Heaven-Propping Staff and the Nine-Origin General Knowledge Art

After supervising Goku's meditation for over a month, Wuchen grew increasingly astonished. His younger brother possessed a heart of pure clarity and an exceptionally focused approach to cultivation. Now that the foundation was laid, it was time to teach him how to begin his formal training.

Wuchen possessed a vast collection of cultivation manuals, all etched into his mind.

The techniques he held were all-encompassing—some obtained from exploring secret realms, others seized from slain rivals, some inherited from sects, and others created through his own insights. They were not limited to any single type or clan, spanning even different eras of history.

To teach Goku, he naturally had to choose human cultivation methods. However, the human techniques he possessed differed fundamentally based on the eras in which they were born.

For instance, the techniques from the ancient era, when spiritual energy was abundant, were methods that cultivated both the spirit and the body simultaneously. The divine soul and the physical form were refined to their ultimate potential, merging into a single, primordial whole.

As the heavens and earth began to churn and spiritual energy plummeted, the ancient methods became difficult to master. New methods emerged, splitting into two schools: the Spirit school and the Body school.

Some focused solely on the divine soul, refining it to the peak before using it to mend the weaknesses of the body; others focused solely on the body, refining it to the peak before strengthening the deficiencies of the soul.

Later still, as spiritual energy became extremely scarce, new methods arose to meet the new times.

This was the method of separate cultivation for spirit and body. One would first refine the body; once the body was strong and the soul robust, one would open the "Consciousness Realm," gathering the soul to form an "Origin Soul." Afterward, one would refine the soul to nurture the spirit, forming an "Origin Spirit." Once the spirit was strong, it would generate a core to solidify the energy in the Dantian, eventually imitating the ancient methods to cultivate both spirit and body in tandem.

Though far inferior to the ancient methods, it was a broad, smooth path for an era of scarce energy, as it did not require such vast amounts of spiritual essence.

Wuchen, born at the dawn of the world's upheaval, had achieved longevity and lived into the era of scarcity. He possessed a deep understanding of the techniques from these different periods.

He intended to teach Goku the techniques of the scarcity era, simply because the spiritual energy here was nearly non-existent, provided entirely by his own Yin-Yang Creation Method.

If he chose techniques from other eras, even starting would be difficult, let alone achieving success. At the same time, he prepared to teach Goku an ancient body-refining technique; he didn't expect it to shake the heavens, but every bit of strength gained would count.

"Goku, I will first teach you a body-refining method. It is called the Heaven-Propping Staff. Although it is named after a staff and includes staff techniques, it is by no means a mere martial art or combat skill."

"This method is supreme in its rigidity and Yang energy. It has three major realms. Mastering the first allows one to forge a Vajra Body, immune to all poisons and diseases. Mastering the second allows one to forge a Mystic Yang Body, beyond the reach of reincarnation and karmic cause and effect. Mastering the third allows one to forge a Primordial Immaculate Body—the body becomes the Dao, and the Dao becomes the body; even if the heavens and earth are destroyed, I alone shall remain!"

"Big Brother, I don't understand. Is 'cause and effect' a type of fruit? Have we eaten it before?"

"Cause and effect is not a fruit, and karmic ties are not mere connections. Whether you understand it or not is unimportant; just follow my lead."

This technique was something Wuchen had obtained by chance. He did not know what the final effect would truly be; these descriptions were simply what was recorded in the manual.

In his own era, reaching the first major realm might have been possible, but reaching the second was a pipe dream, let alone the third.

Wuchen chose this method for himself and Goku because, in its initial stages, it relied primarily on nourishing the body with blood and energy, requiring very little spiritual essence.

"Now, we shall begin with the first chapter of the first realm." Bringing Goku to a waterfall, Wuchen found two relatively straight wooden poles and led him to the base of the falls.

Under the pounding of the water, Wuchen taught Goku the staff movements hand-in-hand, which were the ones included in the Heaven-Propping Staff.

"The movements are simple, but there are tricks you must pay attention to. The Dantian below your abdomen is where the hundred meridians converge. Coordinate this with the breathing technique I taught you earlier; sink your energy there, let it overflow into your meridians, and carefully sense the flow of your channels..." As he spoke, Wuchen pointed out the corresponding locations.

