“Reach the Xiantian realm within a year?” Xue Xin stared at the mysterious man in white robes before him, his heart profoundly shaken. “Xiantian experts are extremely rare. Even the second-largest sect in Yangzhou, the 'Guiyuan Sect,' is rumored to only have three or four Xiantian masters. Among all martial artists, achieving Xiantian is a one-in-ten-thousand chance. And this man says he can get me there in a year?”
Xue Xin swallowed hard, fixing his gaze on the man.
To him, the white-robed figure exuded a terrifying power.
“Stop dreaming of shortcuts. If you want me to help you reach the Xu realm, the prerequisite is that you must be able to injure me.” Teng Qingshan smiled faintly. “I’ll stand right here within three feet of you.” As he spoke, golden flames sparked at the tip of Teng Qingshan’s right foot, and he traced a circle on the ground with his toes.
“Innate True Essence?” Xue Xin’s heart hammered against his ribs.
“Go ahead and attack. If you force me out of this circle, I concede,” Teng Qingshan watched Xue Xin with a smile.
“Senior is a Xiantian expert, protected by Innate True Essence. It’s impossible for me to harm you,” Xue Xin admitted.
“I won’t use Innate True Essence to defend myself.” Teng Qingshan settled down. “Attack!”
Hearing this, Xue Xin felt a surge of secret resentment: A mere small circle, and he won't even use True Essence for protection? And he won't step out? Within this circle, dodging is impossible. If things are like this, even my blade won’t scratch him... My three years of blade practice have been wasted on a dog. Xue Xin immediately bowed respectfully. “Senior, be careful!”
With that, gripping his Zhanmadao (Horse-Slaying Blade), he stared coolly at Teng Qingshan. For a moment, it seemed as if the world contained only him and his opponent, 'Teng Qingshan.'
“A bit interesting,” Teng Qingshan observed Xue Xin closely.
“Whoosh!”
The Zhanmadao instantly transformed into a streak of cold light, as if splashing water, surging toward Teng Qingshan. But strangely, Teng Qingshan’s figure blurred and dissipated. Within the three-foot radius circle, four or five shadowy outlines of Teng Qingshan suddenly appeared, then coalesced into one, solidifying as Teng Qingshan.
“This—” Xue Xin blinked, his eyes filled with disbelief.
“Use your ultimate move,” Teng Qingshan said with a faint smile.
“Senior, this is the Raging Wind Blade, which I comprehended myself.” Xue Xin took a deep breath and lunged forward fiercely. When he reached a distance of one zhang in front of Teng Qingshan, Xue Xin’s entire body suddenly morphed into an arc-shaped phantom, spinning rapidly. Simultaneously, the Zhanmadao at his waist transformed into an arc of bright light!
Swish! Swish! Swish!
A fierce barrage of eighteen strikes encircled the area where Teng Qingshan stood, cutting madly.
“Haaah~~ Hoo~~” Xue Xin stood slightly to the side, panting heavily, sweat beading on his forehead.
“Decent blade work,” Teng Qingshan remained standing within the circle, yet the white robe was still impeccably clean, without a single scratch.
“This, how is this possible!” Xue Xin looked down at the Zhanmadao in his hand. For the past three years, this blade had saved him from disaster countless times and helped him slay enemies... He trusted this Zhanmadao above all else.
In Xue Xin’s estimation, his eighteen strikes had thoroughly scythed through the area around Teng Qingshan, absolutely sufficient to wound the opponent.
But—
As he executed the blade techniques, he felt that every strike missed its mark, striking nothing solid.
“Senior,” Xue Xin abruptly clasped his hands respectfully. “It was the junior who was too arrogant... Senior stood within this three-foot circle, yet I couldn't even land a hit. I ask Senior to overlook my previous words.”
Teng Qingshan chuckled.
If a Xu realm expert were testing a Houtian martial artist in this manner, and other Xu realm experts—like the Sect Master of the Sword Sect—were to witness it, they would probably laugh at Teng Qingshan for bullying him.
