At that moment, it was mid-morning, and the gentle autumn sun illuminated the two-story, jade-green stone structure, bathing the ancient edifice in a halo that made it appear ethereal, almost dreamlike. The moss and weathered markings etched into the stone walls spoke volumes of the pavilion's antiquity!
Above the pavilion hung two grand, sweeping characters—Wu Ge! (Martial Pavilion!)
"Qingshan, this is the repository for the secret manuals of our Guiyuan Sect—the Wu Ge!" Zhuge Yuanhong said with a light chuckle. "When our Guiyuan Sect was first established, the Wu Ge came into being. It holds over a thousand years of history now!"
"Sect Master!"
Two disciples guarded the entrance to the Wu Ge. Upon seeing Zhuge Yuanhong, they immediately bowed in deference.
Teng Qingshan followed Zhuge Yuanhong inside. The first floor of the Wu Ge was lined with towering bookshelves, upon which rested countless volumes of secret manuals. "Just on this floor alone, there must be hundreds of manuals!" Teng Qingshan marveled inwardly. "A sect with over a millennium of history is truly remarkable."
"The first and second floors house the Human-grade and Unclassified manuals. The Earth-grade secret codices are underground; follow me." Zhuge Yuanhong stated, walking deeper among the shelves.
"Underground as well?"
Teng Qingshan hurried to keep up. In a corner of the first floor, near a window, stood a desk. On it were a wine pot, cups, and several books. A white-haired elder was deeply absorbed in reading a yellowed tome.
"Grand Master!" Zhuge Yuanhong called out.
Teng Qingshan's heart skipped a beat: The Master’s Master? Commander Ji Hong is my Master’s Second Martial Uncle! Then... this man must be Ji Hong’s Master. Ji Hong is already over a hundred years old; this elder must be over a hundred as well. However, in a sect with so many members, calculating age by seniority was often inaccurate.
In the Guiyuan Sect, men in their seventies or eighties would routinely address men in their twenties or thirties as Martial Uncle!
"Ah! Oh. Sect Master." The white-haired elder finally awoke from his concentration.
"Grand Master, Yuanhong did not bring the key to the underground secret passage. I must trouble you, Grand Master." Zhuge Yuanhong explained.
Teng Qingshan also noticed that the steps leading down to the secret passage were directly behind the white-haired elder.
"Sect Master, wait a moment." The elder immediately descended the steps, retrieved a key, and unlocked the heavy black iron door. With a resounding clank, the door swung open.
"Hmm..." Teng Qingshan glanced subtly toward the book the elder had been reading. On the open page, the top lines read: 'The second day, Zhang Ye took his refined iron strong bow and entered the mountains again. This time, Zhang Ye made no further mistakes and successfully hunted a wild boar.' Reading these lines, Teng Qingshan was momentarily bewildered. He instantly deduced—
These were historical accounts of minor events, something akin to unofficial histories.
The elder caught Teng Qingshan’s glance and grinned wryly: "Young man, you enjoy reading miscellaneous histories too? This is the unofficial history of 'Zhang Ye,' a hero from Yangzhou over a thousand years ago. Though largely fabricated, it’s quite interesting to read. If you like it, I can lend you a couple of volumes?"
"No, no need, thank you," Teng Qingshan quickly demurred.
"Qingshan, Grand Master here is the keeper of the Wu Ge. Just address him as Elder Wu." Zhuge Yuanhong smiled.
"Qingshan pays his respects to Elder Wu." Teng Qingshan bowed.
Elder Wu’s eyes lit up, and he smiled broadly: "Oh? So you are that Teng Qingshan. I heard that fellow Ji Hong stepped down from the First Commander position, and you took his place! Well, good, good... Ji Hong, too, is over a century old, clinging to the Commander post far too long. He should have retired sooner, then perhaps he wouldn't have lost an arm."
"Elder Wu, I will take Qingshan inside now." Zhuge Yuanhong interjected.
"Yes, yes. I know you find me long-winded." Elder Wu immediately buried his head back in his unofficial history novel.
Teng Qingshan was left neither laughing nor crying.
An old child. Truly an old child!
This elder, well over a hundred years old, possessed a most amusing temperament.
They descended the steps into the underground passage. It was quite dim inside. After walking several zhang (a unit of length) down the corridor, they pushed open a stone door and entered a spacious room. Two eternal lamps were lit, preventing the room from being truly dark. After entering, Zhuge Yuanhong still lit two more candles!
"Qingshan, the bookshelves on both sides here are stocked with Earth-grade secret manuals!" Zhuge Yuanhong announced.
Teng Qingshan observed that on either side of the room stood immense bookcases that almost entirely obscured the walls. They held not only bound manuals but also slabs of stone, sheets of iron, and bamboo slips.
"Most of the manuals here only detail specific moves and methods for circulating innate true essence."
"Over there, the 'Youyue Spear Canon' is the most precious codex in our Guiyuan Sect's spear arts. It contains the entire process for advancing from the initial stages to reaching the Innate 'Golden Core' realm, along with notes on the predecessors' insights." Zhuge Yuanhong pointed to a nearby shelf.
Teng Qingshan immediately looked over.
There, resting on the shelf, was a very thick stack of sheepskin, arranged in three piles.
"This is..." Teng Qingshan felt a surge of surprise.
"That sheepskin is the original manuscript of the 'Youyue Spear Canon'! It only contains detailed cultivation methods, without personal insights. That's because papermaking technology was only established a few hundred years ago. Therefore, the original texts of ancient manuals are often recorded on stone tablets, iron plates, sheepskin, bamboo slips, and similar materials. The book next to it is a transcription. Take one!" Zhuge Yuanhong instructed.
There were three transcribed volumes of the 'Youyue Spear Canon' available. Teng Qingshan noted that all three were identical. He picked one up.