"During your meditation earlier, you absorbed a great deal of spiritual energy. It is currently hidden within your flesh and blood, yet it remains unabsorbed. Try to sense it, drive the energy into your meridians, and let it circulate throughout your body..."

"There are several places you must pay special attention to: the Life Gate, Tailbone, Bubbling Spring, Hundred Meetings, Spirit Path, Spirit Terrace, and Supreme Yang... Don't worry about the tail for now; I will study that later." Wuchen continued to demonstrate as he spoke, carefully guiding Goku to identify his acupoints.

And so, the two brothers began a fixed routine that would last for half a year.

At sunrise, they rose; they practiced with the staffs in the water. At midday, they rested, meditating and breathing. At night, they stopped and fell straight to sleep. It is worth noting that on every night of the full moon, Wuchen would stop training at dusk and call Goku to rest early, calling it—the "Moon Break."

In half a year, the brothers completed the initial tempering of their bodies, their blood and energy surging, their physiques robust.

Wuchen continued to practice the Yin-Yang Creation Method, while Goku practiced a supreme technique from the era of scarce energy called the Nine-Origin General Knowledge Art—there was no other like it.

This technique was created by Bu Wuchen, the strongest Immortal Venerable who had lived for countless ages, read through billions of techniques across the three great eras, and survived into the era of scarce energy.

At this moment, Goku was attempting to open the "Consciousness Realm" within his sea of consciousness.

Wuchen, meanwhile, was setting up a "Dao Field." Though he called it a Dao Field, it was essentially an open-air clearing. Over the past six months, Wuchen had noticed the changes in the surrounding flowers and trees when he practiced, which gave him the idea to arrange a suitable place for cultivation.

He intended to use the spiritual energy that dissipated during his own practice to cultivate some spiritual plants; in this way, he could make up for some of the loss.

Two polished, somewhat uneven circular platforms were embedded into the ground, serving as makeshift meditation cushions. Around these "cushions," he cleared a ring-shaped field and planted various crops, flowers, and grasses.

Further out, there were wild fruit trees—some transplanted with their roots, others as saplings. Wuchen hoped to capture the dissipated spiritual energy with these, so he could eat them later to replenish his stores.

Another month passed, and Goku finally opened his Consciousness Realm, successfully condensing his "Origin Soul."

According to Wuchen's terminology, this could be called the zero-realm of Soul Condensation; he was barely considered a cultivator.

While teaching Goku to continue refining his Origin Soul, Wuchen practiced the Yin-Yang Creation Method step by step, and the spiritual plants flourished.

It is worth mentioning that the two brothers also insisted on practicing with their staffs every morning. To reach the realm of propping up the heavens, one could not be impatient; one had to be persistent.

Several months later, Goku refined his Origin Soul until it was incredibly solid, earning Wuchen's approval. Only after testing Goku's foundation multiple times did Wuchen finally relent and agree to Goku's request for "Spirit Attachment."

So-called "Spirit Attachment" was the attachment of attributes: metal, wood, water, fire, earth, wind, rain, lightning, Yin, Yang, and all other natural attributes.

Only by comprehending the underlying principles and attaching the corresponding attribute to the Origin Soul could one truly step onto the path of cultivation; this was the first realm of Soul Condensation.

Two months later, Goku, who often helped Wuchen with the fire and firewood, gained his first insight into the nature of fire. He attached the fire attribute to his Origin Soul and successfully entered the first realm of Soul Condensation. Afterward, he began to continue refining his Origin Soul, preparing for "Soul Splitting Origin Condensation."

"Soul Splitting Origin Condensation" was a unique stage of the Nine-Origin General Knowledge Art. Ordinary techniques only condensed one "Origin"—meaning they only had one Origin Soul, which they would continuously refine and strengthen to advance through the realms.

But with the Nine-Origin General Knowledge Art, each time one crossed a realm in the Soul Condensation stage, one would manifest an additional "Origin." Each was a cycle of reincarnation. By the ninth heaven, all nine origins would coexist, granting terrifying combat power and an inexhaustible supply of Origin Energy!

In his past life, Wuchen had gathered the essence of many top-tier techniques and combined them with his own insights from countless ages to create this technique that responded to the times, the heavens, and the Dao.

In his past life, he had been reborn for no reason before he could spread it. In this life, it would be up to Goku to bring it to glory!