A Houtian martial artist’s blade strikes were far too slow in the eyes of a Xu realm master. A Houtian martial artist might swing, but a Xu realm expert could easily sprint several zhang away, kill someone else, and return to block the strike! This demonstrated the vast difference in speed between the Houtian and Xu realms.
It couldn't be helped; a Xu realm master could cover a mile or two with a single shift of movement.
“Your blade skills are acceptable,” Teng Qingshan said lightly.
Xue Xin’s heart trembled.
Would this mysterious powerhouse take him as a disciple? He had suffered too much over these three years; he truly longed for a powerful master to guide him.
“Tell me, how did you cultivate your strength?” Teng Qingshan asked with interest. “From my observation, you have no internal energy; you rely purely on physical strength.” As the pinnacle expert of the inner martial arts lineage, Teng Qingshan was naturally fond of martial artists who utilized pure physical power.
“Senior,” Xue Xin replied with a wry smile, “I have no master. I cultivated my strength through sheer hard work while wandering outside.”
“How did you train?” Teng Qingshan inquired curiously.
Thousands of jin of strength weren't easy to build. Even the great heroes of the Teng Family Estate couldn't achieve such might through self-training alone.
“At first, I trained randomly, but it wasn’t very effective, and I even injured myself,” Xue Xin shook his head helplessly. “Later, I started thinking. Since I use a weapon... my arm strength needs to be great. How can I increase arm strength? I observed horses, wolves, and other wild beasts. I noticed that the forelegs of these quadrupeds were often even stronger than their hind legs.”
A flicker of delight crossed Teng Qingshan’s eyes.
“I wondered if a human, with two arms and two legs, would increase their arm strength by crawling on the ground,” Xue Xin exclaimed with newfound hope. “Unexpectedly, the effect was excellent! I spent at least seven or eight hours every day crawling on the ground, and the strength in my arms continuously increased!”
“I was in a mountain range, eating wild fruits and game, and crawling every day. One day, I ate a small green fruit, and my stomach ached terribly. But after the pain subsided, I discovered my strength had surged dramatically,” Xue Xin looked at Teng Qingshan.
Teng Qingshan smiled faintly upon hearing this.
Crawling on the ground was indeed a simple and effective method. If humans started life crawling like animals, after ten or twenty years, their arm strength would not differ significantly from their leg strength. However, such training couldn't exaggerate strength to the level of several thousand jin.
This Xue Xin truly possessed a fortunate encounter.
“I will practice a set of fist techniques; watch closely,” Teng Qingshan stated solemnly.
“Yes.” Xue Xin immediately widened his eyes, terrified of missing a single move or posture from Teng Qingshan.
Teng Qingshan’s hands suddenly formed a Tiger Claw style. His eyes glared, instantly resembling a roaring tiger. The Tiger Form Fist from the Xingyi Twelve Forms was completely unleashed in Teng Qingshan’s hands. At his level of mastery, every punch seemed to contain a real tiger, and even Teng Qingshan’s gaze inspired sheer terror.
Peng!
Teng Qingshan pushed off with both hands and feet, instantly covering over ten zhang of distance, swift as thunder—Fierce Tiger Descends the Mountain!
“Hiss—”
The atmospheric energy sheared by the sharp claws agitated the surrounding air.
“Roar~~” A faint tiger’s roar could almost be heard.
A Tiger’s Tail Whip segment caused the air itself to seem like tofu being sliced in half.
Xue Xin, standing nearby, dared not blink.
“Did you see clearly?” Teng Qingshan ceased his movements.
“Mm-hmm,” Xue Xin nodded repeatedly.
“Demonstrate what you saw for me.” Teng Qingshan watched calmly. Xue Xin had always been gifted with poetry and literature, possessing an excellent mind. The Tiger Form Fist was not complicated, and Xue Xin easily memorized it... But mere memory was useless; this inner martial art was not as simple as Xue Xin imagined.
