Mystery

Shi Xuan pondered it again and again. From all the information, he could basically determine that the Innate Realm of Shattering the Void truly corresponded to the Qi Induction Stage in cultivation. But how could one ascend at that realm? Not to mention that this great world had no ascension at all in ancient times, even this level of cultivation was still far, far removed from a Golden Core Grandmaster. What could they possibly use to ascend?

Yet every Innate expert of recent centuries who had been recorded or rumored to exist had shattered the void and departed upon breaking through to that realm, without a single exception. Looking at it this way, either the laws of this world had changed, or rather than "ascension," it would be more accurate to call it "being received." Who exactly could sense, over such a vast range, those who broke through to the Qi Induction Stage and then take them away? And for what purpose? That was impossible to know.

Shi Xuan sighed softly. If, after traveling the world, he still could not find any trace of the Daoist Sect or gather any information, he would have to break through to the Qi Induction Stage. No matter whom or what he faced after "ascending," it was better than slowly wasting away to death here. After all, with Old Daoist Xu's teachings as his foundation, he could still understand and cultivate the first three layers of the Treasure Record quite well. But starting from the Qi Induction Stage, much of it was beyond his comprehension, including certain terms and the meanings of certain sentences. Cultivation terminology and phrasing often carried several layers of meaning. Misunderstanding one layer or one term might be harmless—but if it caused a serious problem, whom would he cry to?

Moreover, he lacked even the most basic knowledge in artifact refinement, alchemy, formations, and every other field. He had to enter a major cultivation environment, find people to consult, or pore through ancient texts.

He Dahai and He Yuqing stood beside Shi Xuan, not daring to move rashly. Although they dearly wished to glimpse the contents of the "Longevity Treasury," Shi Xuan was deep in thought and had not opened the manual, so they did not dare urge him. They could only fret in secret.

Shi Xuan quickly came back to himself and casually opened the manual on his person. He read swiftly, merely giving it a rough scan. Judging from this manual and several manuals from Old Daoist Xu's collection that he had read before, martial arts began to encounter a bottleneck after reaching the Subtle Realm, the Soul Departure Stage. Shi Xuan knew why: martial arts manuals lacked cultivation methods that directly targeted the soul. Though some could strengthen it indirectly, that was still insufficient. Beginning with the Subtle Realm, the effects of disparity between physical and soul cultivation began to emerge. Yet there were no methods that cultivated only the flesh without cultivating the soul—at least, Shi Xuan did not know of any, having only seen a brief mention in the Treasure Record. Thus, cultivation growth became slow.

The "Longevity Treasury," however, contained a method for cultivating the soul: the eight qi-circulation diagrams on the final pages of the manual. Their postures were strange, requiring the spiritual platform to remain clear and imposing several other peculiar conditions. But in Shi Xuan's eyes, this was merely an extremely crude, extremely crude soul-cultivation method. Crude though it was, it did not prevent the "Longevity Treasury" from becoming an unrivaled martial arts manual capable of cultivating one to the realm of Shattering the Void. It also made it an exceedingly difficult manual to begin cultivating.

Very little in the "Longevity Treasury" was useful to Shi Xuan. At most, there were some exquisite moves, along with the qi-circulation route in the secret Cloud-Dispelling Palm for using qi to injure others. One look was enough for him to remember them, so he did not intend to take it away. He said to He Dahai beside him, "Chief Escort He, could I trouble you to undo Mr. Liang's acupoints?"

He Dahai said happily, "I would be honored to serve you, Senior." Then he headed toward Liang Shenglou.

"Senior, do you have any other instructions for us?" After seeing her father leave, He Yuqing asked Shi Xuan with a mixture of respect, fear, and eagerness to please.

Shi Xuan shook his head. "There is nothing else. Actually, you need not remain by my side. Some of your companions were injured earlier. You might as well rest by the fire."

He Yuqing gestured for the others to return to their own fire. She herself remained standing where she was, waiting for her father to return. In truth, her heart was far from calm. What she had seen and heard today had shaken her far more deeply than anything in the previous twenty years of her life. All manner of emotions intertwined, too difficult to describe and too difficult to voice.

The two Escort Leaders, along with the remaining six or seven escorts and runners, slowly returned to the fire. Seeing that Shi Xuan was not paying attention to them, they could not help whispering among themselves.

"Escort leader He, what do you think that senior's background is? His martial arts are terrifyingly high."

"There's no need to ask escort leader He. I think Senior cultivates the Zen Sect's Golden Bell Shield. Didn't you see that? Tsk, tsk. If I told people about it after we got back, no one would believe me. They'd think I was dreaming."

"Zhang Laosan, Golden Bell Shield my ass. Didn't you see that Senior was dressed as a daoist priest? How could he possibly belong to those bald donkeys of the Zen Sect?"

"Li Mazi, come, come, come. You tell us what kind of martial art it was, to send someone flying back with one bang."

"Maybe it's some secret martial art of the Black Tortoise Sect. Among Daoist priests, their sect is the most formidable, from what I've seen."

"Enough. Stop making wild guesses. If Senior hears and becomes unhappy, then when the time comes... hm?" He Xiangshan smoothed things over.

Everyone immediately fell silent. But before long, they began sighing softly again. "If I had martial arts like Senior's, all three great martial arts fairies, along with all those beautiful heroines... heh heh."

"I wonder whether Senior accepts disciples."

