In the Great Land of Kyushu, reality surpassed that of his previous life. Victorious or vanquished! Teng Qingshan’s conviction deepened.
Grow stronger!
To become the master of others' fates, not the one controlled by them.
The morning after killing the Old Palace Master of the Carefree Palace.
Teng Qingshan was slowly practicing the Three-Body Stance, repetition after repetition. At this time, on the path not far from the courtyard where Teng Qingshan resided, two middle-aged men who looked remarkably alike were approaching. One, clad in a brown robe, was Pei San; the other wore a white robe, appearing slightly older, with features strikingly similar to Pei San’s.
“Third Brother,” the white-robed middle-aged man smiled, “The Hu He you mentioned to me, is he in the courtyard ahead?”
“Yes, right here,” Pei San chuckled.
As they reached the entrance of Teng Qingshan’s courtyard, Pei San called out loudly from a distance, “Hu He.” The guards at the courtyard gate dared not stop Pei San, allowing him and the other man to enter freely.
“Palace Master,” Teng Qingshan had stopped his boxing practice.
“Hmm?” Teng Qingshan looked somewhat surprised at the person beside Pei San. Earlier, sensing a Void Realm expert next to Pei San, Teng Qingshan had assumed it was another Void Realm expert from the Heavenly God Palace, merely remarking inwardly how numerous the experts of the Heavenly God Palace were.
But upon seeing him up close, the man shared an eighty percent resemblance to Pei San, only appearing slightly older.
“Hu He, allow me to introduce you,” Pei San said with a faint smile. “This is my Fifth Brother, Pei Hao. He is my biological brother, born of the same parents.”
Pei Hao, standing nearby, felt a jolt of surprise that his third brother, who appeared humble but was in fact supremely proud, would use the phrase ‘born of the same parents’—words reserved only for true confidants and those deeply cherished.
“Greetings, Brother Pei Hao,” Teng Qingshan cupped his hands in return, while inwardly marvelling—
Biological brothers?
One at the Cave Void Realm, the other a Void Realm expert? These Pei brothers were truly formidable.
“It’s a pity Elder Brother and the others have all passed. If Elder Brother, Second Brother, and Fourth Brother were still here, the five of us…” Pei San shook his head and sighed. Pei Hao beside him laughed, “Third Brother, Elder Brother and the rest all departed this world with smiles. Why dwell on it? When our time comes, won’t we also—?”
“Our time, our time, what dreary talk,” Pei San’s expression darkened.
Pei Hao paused, touching his nose, and said no more.
Since childhood, his Third Brother had been the most exceptional, the most peerlessly magnificent figure in the Pei family. Indeed, it was because of Pei San that the Pei family had become truly powerful and fearsome.
“Hu He, what were you practicing just now? I sensed a rather unique fluctuation in the Heaven and Earth spiritual energy,” Pei Hao said, quickly changing the subject.
“Just a style of boxing,” Teng Qingshan replied with a smile.
“Oh?” Pei Hao’s eyes lit up. “Practice it for me to see?”
Before Teng Qingshan could speak, Pei San scolded, “Fifth, fully fathom your own insights first. Once you grasp them, that is sufficient. Don't try to swallow more than you can chew; you still don't understand this principle?” In Pei San’s estimation, since Teng Qingshan hadn’t even reached the Great Accomplishment of the Void Realm, how profound could his boxing style truly be? He firmly believed the method he used to instruct his brother was optimal: neither forcing his brother down a specific path nor letting him wander aimlessly.
Pei Hao didn’t take offense, merely winking deliberately at Teng Qingshan.
“This Pei Hao has a touch of childish spirit,” Teng Qingshan mused with a smile.
“Hu He,” Pei San turned his attention to Teng Qingshan, smiling faintly. “As far as I know, you have insight into the Dao of Fire and the Dao of Metal. Is that correct?” In truth, Pei San had learned this information from his disciple, ‘Li Chao,’ who had met Teng Qingshan several times.
“Correct,” Teng Qingshan nodded.
“And the Dao of Water?” Pei San inquired further.
