Internal Power

"Creating your own cultivation method?" Huang Xiao asked. "How do you do that?"

"There are many paths, and it depends on all kinds of insights. But whatever the case, none can be separated from the classic works of our predecessors. Their writings contain profound truths about life. If one day you comprehend the Dao, you might create a peerless cultivation method. Back then, didn't your founding master comprehend the Everlasting Spring Art from a book himself? Although it's a second-class cultivation method, even those are scarce in the martial world," Xuanzhenzi said.

Huang Xiao nodded, committing all of this to memory. After thinking for a moment, however, he still asked, "Master, does our Daoist tradition have any important classics?"

"Of course, there are many. There are quite a few in the scripture room. Haven't you read them?" Xuanzhenzi asked.

"I have. I wanted to ask whether there's one called the Scripture of Southern Florescence," Huang Xiao said.

"The Scripture of Southern Florescence?" Xuanzhenzi thought for a moment before saying, "I've never heard of it. But just because I haven't heard of it doesn't mean it doesn't exist. Our Green Ox Temple doesn't have many books."

"What about the Daoist Canon?" Huang Xiao asked again.

"Oh, the Daoist Canon. I didn't expect you to know about that. The Daoist Canon is the king of all scriptures in our Daoist tradition. Naturally, I know of it, but only by hearsay. I've never seen it. Legend has it that the Daoist Canon was lost many years ago. All our present Daoist classics developed from it," Xuanzhenzi said with a smile.

"Was it really lost?" Huang Xiao asked.

Xuanzhenzi considered this before saying, "Perhaps some incomplete copies remain in the world. But even incomplete copies would be held by those renowned sects. Ordinary sects and common people of the martial world would never have the chance to see them."

Huang Xiao nodded, thinking that this must be so. Even an incomplete copy would be extraordinarily precious. If Zhang Jue's Scripture of Great Peace really was part of the Daoist Canon, then even an incomplete copy would probably be no less valuable than the complete Scripture of Great Peace, would it? Huang Xiao hesitated over whether he should tell Xuanzhenzi what he knew. After all, these things had been recorded in the Scripture of Southern Florescence. He might not understand much of them himself, but his master was knowledgeable and widely experienced, and perhaps he could discern something.

In the end, however, Huang Xiao abandoned the idea. The Scripture of Southern Florescence had already turned to ashes. Even if he brought it up, Xuanzhenzi probably wouldn't believe him.

"Is there anything else you want to ask?" Seeing Huang Xiao lost in thought, Xuanzhenzi waited a while before asking with a beaming smile.

"No, Master!" Huang Xiao answered with a smile.

"Good. Come with me to the rear hall. I'll teach you the Everlasting Spring Art and some of our sect's supreme techniques now." With that, Xuanzhenzi stood and headed toward the rear hall.

Huang Xiao cupped his hands toward his three senior brothers, then hurried after Xuanzhenzi to the rear hall.

Half a month later, on the mountain behind the Green Ox Temple.

"No more, no more! Your senior brother is badly out of breath!" Qinghe flipped away, then braced one hand against a large tree beside him and bent at the waist, panting heavily.

"Third Senior Brother, are you all right?" Huang Xiao wiped the sweat from his forehead as he asked, likewise panting heavily.

"I'm fine, I'm fine. Much better than before." Qinghe waved a hand. After resting a while, he walked over to Huang Xiao and said, "It's exhausting, but it's been very helpful in increasing my cultivation."

"It's all thanks to you that my cultivation has been advancing so quickly." Huang Xiao sensed the ceaselessly surging internal power within him. Ever since he had first cultivated internal power that day, he had been filled with excitement every time he felt it.

"Haha, I've benefited from your good fortune too, Junior Brother. Otherwise, I'm afraid I would have struggled to break through to the second-class realm on my own." Qinghe smiled. "Ah, but your meridians really are strange. There's no telling whether they'll bring fortune or disaster in the future."

"Senior Brother, Master already said that this is all heaven's will. Why think so much about it? For now, it's a blessing. If it becomes a curse later, I'll accept that too," Huang Xiao said with a smile.

"Junior Brother, tell me honestly. You've absorbed quite a bit of my internal power over this past half month. You really haven't felt anything wrong?" Qinghe asked. "If anything feels unusual, you must say so right away. If a problem develops, it'll be too late."

"Senior Brother, don't worry. Do I look as though anything's wrong?" Huang Xiao patted his chest and smiled. "Senior Brother, if not for these past days, how could my internal power have grown so strong? Even Master said that the internal power I've cultivated over this half month is fully equivalent to a year's cultivation. How could I have cultivated so much myself? All this internal power was absorbed from you. I'm truly ashamed."

"Speaking of that, I've benefited even more. Although you've absorbed over a year's worth of my internal power, every time it's depleted, I make a little progress when I circulate my cultivation to recover it. In just this half month, I've actually broken through from third-rate upper grade to second-rate lower grade. I originally planned to take the Origin-Enhancing Pill Master gave me, but now it seems there's no need. Perhaps I can travel farther along the path of martial arts through my own efforts," Qinghe said.

Huang Xiao had also come to understand the abnormality of his meridians. For some unknown reason, they had undergone a mutation. Whenever he sparred with Qinghe, he would inadvertently absorb Qinghe's internal power for his own use.

Naturally, Xuanzhenzi had investigated such a strange phenomenon, but he could not explain its cause either. In fact, he had already discovered the abnormality of Huang Xiao's meridians when he circulated his cultivation to heal Huang Xiao's injuries.

In the end, he could only attribute it to some extraordinary effect produced by Huang Xiao swallowing the Black-and-White Refining Snake and the Blazing Sun Fruit. Whether such an extraordinary effect would bring fortune or disaster in the future was difficult to predict. Thus, he could only remind Huang Xiao to keep watch over changes in his internal power at all times and report any problems as early as possible.

"Senior Brother, how was that Everlasting Spring Fist Method I just performed?" Huang Xiao did not continue their earlier discussion, asking about something else instead.

"I have to say, Junior Brother, your aptitude for martial arts really is remarkable. In just half a month, you've attained thirty percent of my proficiency in this fist method. Back then, it took me a full six months to reach your level, and Master even praised me for it. Eldest Senior Brother and Second Senior Brother both took a full year. Of course, your Everlasting Spring Leg Method is still somewhat unpracticed, mainly because you haven't had enough time. I believe that given another six months to a year, you could probably comprehend most of both the fist and leg methods. What remains after that is to improve your internal power cultivation. Only once your internal power cultivation advances will the might of whatever fist, palm, or leg method you use multiply," Qinghe said with a sigh.

"Senior Brother, I'll remember that," Huang Xiao replied.