The night was an oppressive black, and Teng Qingshan stood silently in the shadows just outside the hut of his maternal grandfather, Teng Yunlong.

Suddenly—

"Qinghu?" Teng Qingshan spotted a heavily armored man in the distance, cradling an infant. Beside him stood a young woman whose eyes were red and swollen. Qinghu was utterly changed from the man he had been four years prior.

"Father, Mother." Qinghu stopped before a dwelling next to Teng Yunlong's, and as its door opened, a couple emerged—it was Qinghu's father, Teng Yonghang, and his wife.

"Qinghu, you are going too?" Teng Yonghang asked, his voice low.

"Yes. I am the commander of the Black Armored Army; how can I retreat at a time like this?" Qinghu gently handed the baby to his wife, then with a resounding thud, he knelt heavily, striking his head against the ground three times. Looking up, he said, "Father, Mother, please forgive your unfilial son. Wife, while I am gone, you must take good care of Father and Mother."

The young woman beside him bit her lip, clutching the baby, and nodded firmly. "I understand, Brother Qinghu."

Creeeeak!

The door to Teng Yunlong's hut opened. Teng Yunlong emerged, accompanied by Yuan Lan, who was pushing his wheelchair.

"Grandfather," Qinghu turned to look at Teng Yunlong as well.

"En," Teng Yunlong looked at his grandson and laughed loudly. "Good... remember, you are the 'Blazing Spear' Teng Qinghu on the Earth Ranking. You are a man of my Teng Clan. Go... The clan will take care of everything here." His voice was ringing, yet a faint trace of tears glistened at the corners of Teng Yunlong's eyes.

Qinghu bowed deeply to Teng Yunlong, striking his head three times, then sprang up in a sudden rush.

"Wife," Qinghu briefly embraced his wife, then held the infant again, bending down to kiss the baby's small cheek. A single tear dropped, landing squarely on his child's face.

Whoosh!

He placed the baby back into his wife's arms, grasped a silver spear, and without a backward glance, strode away with long, heavy steps.

"Waaaaah..." The young woman hugged the infant and could not stop the sob that escaped her.

Teng Qingshan watched the scene silently, then looked at his father sitting immobilized in the wheelchair, and his mother pushing him.

"Father, Mother, do not worry... I will not let them die. Never."

Teng Qingshan gazed upon his parents, his form blurring until he vanished completely. If Qinghu Island and the Guiyuan Sect truly descended into open warfare, then as the commander of the Black Armored Army, Qinghu was bound to lead the charge. Even with immense strength, fighting in a sea of humanity meant certain death.

Guiyuan Sect, the training grounds.

Teng Qingshan walked through the Guiyuan Sect grounds; his eyes immediately found the drill field. This was where he, as commander of the Black Armored Army, had once led his troops.

Illuminated by torches, Black Armored Army men in heavy armor stood ready with their weapons, laughing and trading rough jests with one another.

"Hah! Look at your stupid face! Those are just the garrison guards from Qinghu Island; slaughtering them is easier than cutting melon!"

"Commander! Our entire Third Company of the First Brigade, all brothers, are assembled!" A high, ringing voice called out.

"Our Second Detachment of the First Company of the First Brigade is also here, every single brother accounted for!" Another deep voice boomed.

...

Teng Qingshan watched them silently—men who seemed carefree, yet whose eyes were mostly red and swollen. Among these Black Armored soldiers, there were many he knew... many who had called him brother.

"Our Third Company of the Second Brigade of the First Brigade, all brothers, are present."

"...All present."

Each roaring affirmation sent a strange tremor through Teng Qingshan's heart. Though he was a Void Realm expert, lofty and detached in the Void Realm, hearing the unified voices of so many Black Armored brothers shook his state of mind.

Just then—

"Old Commander."

"Master, why are you here?"

"Old Commander, leave the slaughtering of Qinghu Island to us!"

"Haha! What, you think just because I lost an arm, I can't fight?" A hearty laugh echoed.

Teng Qingshan's heart jolted. He focused on the figure in the distance—a one-armed elder. It was Ji Hong, the senior who had guided Teng Qingshan when he first joined the Black Armored Army—the First Commander. Ji Hong had relinquished his position to Teng Qingshan after losing his right arm during the struggle for the Blazing Fire Spirit Fruit.

"Commander Ji Hong..." Teng Qingshan looked at the silver-haired, one-armed elder. Ji Hong seemed even older now than he had four years ago.

Ji Hong hefted a battle saber and laughed robustly. "Qinghu Island wants to wipe out our Guiyuan Sect? They dream!"

"When I, Ji Hong, was a child, I wore split trousers and peed in the dirt right here in the Guiyuan Sect grounds."

"I learned the saber here, raised a family here, taught apprentices here... This ground belongs to our Guiyuan Sect! No one will take it!" Ji Hong’s face contorted slightly. "Anyone who tries to take it, I will kill them!"

Ji Hong bent down, scooped up a handful of soil, and a fleeting expression of tranquil peace crossed his features.

"Brother Ji, what? Weren't we also peeing and playing in the mud here, marrying and raising children here?" A group of several dozen elders appeared. Their hair was silver, but their spirits were vibrant. Each wore armor and carried either a sword or a blade. Their collective aura was even stronger than that of the Black Armored Army.