Xue Xin began demonstrating the Tiger Form Fist on an open patch of ground, executing it move by move.
Midway through the practice, Xue Xin paused, deep in thought, before resuming, constantly refining his postures. With each correction, Xue Xin’s Tiger Form Fist gradually began to take on a certain flavor. In just half an hour, relying only on a single viewing, Xue Xin managed to execute the Tiger Form Fist with considerable presence.
“Oh?” Teng Qingshan’s eyes lit up. “I didn't expect my luck to be this good! Haha... an unexpected delight, a true unexpected delight.”
He had merely chosen someone casually to deal with Qinghu Island, never expecting to find a genius in inner martial arts.
It wasn't surprising, actually. Since Xue Xin had previously crawled in the mountains, imitating the pouncing movements of wild animals, he already possessed some comprehension of the 'Intent' (Yi) in 'Xingyi' (Form-Intent). Thus, learning the Tiger Form Fist became twice the result with half the effort.
“Senior,” Xue Xin clasped his hands in shame. “This is the extent to which this junior can execute this set of techniques. Compared to what Senior just demonstrated, I am still vastly, vastly inferior.”
Teng Qingshan laughed heartily.
Vastly inferior?
He himself was a Xu realm master, a being who had touched the Dao. He was far stronger than even a Grandmaster of inner martial arts. If Xue Xin's fist techniques could reach even one-tenth of Teng Qingshan’s skill, he would already be comparable to a Xiantian master like 'Teng Shou.'
“You are quite good,” Teng Qingshan smiled at Xue Xin. “Wu Yi, from today forward, you shall be my third disciple. How about it?”
Xue Xin was overjoyed. With a peng, he knelt down, about to kowtow, when he suddenly paused.
Xue Xin’s expression became complicated.
On the lands of the Nine Provinces, the status of a master was virtually equal to that of a father! ‘A teacher for a day is a father for life’ was no mere saying, as survival on the road depended entirely on one’s skill, and the master was the one who imparted that skill.
“Senior,” Xue Xin struggled internally for a long time, staring at Teng Qingshan, and said through gritted teeth, “My real name is not ‘Wu Yi,’ but Xue Xin!”
“Xue Xin?” Teng Qingshan feigned surprise, showing shock. “The Xue Xin wanted by Qinghu Island?”
Xue Xin being wanted by the entire Qinghu Island was a major event that occurred after Teng Qingshan left the Nine Provinces; anyone with timely information knew about it.
“Yes,” Xue Xin lowered his head, sighing internally.
Perhaps... this chance to become a disciple was lost. But he didn't regret it. If his presence later brought disaster upon his master, he would feel remorse his entire life. His relatives were dead; he didn't want anyone else who was kind to him to die.
“Hahahaha...” Teng Qingshan smiled at Xue Xin, having completely accepted him in his heart.
If he had harbored an element of use in his initial approach, now he truly regarded this person with the same standing as Teng Shou and Yang Dong.
“Xue Xin, from this day forth, you are my disciple,” Teng Qingshan said calmly.
Xue Xin stared, finding it hard to believe.
“This, this... Senior, the person I offended is Qinghu Island!” Xue Xin managed to say. Qinghu Island was one of the Eight Great Sects under Heaven. In Xue Xin’s view, even a powerful Xiantian expert would hesitate to offend such a behemoth as Qinghu Island.
“Qinghu Island?” A cold glint flashed in Teng Qingshan’s eyes. “Even if the Island Master of Qinghu Island came in person, I would slay him with a single sword stroke.”
Xue Xin froze, then his body trembled faintly. He knew... he had met an extraordinary master!
“Aren't you going to formally accept the discipleship?” Teng Qingshan smiled at his disciple.
Kneeling on the ground, Xue Xin snapped back to reality, joy coloring his expression. He kowtowed repeatedly, bang! bang! bang! Three heavy knocks echoed. Xue Xin raised his head, his eyes shining with irrepressible excitement: “Disciple Xue Xin pays respects to Master!”