I wanted to talk about your axe techniques. They're extremely impressive. I feel they're far superior to the basic manuals of Black Ink Star. And after you began training in them, they became even more fierce and unstoppable, sharp and forceful. That's why you were able to comprehend the Domain of Gold.

"I don't know if you've heard the saying, 'Strength cannot last, and softness cannot be maintained,' or the other one, 'The proud dragon will have cause to regret; fullness cannot last.' (Note 1) They both speak of balancing hardness and softness. When you use your axe techniques, they're utterly forceful and fierce, but they lack a certain balance between hardness and softness. Perhaps that's also related to your comprehension of the Domain of Gold. But there are nine layers to a Domain, each more difficult than the last. If you pursue sheer force alone, I'm afraid you won't be able to sustain it!

"Of course, I'm only speaking from my own understanding of martial arts. What I've said may not suit you. Your physical strength is extraordinary, far greater than mine was at Planetary Level One. Maybe you can sustain it after all.

"I didn't want to say too much, but we're brothers. If I noticed a problem and didn't mention it, it would weigh on my mind. I'll leave first. Think it over yourself. If you feel what I said doesn't make sense, you don't need to take it to heart."

After hearing Hong out, Yin Congyang sat stunned for a long time. He didn't even notice when Hong left. Ever since breaking through to Planetary Level, he had focused all his mind on the Strange Light Point in his Dantian for the first time, and immediately comprehended the Domain of Gold. At the time, he had been overjoyed, thinking he would make rapid progress in his future Domain training. But when he later tried entering the Strange Light Point in his Dantian again, it still helped his cultivation, though only marginally—barely any faster than training on his own. He had assumed the Strange Light Point only helped with the first layer of a Domain. Now he realized he had been mistaken. The Strange Light Point was still immensely beneficial to his training; it was just that his Domain was newly comprehended and had yet to settle in, and his approach to training had been wrong.

Hong was right. The Thirty-Six Heaven-Opening Axes did, in fact, emphasize balancing hardness and softness. Otherwise, if they only pursued absolute force and fierceness, how could they surpass Black Ink Star's basic martial arts? But Yin Congyang had been absorbed in studying and pondering the Domain of Gold. He had thought it should be utterly forceful and sharp, and so he had never considered training in a way that balanced hardness and softness, or brought yin and yang into harmony.

Hong's words today had opened Yin Congyang's eyes. He felt he had gained a completely new understanding of the Thirty-Six Heaven-Opening Axes and could hardly wait to practice them hundreds of times.

He acted as soon as the thought occurred to him. Yin Congyang took out the Heaven-Opening Axe and began performing the techniques, one move at a time. At first, the axe shadows filled the air, fierce and sharp. But once that force reached its peak, he found he couldn't sustain it for long.

An idea struck Yin Congyang. He continued performing the axe techniques, but gradually drew back his strength until he was using only a tenth of his power. Then he slowly increased it again until he was using it at full force. He repeated the cycle, practicing his axe techniques in midair for more than ten hours.

When he finally stopped, Yin Congyang couldn't help letting out a long, hearty shout. He was clearly exhilarated.

"Strength cannot last, and softness cannot be maintained. The proud dragon will have cause to regret; fullness cannot last. These truly embody the principles of balancing hardness and softness, and of yin and yang giving rise to each other." Yin Congyang was full of admiration. "Brother Hong really is a grandmaster of martial arts. Those words will save me from many detours!"

"Come to think of it, when I broke through, both my soul force and my Origin Energy Planet were multicolored. That means I might be able to comprehend all the Domains corresponding to the Five Elements. In the Five Elements, metal generates water, water generates wood, wood generates fire, fire generates earth, and earth generates metal. It's a perfect cycle in itself. Metal is forceful and unyielding, while water benefits all things without contending. Doesn't that correspond perfectly to balancing hardness and softness?"

Once he understood this, Yin Congyang turned and headed back to the dojo. On the way, he sent Hong a message: Thank you!

When Hong saw the message from Yin Congyang, he smiled but didn't reply. He returned to his training instead.

Yin Congyang went back to his room at the dojo and rested for a while. After all, he had practiced his axe techniques for more than ten hours. Although he still had some energy left, he was quite tired. Once his mind and body had recovered to their best, Yin Congyang once again immersed his consciousness in the Strange Light Point in his Dantian.

Drawing on his familiarity with it, he conjured the Heaven-Opening Axe inside the Strange Light Point and began performing the Thirty-Six Heaven-Opening Axes in accordance with the insight he had gained that day. This time, the feeling was entirely different from his previous practice sessions. Before long, he was completely absorbed in performing the axe techniques, losing all sense of time.

Inside the Strange Light Point, after who knew how long, Yin Congyang stopped of his own accord.

After withdrawing his consciousness from the Strange Light Point, Yin Congyang opened his eyes. The same sense of having weathered the years he'd felt the first time he came out washed over him, then faded a moment later.