"I grew up playing right here in Longgang. If I die, this Longgang area will remain Guiyuan Sect's," an elder stated, turning to look toward the south where Longgang lay.

The disciples of the Guiyuan Sect held a deep affection for this land.

This was their root!

...

Without making a sound, Teng Qingshan disappeared, arriving at Elder Wu's residence. Only the 'Six-Legged Saber Mantis' dwelling deep underground was present; no one else was there.

Teng Qingshan sat cross-legged in the empty training yard.

"That profound attachment."

"An attachment to this land—the place where they were born, grew up, married, raised children, and aged... the willingness to die fighting for this very soil."

Influenced by the 'Teng Clan,' the 'Black Armored Army,' and the sight of those Guiyuan Sect elders, Teng Qingshan’s spirit entered a unique state... His mind naturally forged a complete connection with the earth, and a powerful, deep sense of belonging welled up within him.

A yearning for this land, this earth that felt like his very mother.

Gradually...

An earthy yellow light began to emanate from Teng Qingshan’s body, though he seemed completely unaware of it.

"Earth..." Unconsciously, Teng Qingshan felt as though he had morphed into the land itself.

He sensed the sprouting and withering of blades of grass, and their rebirth the following year...

He also felt the laughing, vibrant lives upon this earth: infants babbling their first sounds, energetic children, youths diligently practicing martial arts, young men roaming the world, middle-aged men settled with families, and the elderly playing with their grandchildren.

He felt, too, the yearning the grass, the flowers, the trees, and the humans all held for this soil.

...

Lost in this profound realization, Teng Qingshan began practicing his forms without conscious thought. The moves of the Earth Element Fist flowed one after another, yet they carried a special resonance he hadn't possessed before. The first move, the second move... After executing the eighth punch, he naturally cycled back to the first.

This loop continued ceaselessly.

He didn't know how long he remained there...

"Rumble~~~" Teng Qingshan was exerting no control over the forces of heaven and earth, yet his fists caused the ground to vibrate palpably.

Swish!

A figure landed in the courtyard—it was Zhuge Yuanhong, who stared at Teng Qingshan’s movements in shock. "Qingshan, he..." Immediately, two more figures descended—Elder Yan and Elder Ni, the enforcers of the Guiyuan Sect.

Elder Ni, whose expression was always stern, watched the practicing Teng Qingshan with surprise. "Sect Master, who is this?"

"I haven't seen it before," Elder Yan frowned as well.

"He is a guest of our Guiyuan Sect," Zhuge Yuanhong replied, watching Teng Qingshan's form intently. "Say nothing. Observe his fists."

Teng Qingshan remained immersed in his practice, utterly oblivious to the approach of others.

"Boom~~~" The earth split open, and a massive, grotesque triangular head emerged, followed by two huge, blade-like legs. The Six-Legged Saber Mantis gave the trio a cold glance before fixing its gaze entirely on Teng Qingshan’s technique. Although it specialized in the Way of Metal, having dwelled underground for so long, it possessed some comprehension of the Way of Earth.

Watching Teng Qingshan practice now, the Saber Mantis was intensely agitated.

"What is that—" Elders Ni and Yan both jumped back in alarm at the sight of the creature.

"It is the Yaoguai of our guest," Zhuge Yuanhong maintained his focus on Teng Qingshan.

...

Time passed until, finally, a faint light hinted at the break of day in the distance—it was dawn.

Teng Qingshan executed the sequence again: the first punch, the second punch... the eighth punch!

This time, after throwing the eighth, Teng Qingshan pressed his left hand down and followed fluidly with his right fist. To the view of Zhuge Yuanhong and the others, this single punch seemed to transform into the boundless, all-encompassing earth.

Silence descended.

He ceased his form, standing calmly. Zhuge Yuanhong and the two elders simply watched him.

Streaks of earthy yellow light swirled around Teng Qingshan. Gradually, he opened his eyes. A faint trace of moisture shimmered near his pupils, but his gaze was brighter than ever before. "The soil of the Earth embraces all living things upon it with tolerance, compliance, and nourishment. In nourishing all beings, she becomes their mother, and in turn, all beings feel that deep attachment to the earth that birthed and sustained them."

"The Virtue of the Earth is profound, thus it can nurture all things."

Teng Qingshan’s state of mind was unprecedentedly calm. Walking upon the ground, he could feel the very power flowing up from the earth.

And so—

Teng Qingshan had finally forged the ninth move for his Earth Element Fist. Following the success in the Way of Fire and the Way of Metal, the Way of Earth was now complete!

"No wonder I couldn't forge this ninth move for so long. I only knew the earth was heavy, pursuing only mass and strength... How could I create the ninth move and grasp the Dao of Earth, the Way of Earth, by doing that?" A sudden clarity dawned upon Teng Qingshan.

"Whoosh~~" A clamor rose from the eastern direction as well.

"En?" Zhuge Yuanhong and the two elders all turned toward the east.

"Not good, the last army has arrived," stated the grim-faced Elder Ni.

"With the three armies gathered now that it’s light, a battle is imminent," Elder Yan added soberly.

"Senior Jing Yi, we will head to the city walls first," Zhuge Yuanhong said to Teng Qingshan.

"Jing Yi?"

Elders Yan and Ni exchanged looks of astonishment, beaming with pleasure.

Teng Qingshan simply spoke, "You all go to the wall first. I will be there shortly!"

For more novels, visit storyread.net.