Chapter 55

Profound Heaven Sect, outer sect martial arts arena.

The sun was getting higher, and there were many figures on the wide martial arts arena.

The outer sect disciples were divided into three formations—Ming Force, Hidden Force, and Transformation of Force—according to their cultivation bases, each gathering around the preaching deacon to listen to guidance.

In the Hidden Force team, a slender figure stood quietly in the front row of the crowd.

She was wearing the uniform of the outer sect disciples of the Profound Heaven Sect, but the plain robes could not hide her innate cold temperament.

The young girl had picturesque features, an exquisite face, and skin so fair it was almost transparent; a pair of clear, cold eyes looked intently at the preaching deacon in front, her expression serious and calm.

The sunlight spilled onto her, as if plating her with a layer of faint, clear radiance.

This girl was none other than Liu Yiyi.

The gazes of many male disciples around her frequently fell on her.

Some peeked secretly, some took the opportunity to adjust their standing positions to get closer, and some even deliberately discussed fist techniques loudly with their fellow disciples nearby, attempting to attract her attention.

But no matter how hot those gazes were or how clumsy those methods were, the young girl always had a cold expression and looked straight ahead, as if everything around her was separated by an invisible wall of ice.

Several male disciples who tried to step forward to strike up a conversation were forced back by that "no strangers allowed" aura as soon as they got within three steps, and they shrank back sheepishly.

In the distance, behind an ancient pine at the edge of the martial arts arena, a tall, thin figure stood quietly.

He was wearing deacon robes, his hair was gray, and his face was cold and hard, like a withered tree merged with the ancient pine; his aura was restrained to the extreme, and even the disciples passing by nearby did not notice his existence.

Jiang Ye's gaze passed through the crowd and fell on that cold figure, a trace of relief flashing in his aged eyes.

"Looks like she's adapting well."

He looked at Liu Yiyi's serious listening posture and nodded slightly.

The girl had a cold personality and was not good at socializing; he had originally worried that she would be ostracized in the outer sect.

Now it seemed that her innate coldness had instead become a natural protective barrier, isolating those with ulterior motives from within three steps.

His gaze slowly swept over those male disciples who kept looking back, and deep in his aged eyes, a trace of hidden cold light flashed.

Young people admiring the opposite sex is a common human emotion.

As long as these people kept their sense of propriety, he wouldn't interfere much.

But if someone didn't know how to advance or retreat and wanted to pester the girl......

His thin, withered fingers tucked in his sleeves twisted slightly.

He wouldn't mind using some means to let those blind things know that some people are not for them to touch.

He just stood there quietly, like an invisible shadow, observing in secret for a long time.

Only after confirming that those male disciples were just watching from afar and no one dared to truly step forward to pester her did the coldness in his eyes fade slightly.

After watching for a while longer, seeing that Liu Yiyi was still listening intently without any abnormalities, he finally turned around slowly and disappeared into the shadows of the ancient pine silently.

Jiang Ye's days on the mountain were solid and regular.

In the morning, he practiced the Five Animals Fist in front of the wooden house, using the health-preserving fist technique to nourish his Qi and blood and consolidate his foundation.

After finishing the fist technique, he would go to the herb garden to pick a few of the freshest Tiankui grass leaves and begin his daily "pet taming homework".

Afterward, he would go down the mountain to take a look from afar near the outer sect martial arts arena.

That girl Liu Yiyi still listened to lectures on time every day, practiced martial arts alone, and was as cold as ever, isolating all those who tried to strike up a conversation within three steps.

Confirming that she was all right, he would return to the peak quietly, never appearing to disturb her.

In the afternoon, that little fatty Lü Ming would occasionally come to visit, and Chen Lili would sometimes follow along.

Jiang Ye was happy to learn the latest news in the sect from these two chatterboxes.

The three of them chatted lively, which also diluted much of the loneliness of living alone.

As for the evening, it was the same as usual: patrolling the herb garden and hunting fire centipedes to practice his knife skills.