He Dahai exerted tremendous effort and spent a long time undoing the acupoints Gao Wenqi had sealed on Liang Shenglou. After all, his martial arts were vastly inferior to Gao Wenqi's. He then pinched Liang Shenglou beneath the nose to wake him.

Liang Shenglou was grievously injured. Leaving aside the various saber and sword wounds he had suffered earlier, Gao Wenqi's two sword strikes alone had caused him unbearable pain. Though those two strikes had primarily targeted his acupoints, the Internal Energy carried on the blade had long since shattered many of his meridians. His entire body was now wracked with agony. Added to that was the collapse of his dream of revenge, leaving his mind somewhat muddled. As he sat up and looked at He Dahai, unable to make sense of the situation, he was dazed for a moment before asking, "And you are?" He had seen He Dahai before, but did not recognize him.

"My name is He Dahai. The Daoist Priest senior asks that Senior Liang join him for a conversation. Please." He Dahai remained very respectful.

Because Liang Shenglou had been unconscious, he knew nothing of what had happened afterward. Still muddled, he followed He Dahai toward Shi Xuan. Then his steps halted as he saw Cao Chuyu's corpse. Alarm stirred in his heart, along with sorrow. He and Old Fourth had shared a friendship of over twenty years, only to end up facing each other with blade and sword. Now he himself was still alive, while Old Fourth had become a corpse. Life was truly unpredictable.

A few steps farther on, he saw Peng Tianxiao's corpse as well. Liang Shenglou's alarm turned into fright. He had no idea what divine being had acted.

When they reached the spot, He Dahai stepped aside. Only then did Liang Shenglou see a young Daoist in a black robe seated calmly cross-legged beside the fire—the very person Liang Shenglou had not taken seriously at all before. Nor had he ever heard of such a figure in the Jianghu.

Liang Shenglou cupped his hands. "Daoist Priest, may I ask why you summoned Liang?"

Shi Xuan smiled. "Mr. Liang is too courteous. This humble Taoist merely has several matters to ask Mr. Liang about. Please, sit."

Liang Shenglou still did not trust Shi Xuan. He merely said, "Liang will remain standing while we speak."

Shi Xuan lifted the "Longevity Treasury" before him and shook it twice. "May I ask where Mr. Liang obtained this manual? Did Guangyang Hermit leave behind any words, or perhaps any other relics?" Shi Xuan would not pass up this opportunity to gather information about figures who had Shattered the Void.

Seeing the manual he had dreamed of obtaining, which had previously belonged to him, now in Shi Xuan's hands—just as he had believed his dream of revenge had been shattered, another hope suddenly appeared before him. A surge of malice immediately rose in Liang Shenglou's heart. His already muddled mind grew even less clear, with only one thought screaming back and forth within him: Take it back! Take it back!

Furthermore, Liang Shenglou had neither seen nor heard Shi Xuan kill Gao Wenqi and the other two. Subconsciously, he judged Shi Xuan's strength to be that of an ordinary Subtle Realm expert, perhaps even weaker. After all, he had not seen Gao Wenqi's corpse, so Gao Wenqi might very well have escaped. If he took advantage of Shi Xuan's inattention to seize the manual, then found a chance to flee into the rain, there was a good chance he could repeat Gao Wenqi's success.

His mind was blurred, yet the more he considered it, the more feasible it seemed. This might be the final sliver of opportunity Heaven had granted him amid such crushing suffering. He often heard storytellers speak of "contending for Heaven's opportunity." Indeed—if one did not contend, how could there be an opportunity? If he let it go now, his state of mind and martial arts would surely regress in the future. In a rush of hot blood, Liang Shenglou made his decision and slowly began, "Guangyang Hermit..."

Shi Xuan had seen Liang Shenglou remain silent for some time without answering. When he then noticed the man's hand trembling faintly, the wariness already in his heart rose another level. As Liang Shenglou finally began to speak slowly, Shi Xuan was already fully on guard. Even if Liang Shenglou harbored no ill intent, it was always better to be prepared.

As Liang Shenglou spoke slowly, he suddenly kicked at the fire and lunged at Shi Xuan. But the instant his foot shot out, a fist with long, slender fingers smashed viciously into his ankle. Already severely wounded, with his protective true qi virtually nonexistent, Liang Shenglou instantly felt a piercing pain in his ankle—it had been pulverized. His lunging body was also thrown off to one side. Though his mind was unclear, his experience remained. He hastily touched the ground with one foot, twisted around like a loach, and fearlessly launched both fists at Shi Xuan again.

From that punch earlier, Shi Xuan had already discovered that Liang Shenglou was gravely injured and possessed less than one-tenth of his former martial cultivation. Seeing Liang Shenglou attack again, he stepped forward steadily, gathered his qi, and unleashed Earth Dragon Shakes Ground. Descending from above, both fists struck squarely against Liang Shenglou's fists, tearing flesh open and shattering white bone.

Wracked by pain, Liang Shenglou staggered backward in madness, forgetting that his other foot was already broken. He immediately toppled to the right. Then he felt a chill in his right ribs as a long sword pierced straight through his chest. Unwillingly, he looked to the right and saw a beautiful young girl standing there with a tense expression, her long sword merely held out before her. When she saw him look over, she hurriedly dropped the sword and leaped several steps back.

Shi Xuan had only intended to subdue Liang Shenglou; he still had questions to interrogate him about. As for He Yuqing, who was holding a sword and nervously hovering at the edge of the scene, she had been entirely within his control. But when he saw Liang Shenglou fall onto the point of He Yuqing's sword, it was already too late to shout, "Show mercy!"