Yin Congyang paid it no mind. He checked the time and discovered that this session had lasted two days.

He stood up, took out the Heaven-Opening Axe, and began practicing. This time, his performance was different yet again. He had reached a level of mastery where he could control hardness and softness at will: hard when he wanted, soft when he wanted.

In fact, even before breaking through to Planetary Level, the blow with which he struck Sago at Luo Hua's home had already carried a hint of yang giving rise to yin. Unfortunately, Yin Congyang hadn't thought deeply about it, and so he had taken a few detours in improving his axe techniques.

Gradually, golden secret patterns from the Domain of Gold appeared around him. There were far more than when they had first appeared, clearly showing that Yin Congyang had made considerable progress in his Domain.

Suddenly, faint blue secret patterns appeared among the golden ones, giving off a soft glow. Up close, they seemed engraved with incredibly intricate markings.

As he performed his axe techniques, the blue secret patterns continued to multiply. Once they had fully stabilized, they intertwined with the golden patterns, appearing both beautiful and mysterious. The Domain of Water had emerged within the Domain of Gold.

Yin Congyang sensed the combined Domain of Gold and Domain of Water. In terms of power, it could almost match Hong's Domain Second Layer.

Yin Congyang's Domain of Gold hadn't yet reached the peak of the first layer, while he had only just comprehended the Domain of Water. Yet their combined power could already nearly match that of a single Domain at the second layer. If he trained both Domains to the peak of the first layer, their combined power should surpass that of the second layer.

After a long while, Yin Congyang washed up and went to bed, thoroughly satisfied.

When he woke up, he felt refreshed, full of energy, and in high spirits. He was as lively as a dragon flicking its tail... No, wrong line!

After eating and drinking his fill at the dojo, Yin Congyang went to find Hong at a leisurely pace. He happened to run into Thunder God, who was also there to see Hong.

Yin Congyang's eyes lit up when he saw Thunder God. "Brother Lei, you're just in time. Brother Hong gave me some pointers a few days ago, and I've gained some new insights. I was just looking for someone to test them on. How about a spar?"

Thunder God grinned. "Sure! Come on, little Yang, let me beat you up one more time..."

The two made their way to Hong's training room. As expected, Hong was inside training.

Thunder God smiled at Hong. "Brother Hong, Congyang said you gave him some pointers a few days ago, and he's improved. He wants to test himself against me. You should join us later too."

Hong smiled and nodded. "I only said a few things. I wouldn't call it giving him pointers... You two go to the combat room first. I'll be there shortly."

Yin Congyang and Thunder God went to the combat room. He took out the Heaven-Opening Axe and said to Thunder God, "Brother Lei, let's go."

Thunder God also took out his Thunder Blade. With the boost from his Domain and after thoroughly mastering Black Ink Star's basic manual, Thunder God had not only reached Planetary Level Eight and mastered the first layer of his Domain, but had also raised his Force Amplitude to nine times.

Thunder God beckoned to Yin Congyang. "Come on."

Yin Congyang performed his axe techniques as a golden-blue Domain began spreading around him. Thunder God couldn't help gaping at the golden-blue Domain. "What's going on with your Domain? It can change color? It feels incredibly powerful." As he spoke, he also unfurled his Domain of Thunder and wielded the Ninefold Thunder Blade, fighting Yin Congyang.

They fought back and forth for dozens of exchanges. Thunder God had originally suppressed his strength to Planetary Level Six, but soon realized he was being held back at every turn and was at a disadvantage. He was especially outmatched in their Domains.

Gradually, he raised his strength to Planetary Level Seven, thinking he could turn the tables and suppress Yin Congyang. But to his surprise, Yin Congyang's golden-blue Domain suddenly surged in power and broke through Thunder God's Domain of Thunder. In an instant, he closed in on Thunder God's side. Yin Congyang moved with his axe and swung it down, its blow imbued with the power of his Domain.

Thunder God let out a strange cry, realizing that if he didn't give it his all, he would lose this time. He stopped holding back and raised his strength to Planetary Level Eight, bringing up his Thunder Blade with ninefold force.

"Clang~~"

Thunder God's War Blade was knocked high into the air by the Heaven-Opening Axe, and he was sent flying more than ten meters backward.

Thunder God stared blankly at Yin Congyang. "You held back at the end...?"

Yin Congyang rolled his eyes at him. "It's a spar, Brother Lei. Were you only going to be happy if I hit you hard enough to make you spit blood?"

Hong had just entered the combat room. Looking at the two of them, he said, "Looks like I missed the most exciting part!"

P.S. Note 1: "Strength cannot last, and softness cannot be maintained" comes from Zhou Botong's formula for the Vacuity Fist. "The proud dragon will have cause to regret; fullness cannot last" comes from Hong Qigong's formula for the Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms. Both are from The Legend of the Condor Heroes. A salute to the great Jin Yong!