Time passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye, fifteen days had passed.

On this day, the sky was slightly bright.

Jiang Ye stood at the door of the wooden house as usual, practicing the Five Animals Fist slowly.

His movements were slower than usual, so slow that they were almost stagnant, but between every move, there was a sense of heavy condensation like a mountain rain about to come.

Suddenly—

He opened his eyes abruptly, essence light shooting out, and the momentum on his body erupted suddenly like a volcano that had been suppressed for thousands of years.

Boom!!!

He slapped out with one palm.

This palm looked unremarkable, but where the palm wind reached, it was like a gale rising from the flat ground, carrying the momentum of destroying everything, slamming fiercely onto the lush green grass in front of him.

Pfft!!!

A muffled sound.

The half-person-high grass was actually ground into powder by the force of this palm.

Countless grass clippings exploded in the air, turning into a green dust, falling down with a rustle.

On the ground, a shallow palm print was clearly imprinted, about half an inch deep, with edges as smooth as a mirror.

The gale gradually subsided, and the grass clippings fell.

Jiang Ye slowly retracted his palm, feeling the increasingly thick and refined force in his body surging and flowing in his meridians.

"Finally broken through!"

He opened his eyes slowly, his aged eyes full of essence.

Transformation of Force Mid-Realm!

His strength had leaped to another level.

At this moment.

Chirp!!!

A sharp eagle cry suddenly cut through the sky.

On the cliff in the distance, a gray eagle was startled by the commotion of the palm just now, flapping its wings and flying away in a panic.

Its speed was astonishing; with one flap of its wings, it had already swept into the high sky, turning into a tiny black dot between the blue sky and white clouds.

"Hmm?!"

Jiang Ye looked up, watching the posture of the gray eagle soaring in the sky, a flash of realization in his aged eyes.

In the Five Animals Fist, the bird form ranks fifth and is also the most difficult form to comprehend.

He had pondered it day and night, but always felt something was missing.

At this moment, looking at the gray eagle soaring in the nine heavens, he suddenly realized—

The fist manual says: "The bird form is the ultimate in lightness and agility. Soaring in the nine heavens, landing on a single leaf; if the body is not light, it cannot be done, and if the intent is not agile, it cannot be reached."

He had always been pursuing the lightness of "landing on a single leaf" but had ignored the freedom of "soaring in the nine heavens".

He closed his eyes, his mind immersed in it.

In a trance, he seemed to no longer stand on this piece of land, but turned into a gray eagle, soaring in the nine heavens.

The wind swept under his wings, supporting him as he slowly rose, and the clouds drifted past his side, within reach.

He vibrated his wings, his figure suddenly rising; he folded his wings, and he swooped down like a meteor; he spread his wings, and he could borrow the airflow to glide for dozens of miles.

The soaring of a bird does not rely on the strength of the wings, but on the momentum of the wind!

A realization that seemed to originate from ancient times split his sea of consciousness like lightning.

【Bird form is not just the skill of pouncing, but the ability to ride the wind!】

【The body is as light as a feather, the wind follows when the intent moves, borrowing momentum to soar; even without wings, one can soar in the air, walk on eaves and walls, step on the air, and glide like a swallow!】

【Your comprehension is superb; you have comprehended the true meaning of the bird form from form to spirit—Riding the Wind and Soaring in the Sky!】

The system's prompt tone was actually carrying a bit of ethereal distance at this moment.

Jiang Ye opened his eyes abruptly.

He was still standing in place, but the feeling of the whole person was completely different.

He looked down at his hands, then looked up at the gray eagle that had already gone far away in the sky, the corners of his mouth rising slightly.

"Riding the Wind and Soaring in the Sky..."

Jiang Ye jumped lightly.

This jump was different from any jump he had made in the past.

He didn't use any force to kick off, just a slight movement of his intent, and his body left the ground lightly as if it had lost its weight.

The height of this jump far exceeded what he could do on weekdays—it was three zhang high!

When he reached the highest point, he should have fallen.