“Not yet,” Teng Qingshan answered honestly.
Pei San chuckled, “Hu He, I will guide you to a method. One that will allow you to grasp the ‘Dao of Water’ swiftly—and furthermore—one that minimizes the internal conflict between different types of Heaven and Earth power.”
“Oh?” Teng Qingshan felt a surge of curiosity. “Palace Master, please enlighten me.”
Pei San spoke clearly, word by word, as if instructing a disciple: “The Great Dao of Heaven and Earth can be divided into Life and Death! The Dao of Death is the Dao that causes all things to perish, fade, and be destroyed. The Dao of Life, from the descent of a single life to the birth of all living beings and even the genesis of the entire cosmos, is the Dao of Life.”
Teng Qingshan experienced a jolt; he had always been vague about the Dao of Life and Death.
“The Dao of Life and the Dao of Death combine to form the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth.”
“Among them, the Dao of Life is the fusion of the Dao of Wood, the Dao of Earth, and a portion of the Dao of Water.”
“And the Dao of Death is the integration of the most potent attack Daos—the Dao of Metal, the Dao of Fire, and a portion of the Dao of Water,” Pei San said, watching Teng Qingshan’s reaction.
Teng Qingshan’s heart shook; sudden enlightenment dawned.
He had long since grasped the Dao of Metal and the Dao of Fire, knowing them to be the sharpest, most powerfully offensive Daos. The legendary Dao of Death, he realized, was essentially the Dao of Destruction.
“To destroy, naturally one must use the strongest attacks.”
“The War God of Cloud Dream once said that the supreme expert ancestor of their Mu family, ‘Duanmu Yu,’ entered the Dao through the Dao of Thunder and Fire Destruction. Upon entering the Dao, he could already control fifty percent of the Heaven and Earth power,” Teng Qingshan suddenly understood. “Right, Thunder and Fire. Thunder is generated from water vapor and Metal Qi, combined with Fire… No wonder his so-called Dao of Thunder and Fire is the Dao of Destruction.”
Teng Qingshan finally understood everything.
“Hu He,” Pei San smiled gently. “Since your Dao of Metal and Dao of Fire are already achieved, with only a partial comprehension of the ‘Dao of Water’… delving into the ‘Dao of Death’ will be very simple. Once you comprehend it, you will have grasped it. Grasp the Dao of Death! Then, using the Dao of Death, you can conversely cultivate the ‘Dao of Water’ to Great Accomplishment easily!”
Teng Qingshan smiled.
Pei San’s method was to have Teng Qingshan first comprehend the Dao of Death. The Dao of Death commanded fifty percent of the Heaven and Earth power. Subtracting the forty percent already possessed by the Dao of Fire and the Dao of Metal, Teng Qingshan would effectively gain an extra ten percent of Heaven and Earth power.
Gain ten percent first.
Then, leveraging the Dao of Death, grasp the Dao of Water, gaining another ten percent.
By then—only the Dao of Wood would remain.
“Thank you, Palace Master,” Teng Qingshan said gratefully.
“Haha…” Pei San laughed.
After lingering for a while in Teng Qingshan’s residence, Pei San and Pei Hao departed together.
…
“Third Brother, why help this Hu He?” Pei Hao sounded puzzled.
“This Hu He’s progress is exceptionally fast. Perhaps in the future, he can become a stepping stone for me to achieve the Great Dao,” Pei San replied with a faint smile. “And it benefits him too, doesn’t it? What a pity… that Teng Qingshan from back then, who knows where he ran off to. With the aptitude to fight experts of the Innate Golden Core realm before the age of twenty, he would have been my optimal stepping stone.”
“Death is destruction; one punch strikes out, annihilating everything.” Teng Qingshan threw a punch, causing the space to tremble faintly, then retracted his fist to gather power again. “Life is the accumulation of all power to nurture all living beings; one stance gathers momentum, storing the full force and intent of the entire body.”
The Three-Body Stance: one stance to gather, one to strike.
Alternating between the two moves was like the cycle of life and death.
