Daoism, Five Thunders Art

"Master, I heard from our second junior sister that we're going to make a move on Chaimen?"

The honest-looking youth, who had returned to the Martial Arts Academy at some unknown time, sat calmly opposite the old man.

He said steadily, "Won't the risk factor be a bit too high?"

The old School Master glanced at the honest-looking youth and said lazily, "Can your master not even defeat Old Ghost Chai?"

"The problem isn't him."

Niu Dali, his arms wrapped in bandages, said softly, "Old Ghost Chai has recently been suspected of contacting those people. Daoism."

Hong Tianbao chuckled, "So what do we do? Report them to the Federation?"

Niu Dali was silent for a moment.

"In short, I don't think now is a good time to annex Chaimen. If it's about the resources for our new junior disciple, I can give him half of my businesses."

The two looked at each other in silence.

After a long while.

Hong Tianbao spun his prayer beads and said dully, "I know about Old Ghost Chai's contact with Daoism. If it were the East Cult, I wouldn't make things difficult for Chaimen, but he has defected to the West Cult."

He put down his prayer beads.

"The East and West Cults share the same origin, but their methods are vastly different, and the deities they worship are also similar. You should know about the West Cult's actions. If we let them run amok in Jiangzhou, how long can this city survive?"

Niu Dali said very seriously, "I received news that people from the East Cult have also arrived in Jiangzhou. Moreover, your 'old friend,' if I recall correctly, he was once a High Envoy of the East Daoist Sect. He should still be in Jiangzhou, right?"

"Master, if you really want to take down Chaimen, you can just wait for the East Cult's High Envoy to clear out those West Cult cultists. Entering the fray now is really risky."

The old man lowered his eyelids slightly, and there was a long period of silence.

In the quiet stillness, he exhaled, "I don't have much time left."

Niu Dali was startled and suddenly looked up.

"Your... injuries?"

Hong Tianbao nodded faintly.

"My 'old friend,' his body is covered in inerasable tumors, and he's uncontrollably turning into a flesh monster. How can I be any better?"

"The last time I saw him, Huang Qiuxian, the renowned Current Generation Martial Ancestor, had even fallen to the Martial Artist level. Even if he's still alive now, he's probably just a useless old man at the Second or Third Refinement."

Listening to his master's words, Niu Dali opened his mouth and remained silent for a while.

"Do you know where he is?"

"No."

Hong Tianbao yawned.

"I didn't intend to look for him either. The matter of Chaimen is settled. Your junior disciple's talent is unprecedented. It's not that I'm biased, but he really is the one with the greatest potential."

He paused, and Hong Tianbao said in a deep voice, "And what he needs now is not just resources, but also to learn how to 'act.' Chaimen is the best touchstone. If he handles it well, it might even get him noticed by the East Cult."

"The path of cultivation is nothing but struggle. If one only knows how to cultivate but not how to struggle, they won't get far. Chaimen is the first lesson I'm teaching him, and perhaps the last."

The old man stood up and left. Niu Dali shouted from behind, "If you get involved, you'll die!"

"Didn't I say?" The chubby old man pouted. "I wasn't going to live much longer anyway."

"How is it?"

Zhu Xiaoming, whose head was shaved bald, patted the red four-seater sports car next to him and said proudly, "Old Zhang, isn't it cool?"

Zhang Fusheng said with a laugh, "It's cool, but what about your ears?"

He pointed to the large earrings on Zhu Xiaoming's ears and the thick gold chain around his neck.

Zhu Xiaoming raised his head and said, "I specifically got my ears pierced the day before yesterday. I chose skull earrings, and with the gold chain and my bald head, don't I look like a big shot from the underworld?"

"Like a thug." Zhang Fusheng quipped, "Are you going to repent and become a man with lions hidden in his eyes?"

"Old Zhang, you understand me best!"

Zhu Xiaoming beamed, "University is a new place with new people. Few know about my past. I've decided that when school starts, I will become a cold, emotionless person."

"I will speak little, walk alone, like a lone wolf traversing a snowy mountain!"

He patted his chest, full of ambition.

Zhang Fusheng was silent for a moment:

"I don't see a lone wolf, I only see a husky, and a bald one at that."

"Get lost, get lost!" Zhu Xiaoming jumped.

The two got into the bright red sports car.

"Your Uncle Zhu bought it for you?" Zhang Fusheng asked curiously, "That must be expensive, right?"

He couldn't help but wonder.

From his senior sister, Zhang Fusheng had also obtained information on 'Zhu Dashan'. He was indeed Zhu's uncle, owing a debt significantly larger than Chen Nuanyu's, a whopping forty million.

However, judging by the brief overview of fund flows in the documents, it didn't seem like he couldn't repay it. That money was used by Uncle Zhu to finance a large batch of materials.

Although the loan interest was exceptionally high, repaying it was likely not too difficult, but it wouldn't be easy either.

If he wasn't careful, there was a 'risk of default.'

"It was over three million when it landed."

Zhu Xiaoming said cheerfully, "But my dad didn't buy it for me, it's rented."

He stepped on the accelerator, and amidst the sidelong glances of passersby, the sports car darted like a streak of fire on the asphalt road, but it didn't head directly towards Jiang University.

"Where are we going?" Zhang Fusheng was a bit puzzled.