But his intent moved again, and he actually paused in mid-air, as if an invisible hand was supporting him.

He stepped on the air with his left foot; although there was nothing under his feet, it felt as if he were stepping on solid ground, and his figure rose several feet higher again.

"Is this stepping on the air?!"

A flash of irrepressible surprise flashed in his eyes.

This feeling was too wonderful, too incredible.

He clearly wasn't stepping on any solid object, yet he could borrow force to rise again, as if the whole sky was his stage.

He took a deep breath, suppressed the shock in his heart, turned his body abruptly in mid-air, and glided toward the other end of the herb garden.

His arms spread slightly, like the wings of a flying bird, borrowing the power of the mountain wind, gliding silently over a distance of more than ten 33-meter units, and landing lightly on a Tiankui grass.

The grass leaf didn't even bend a fraction!

He stood on the grass leaf, his figure swaying gently with the breeze, but he was steady, like a bird perched on a branch.

"What a 'Riding the Wind and Soaring in the Sky'!"

Jiang Ye couldn't help but praise in a low voice, the arc of his mouth getting higher and higher, and finally, he couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Flying!

How many people dream of this ability?

Martial artists practicing movement techniques can at most walk on eaves and walls and be as light as a swallow.

Embracing the Pill Realm experts possess True Qi, but they can only jump higher and land lighter.

They can jump several zhang with True Qi, can walk on flat ground on cliffs, and can have movement techniques as fast as ghosts, but they can never get rid of the shackles of the earth and cannot truly "fly".

And he, Jiang Ye, a seventy-year-old gatekeeper, an "ordinary deacon" who had just stepped into the Transformation of Force Mid-Realm.

He could fly.

From this moment on, he could be considered to have a true trump card for saving his life.

Although this prefecture city is big, if he wants to leave, who can stop him? Who can chase him? Who can do anything to him?

The more he thought, the happier he became, laughing more and more freely.

After a long time, the laughter gradually subsided.

He didn't continue to try.

There were many eyes and ears in the Profound Heaven Sect; if someone saw him flying......

Everyone else can't fly, but you can?

Then the problem would be big!

Jiang Ye was in a great mood, picked a few Tiankui grass leaves in the herb garden, opened the jade box he carried with him, and wanted to feed the fire centipede.

After more than ten days of tempering, the fire centipede inside the jade box had become smart; it didn't rush out the first time, and those pitch-black compound eyes were sizing up Jiang Ye.

It was observing Jiang Ye's attitude.

Jiang Ye handed the leaf to the mouth of the box, looking at it with a half-smile: "Eat."

Hiss~~~

After confirming that Jiang Ye wasn't teasing it, the fire centipede finally moved; it carefully poked its body forward, suddenly opened its ferocious mouthparts with two pairs of mandibles, bit the leaf, and began to swallow it in large mouthfuls.

It ate extremely fast, as if afraid that the leaf would disappear in the next second, its small body trembling slightly with the swallowing, making a fine chewing sound.

Jiang Ye looked at its wolfing-down appearance, a trace of satisfaction flashing in his aged eyes.

"Hmm, this little guy has been tempered enough; it can be made to recognize its master with secret techniques."

He nodded secretly in his heart.

A beast is a beast after all.

Poisonous insects cannot be tamed by feeding.

Even if you use force to make it submit temporarily, you never know when it will bite you back.

Therefore, it must be made to recognize its master with secret techniques before it can be driven to fight enemies.

The "Poison Taming Scripture" records that after taming a poisonous insect, one needs to use Mind-Confusing Grass mixed with the master's blood to feed it; feeding it for seven consecutive days will establish a trace of mental connection between the person and the insect.

Only then will the poisonous insect truly obey the master's command, like an arm directing a finger, following in life and death.

"Mind-Confusing Grass..."

Jiang Ye recited this name silently in his heart.

This herb is not rare and can be bought in ordinary pharmacies.

Just right, go down the mountain today and buy it on the way.

And also... go see Liu Qingshi and the others.