"It really is thick!" Teng Qingshan casually flipped it open.
The 'Youyue Spear Canon' was created by a formidable expert named 'Wu Kefan' and is primarily divided into four sections: Post-Heaven, Innate Void Core, Innate Solid Core, and Innate Golden Core.
"You take this manual back and read it slowly. Qingshan! Remember, even among Earth-grade secret codices, the 'Youyue Spear Canon' is top-tier. You must never leak it!" Zhuge Yuanhong said sternly.
"Yes, Master." Teng Qingshan understood.
Most Earth-grade manuals only described cultivation up to the 'Innate Void Core' realm; some didn't even mention realms, focusing solely on spear techniques.
But the 'Youyue Spear Canon' covered everything from Post-Heaven all the way to 'Innate Golden Core.'
Such a manual was indeed priceless.
"With your talent, if you abandoned the spear to study the sword, three years of effort would bring your swordsmanship cultivation to match your spear skills! At that time, with the 'Guiyuan Heart Canon' as well, the difficulty of breaking through to the Innate realm would be far lower!" Zhuge Yuanhong observed Teng Qingshan. "You chose the 'Youyue Spear Canon'. If you regret it later, I cannot give you the 'Guiyuan Heart Canon' again. You must consider this carefully now."
Teng Qingshan smiled.
"Master, I will only study the spear arts," Teng Qingshan affirmed, understanding his Master's concern.
Three years? To raise his swordsmanship to his current spear level?
In three years, he might be able to push his spear techniques to an entirely new plateau.
"This path is one you have chosen yourself!" Zhuge Yuanhong’s expression turned serious. "From now on, it depends entirely on you! Also, in a few days, on the twenty-eighth of the ninth month, your Senior Brother will fight you. When that time comes... I hope you show no restraint. If you win, win cleanly and decisively!"
"Yes, Master." Teng Qingshan was slightly surprised.
His Master told him not to hold back?
"But do not be careless either. Your Senior Brother is singularly focused on cultivation. He rarely ventures out. While his fame isn't great, his actual strength is considerable," Zhuge Yuanhong concluded, blowing out the two candles. "Come, let's go out!"
Teng Qingshan followed Zhuge Yuanhong out of the Wu Ge.
Clang!
The heavy door to the underground passage sealed shut. Teng Qingshan and Zhuge Yuanhong quickly left the Wu Ge. Afterward, Teng Qingshan headed to the Black Armored Army barracks, while Zhuge Yuanhong returned to his own quarters.
**
In the evening, a cool breeze blew, scattering yellowing leaves.
Teng Qingshan sat cross-legged in the rear courtyard, his gaze fixed on the 'Youyue Spear Canon'. The book lay open on the ground, the visible page detailing exactly how to step into the Innate realm!
"According to the 'Youyue Spear Canon', the hardest part is making the 'Spirit' break through the Mud Pill Palace! My 'Spirit' has already surpassed the Mud Pill Palace, placing me at the peak of the Post-Heaven stage. I should now be able to achieve 'Spirit and Qi Harmonization'—fusing Spirit with internal energy to transform into Innate True Essence." Teng Qingshan read the contents of that page several times.
As described in the manual:
After the 'Spirit' breaks through the Mud Pill Palace, the next step is: 'Intend the Spirit to reside in the Dantian, Spirit and Qi Harmonize.' These eight simple characters!
According to the insights recorded by the three predecessors who practiced the 'Youyue Spear Canon', achieving 'Intend the Spirit to reside in the Dantian, Spirit and Qi Harmonize' is the precise moment the mind-spirit touches and fuses with the internal energy to generate the first spark of 'Innate True Essence.' The fastest of those three predecessors took only one hour. The slowest took three full days! Regardless, once the 'Spirit' has broken through the Mud Pill Palace and one reaches the Post-Heaven peak, achieving the Innate realm is not difficult. The speed of attainment likely relates to the strength of the 'Spirit'!
"Hmm? In my previous life, I could already 'Spirit' break through the Mud Pill Palace, and after cultivating for so long, my realm, I dare say, is not inferior to that of an ordinary Innate Void Core expert. With my level of 'Spirit,' it should take only an hour to generate 'Innate True Essence.' But why..."
Teng Qingshan had already spent two full hours cultivating that afternoon!
Yet, not a single trace of 'Innate True Essence' had appeared.
"What on earth is going on!"
Teng Qingshan shook his head, stood up, and tucked the manual into his robes. "I should eat first. The three predecessors, even the slowest, took three days. Right, I’ll continue cultivating tonight."
...
Teng Qingshan was not one to give up easily. However... six full days passed!
During these six days, Teng Qingshan paid no heed to the impending battle with Zang Feng. All his focus was poured into mastering the breakthrough to the Innate realm!
Teng Qingshan dedicated the vast majority of his time each day to this single pursuit, but after six consecutive days of strenuous practice, the internal energy within his Dantian still had not produced the first thread of 'Innate True Essence'! This initial spark was the most crucial; once it appeared, future transformations would accelerate!
Over the six days, his internal energy remained unchanged! Though, intermittently practicing the 'Tiger Form Divine Art' did cause his physical strength to increase steadily at a constant rate.
"The three predecessors who practiced the 'Youyue Spear Canon' took a maximum of three days to produce their first thread of Innate True Essence, the fastest in just one hour. I have spent six days, and my internal energy still shows no reaction whatsoever." Teng Qingshan was filled with doubt. "What is the exact reason? I am at the Post-Heaven peak, and my Spirit has broken through the Mud Pill Palace—all prerequisites are met! Compared to other martial artists, the only thing special about me is my excessively strong body. Could it be that my failure to reach the Innate realm is related to my body being too strong?"
Teng Qingshan pondered the underlying cause!