Eight Nine Arcane Art

Suddenly, Zhou Qing saw the banner in the young man's hand. Isn't this the magic banner I used to set up the Heavenly Gods and Demons Array? How did it end up in that person's hands? Could it be?... This person is the mastermind behind the Tianxuan Blood Demon. No wonder! With such a powerful figure backing him, the Tianxuan Blood Demon could unleash the Ten Thousand Ghosts Devouring Yin Formation without anyone from the Daoist Sect bothering him! Damn it, how could there be such a powerful person, and one who's targeting me? This is bad. Zhou Qing finally understood the reason.

An incomparably powerful divine sense rapidly enveloped a hundred-mile radius, and the slightest disturbance was transmitted into Xuan Yuan Dharma King's mind. The spiritual energy, transformed from talismans surrounding Zhou Qing, was swept by this powerful divine sense and began to fluctuate violently. The spiritual energy actually dissipated rapidly.

Sensing this situation, Zhou Qing's mind was in turmoil, and he didn't know what to do. The spiritual energy fluctuated more and more violently, and a small portion had already dissipated into the void. In just a few more seconds, Zhou Qing's true form would be exposed under Xuan Yuan Dharma King's divine sense scan. It would be even worse than being stripped naked for others to see, like having an X-ray.

At this critical juncture, Zhou Qing took a deep breath, and his mood calmed down instead. His Spiritual Platform was clear, his will was refined, and his heart was empty. His divine sense was almost imperceptible. Bang! The spiritual energy surrounding Zhou Qing's body could not withstand the impact of the divine sense and finally scattered. The divine sense swept past Zhou Qing's hiding spot but found nothing, and then moved elsewhere.

It was also Zhou Qing's good fortune that, at the moment of crisis, his mind entered a state of emptiness. Coupled with the powerful True Essence of his Second Primordial Spirit, he momentarily entered the path of unity between man and heaven. His physical body and divine sense were indistinguishable from heaven and earth; how could Xuan Yuan Dharma King's divine sense detect him?

"Is there really nothing?" Xuan Yuan Dharma King, after searching for half an hour, found nothing and withdrew his divine sense. The Heavenly Vision and Earthly Hearing Great Art was too draining. Half an hour of casting it was unbearable even for him. "Forget it! I have plenty of time later. The magic item I refined is in my hands anyway, how can it escape my grasp? I'll go find some trouble with Shu Mountain." Shaking his head, Xuan Yuan Dharma King twisted his body and disappeared.

At this moment, Zhou Qing was in a mysterious state. The path of unity between man and heaven is rare and can be encountered by chance. It involves communicating with the heart of heaven with one's own heart. Some cultivators cannot enter this state even in their entire lives, while some who have only cultivated for a few days can enter it due to a momentary realization. It has nothing to do with the level of cultivation, the strength of True Essence, or the depth of one's Taoist practice; it is purely an indescribable encounter. No one can clearly explain the pros and cons of entering the path of unity between man and heaven. Some gain enlightenment from the heart of heaven, their cultivation increases greatly, and their Taoist practice advances. Some get lost in the vast heart of heaven, their spiritual essence assimilated by the heart of heaven and ceasing to exist.

Fortunately, Zhou Qing had a similar experience when practicing the Summoning Gods Chapter to summon the divine power of the Nine Heavens Thunder God. He focused on guarding his original heart, undisturbed by external things, and preserved his consciousness. However, Zhou Qing suddenly discovered a very serious problem: he had unintentionally entered the path of unity between man and heaven but didn't know how to get out. If too much time passed, his true form would dissipate, leaving behind only a wisp of spirit floating in the endless void. That would truly be worse than death.

Although Zhou Qing realized this serious problem, he dared not be distracted, lest he get lost in the vast heart of heaven. Swirls of colorful clouds drifted by, exuding immortal energy. Countless flying celestial maidens flew about in the air, with jade palaces and flocks of cranes. It was truly a beautiful, celestial scene. But Zhou Qing knew this was a spiritual world. If you treat it as real, it is real; if you treat it as false, it is false. Truth and falsehood are but a single thought away. The scenery changed again, and the surroundings became a void, with no objects, no airflow, not even color, and no flow of time! It was as if he were trapped in chaos, like a fly frozen in amber, giving him a suffocating, quiet, desperate, and maddening feeling.

Zhou Qing remained unmoved, focusing on guarding his original heart, hoping that the chaos enveloping his spiritual essence would disappear soon. However, the chaos seemed to know Zhou Qing's intentions and remained stubbornly unchanged, always presenting this suffocating scene. After an unknown amount of time, which felt like centuries yet also like an instant, Zhou Qing was, after all, human. He had not reached the realm of "transcending the mundane and forgetting oneself." Although his will was firm, being in such an environment for so long and not knowing how to get out, a deep despair began to ripple in Zhou Qing's heart.

His mind faltered, and the chaos immediately surged forward, enveloping Zhou Qing's spiritual essence. An invisible suction force pulled at him, and his spiritual essence continuously drained away. Zhou Qing felt like he was about to dissipate.

"The mind is the master of the body, the commander of all spirits. Stillness gives rise to wisdom, movement leads to confusion. Lost in illusory realms, only the real is spoken; indulging in worldly affairs, who realizes the unreal? The mind's delusion arises from its attachment!"

With his life hanging by a thread, a flash of enlightenment suddenly struck Zhou Qing. Isn't this a verse from that strange cultivation technique? Zhou Qing felt like a drowning man grasping a life-saving straw. He immersed himself in the verses of that strange cultivation method, regardless of everything else. Countless bizarre symbols, like twisted tadpoles, were deeply imprinted into Zhou Qing's spiritual essence. As the negative emotion of despair disappeared, the mass of chaos slowly retreated and dissipated, finally vanishing without a trace. Before him appeared a vast starry sky, with countless meteors streaking through the void with dazzling brilliance. Huge black holes continuously devoured matter and light. Small planets collided with larger celestial bodies, shattering into pieces and falling onto the larger bodies, becoming part of them. Then, the larger bodies were swallowed by the black holes, leaving only nothingness. Everything demonstrated the fundamental law of the universe: the strong prey on the weak!

"Heaven and Earth have eight thunderclaps, and living beings have nine apertures. To traverse the eight thunderclaps and connect the nine apertures is to endure eternally between heaven and earth. This is the Eight Nine Arcane Art!" As the last character was deeply branded onto Zhou Qing's spiritual essence, Zhou Qing fully understood the cultivation method of the Eight Nine Arcane Art. He awoke to find himself prostrate at the root of a large tree.

"Haha! I'm really lucky. Not only did I not die, but I also comprehended the secret of a divine art. Am I a lucky star descended to earth? Possessed by a true god?" Zhou Qing was overjoyed to be able to withdraw his spiritual essence from the vast heart of heaven and return alive.

"Heh heh! Old Ancestor knew you'd be here! You're quite cunning, kid! But Old Ancestor won't fall for your tricks!" A sinister voice entered Zhou Qing's ears, nearly startling him to death. Standing not far away was none other than the terrifying young man from before.

Zhou Qing secretly cursed himself for being too careless. He fully activated his Second Primordial Spirit, and the Blood-Devouring Divine Saber within his body stirred restlessly. If the situation turned bad, he would strike with it. It wasn't that Zhou Qing didn't want to attack preemptively, but the opponent's cultivation level was simply unfathomable. Zhou Qing had no confidence in killing him with a single blow, so he decided to wait and see.

Tonight at 12 AM, I hope everyone will vote!!!!!!!!!!! I don't want to drop in the rankings, hehe.