Teng Qingshan had already achieved Great Accomplishment in the Dao of Metal and the Dao of Earth, and had even created the Seventh Fist of the ‘Water Element Fist.’ At this level of attainment, comprehending the Dao of Death meant he had grasped ninety percent of it; only the final fraction required his own breakthrough and sudden realization.
“Starting from the Dao of Life and Death, achieving Great Accomplishment in the Five Elements Dao will be much faster.”
Teng Qingshan stopped, a trace of confusion on his mind. “Why is Pei San helping me so much?” Teng Qingshan knew clearly that these pointers, though seemingly simple, would leave him groping like a blind man trying to grasp the Dao of Water without guidance. Such direction was truly priceless.
Based on his past and current experiences, Teng Qingshan held one conviction: people who are overly attentive without reason are either scheming or stealing!
“He treated me with courtesy before, and now he’s instructing my cultivation?”
“Hmph, whether his intentions are good or malicious,” Teng Qingshan’s heart was as firm as bedrock. “If he treats me kindly, I will repay him in kind in the future. If he truly harbors ulterior motives… is he capable of utilizing or controlling me?” With that, Teng Qingshan submerged himself back into his boxing insights.
…
The eighth day after the death of the Old Palace Master of the Carefree Palace, which was the eighth day of the seventh lunar month.
After more than half a month of relentless assault, the last territory of Hongtian City, Hongtian Commandery, was nearly entirely occupied, with only one final city remaining—Hongtian City! Currently, the armies under the Heavenly God Palace, including those from Heavenly God Mountain, had completely blockaded Hongtian City.
On the morning of the eighth of the seventh month, outside Hongtian City.
A massive host, numbering over a million soldiers, choked the area, completely surrounding Hongtian City from all four directions.
Within the military camp of the Heavenly God Palace army, one large tent served as the residence for Teng Qingshan and Li Jun. As for the Six-Legged Saber-Toothed Tiger, it slept deep beneath the ground, several dozen Zhang away from Teng Qingshan.
“Today is the day the Hongtian City, one of the Eight Great Sects, is wiped out?” Li Jun sighed with emotion.
“Hard to say.”
Teng Qingshan smiled faintly. “The major sects like Manichaean Temple and Emperor Yu’s Gate will not let the Heavenly God Palace succeed easily. Tsk tsk, there are quite a few Void Realm experts gathered here today.”
“Brother Jing Yi,” a voice sounded near Teng Qingshan’s ear.
A streak of light shot over from the distance, landing before Teng Qingshan—it was a handsome, silver-haired man dressed in a violet robe.
“Brother Li Hang,” Teng Qingshan also stepped forward, smiling. Li Hang was the only rogue cultivator Void Realm expert who had traveled to Yicheng to see Teng Qingshan after his fame grew.
“Is this Madam, then?” Li Hang asked with a smile.
Just then—
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Three figures streaked in from afar, landing simultaneously before Teng Qingshan’s tent. Among the three, two wore dark purple robes, while the one in the golden robe had a very conspicuous scarlet mole on his brow. As the three arrived, Teng Qingshan and Li Hang immediately ceased their conversation.
“Brother Jing Yi,” one of the dark purple-robed men walked over, smiling. “It has been some time.”
“Haha, Elder Brother Ying,” Teng Qingshan laughed. This man was ‘Ying Haitong,’ a Void Realm expert who had attempted to recruit Teng Qingshan into the Ying Clan some days ago.
Teng Qingshan’s focus, however, remained on the man in the golden robe.
The man simply standing there sent a chill down Teng Qingshan’s spine; looking at him was like seeing a colossal sword piercing the heavens, yet closing his eyes brought the sensation of a ‘black hole.’ Just like Pei San.
“Brother Jing Yi, let me introduce you…” Ying Haitong was about to speak.
Suddenly—
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Pei San, wearing a light white robe, Li Chao in a black robe, and the great monk dressed in a dark crimson cassock landed simultaneously.
“Guest Elder Hu He, you have quite a good network of acquaintances,” Pei San remarked with a smile, glancing at Teng Qingshan.