Zhu Xiaoming grinned slyly, "Today, you're going to be my wingman. I have to repay this favor, right?"

Zhang Fusheng raised an eyebrow:

"Where exactly are we going?"

He looked at the surrounding buildings, which were becoming increasingly familiar.

"You asked me about Zhong Yue yesterday."

Zhu Xiaoming held the steering wheel with one hand and patted his chest with the other, looking smug.

"My dad sponsored the Jiang University Banquet, and the school asked me to be in charge of this meal. So, I called her using the information on the list."

He winked at Zhang Fusheng.

"I invited her to visit Jiang University today under the guise of the event. Isn't this creating an opportunity for you! Cough, cough, of course, with a girl present, it'll be easier for me to get close to Lu Yao too!"

Zhang Fusheng was utterly speechless.

The red sports car screeched to a halt in front of the Snake Fist Gym. The car window rolled down, and Zhu Xiaoming waved at the girl who had just taken leave and was standing outside the gym.

Zhong Yue curiously examined the bright red sports car. After taking two steps closer, her footsteps suddenly stopped—she saw the delicate-looking young man sitting in the passenger seat.

It was him.

Not only Zhong Yue saw him, but also the old man in a traditional Chinese jacket, hands behind his back, strolling leisurely outside the martial arts school entrance. He also spotted Zhang Fusheng.

He narrowed his eyes:

"Is that old ghost Hong still at it?"

Zhang Fusheng's gaze shifted past Zhong Yue to meet the eyes of the Snake Fist Gym Master, and his heart tightened.

As their gazes locked, the old man seemed displeased, a faint light flickering in his eyes. In an instant, Zhang Fusheng felt the surrounding environment drastically change.

He wasn't sitting in a sports car, but on a bright yellow meditation cushion, with vast clouds beneath him. Heaven and earth were tranquil, leaving only him and the old man.

A mental illusion, or rather, a Spiritual Realm.

"Senior, you might have misunderstood something." Zhang Fusheng's heart tensed. According to his Master, the Spiritual Realm was a capability belonging to [He Observes as I Should Be].

Except for when one first achieved great mastery in meditation techniques, or could briefly touch this level through a flash of inspiration, at other times, one needed at least minor perfection in meditation techniques to create a [Spiritual Realm].

The most crucial point was.

Even his Master had to tap his finger three times, yet this Snake Fist Gym Master, who was only at the Second Refinement, merely raised his eyelids.

Perfection.

Meditation technique perfected.

He was definitely a true figure at the [He Observes as I Should Be] level!

"A misunderstanding?"

The old man stood atop the clouds of the Spiritual Realm. Every word he spoke was like vast heavenly music. From the dense fog all around, soldiers clad in golden armor and wielding bows and sabers emerged, hundreds, thousands of them.

He said:

"If Hong Tianbao harbors any resentment and doesn't wish to let go of this dying man, have him come himself."

Over a thousand armored soldiers took a step forward in unison towards Zhang Fusheng. Though they were mere illusory beings within the illusion, their might and presence felt utterly real!

The armored soldiers raised their bows.

A thousand bows were drawn as taut as full moons.

Targeted by a thousand bows, the sharp aura made Zhang Fusheng's breathing difficult, his chest tight, and his brow throbbing with pain.

Under the aim of a thousand bows, the arrows had not yet been loosed, but the sharp aura had already pierced Zhang Fusheng's brow, drawing blood!

Zhang Fusheng remained motionless, knowing this was merely an illusion. He had grown accustomed to it during his time trapped in the Depths of Illusion, having been gnawed on by skeletons for half a day. He naturally felt no fear of these thousand bows and thousand soldiers.

"Senior, this is a misunderstanding," Zhang Fusheng repeated. He clenched his fists, and his body transformed into white bone. The bones emitted a faint glow, and the wind from his punches swirled the clouds beneath him, coalescing into a tiger's head behind him.

"Roar!" A massive tiger's head, emerging and submerging behind the young man, let out a roar.

"Fake [Fist Intent]."

The old man's mouth twitched. The coldness on his face vanished, and he suddenly fell silent.

"What merit does that old ghost Hong Tianbao truly possess?"

He muttered to himself, touching his chest, then suddenly pressed his hand down.

The illusory soldiers lowered their longbows.

"Tell Hong Tianbao that what happened back then was my fault, Huang Qiuxian's."

"I truly have no face to see him. Doesn't he want to learn my Daoist Five Thunders Art?"

"Give it to him as my apology. Also, Jiangcheng has been rather unsettled lately. Tell him not to get involved."

Huang Qiuxian, such a familiar name.

And the Daoist Five Thunders Art?

Zhang Fusheng blinked. Blood trickled down his cracked brow. He watched as the aging elder extended his hand, and a quarter of this spiritual realm collapsed.

The collapsing section transformed into a beam of light and struck his body.

He jolted awake, still in the bright red sports car. Zhong Yue had gotten into the car at some point.

"Old... Old Zhang?"

Zhu Xiaoming stared at him in horror.

"What happened to you?"

Zhang Fusheng instinctively looked outside the car. The School Master of the Snake Fist Gym was nowhere to be seen. He felt a warmth on his forehead.

He reached up and touched it. It was blood.

The hairs on his body stood on end.