Chapter 219

Jian Jiu Huang stared blankly at the charred skull on the ground, all the various emotions in his eyes turning into unspeakable hatred.

He glared angrily:

"Your martial arts are not weaker than those of a Heavenly Phenomenon realm warrior, and borrowing the power of heaven and earth through law is something I've never heard of, yet you massacred a person who knows no martial arts."

Zhuang Buran interrupted in a calm voice:

"I am not as cruel as you; you kept eating my dog bite after bite, looking completely satisfied and content."

"It was just a beast!" Jian Jiu Huang growled lowly.

The grey-clothed hemp-shirt youth's tone remained unchanged:

"Funny, I also slaughtered a beast, so where does the talk of cruelty come from."

He paused, then continued:

"To bring about the present situation, only you can be blamed; you insisted on pretending to be a clueless old servant, even enjoying leading him to do petty theft and chicken-stealing, lowly deeds; otherwise, how could you have provoked me."

Zhuang Buran made a look of sudden, inexplicable realization:

"Your brain was never any good; otherwise you wouldn't be selling your life for an enemy, while Xu Fengnian, from childhood, has had clothes handed to him and food brought to his mouth; when he goes out, he naturally has to resort to trickery and deceit."

"So, it was only fitting that you would encounter this calamity."

Having said that, he turned and left.

Three days later, inside a small courtyard in the narrow lane.

The grey-clothed hemp-shirt youth sat somewhat lazily in a chair, while Wen Hua sat cross-legged beside him, practicing breath cultivation.

After about the time it takes to burn two incense sticks, he slowly opened his eyes, and a sharp gleam flashed.

"Xiao Ran, what exactly is the martial art you taught me? I feel I change every day; with a lift of the hand, a raise of the foot, I only feel strength arising from my body, able to leap two or three zhang high."

"You don't think I'm a reincarnated immortal, so the martial art I teach you is naturally an immortal method." The grey-clothed hemp-shirt youth said leisurely.

"Others who practice martial arts must train in the coldest winter days and the hottest summer periods, but you, cultivating immortality, ought to progress step by step; then, without needing several years, you can gain the ability to fly through heaven and earth."

"Truly an immortal method!" Wen Hua exclaimed, his face full of excitement.

"I never imagined that before I had truly roamed the jianghu, I would already begin cultivating immortality, and in the future I could even fly through heaven and earth."

He looked eagerly at the grey-clothed hemp-shirt youth.

"How long must I cultivate before I can fly?"

Zhuang Buran glanced at him:

"Three years."

Wen Hua's expression grew even more excited, and he pressed further:

"What if I double my bitter cultivation?"

The grey-clothed hemp-shirt youth spat out two words:

"Ten years."

Wen Hua was stunned, and couldn't help but ask:

"What if I cultivate day and night without rest?"

Zhuang Buran said lightly:

"A sixty-year cycle."

"What kind of immortal method is this, that the harder you train, the more you lose out?"

"In cultivating immortality, what matters is aptitude and comprehension; if diligent hard work were effective, immortals would be everywhere."

The grey-clothed hemp-shirt youth shook his head:

"In cultivation, the four words 'heaven rewards diligence' are most to be avoided; take for example the water-carrier menial workers of Wudang Mountain in the jianghu: they chop firewood at dawn, sweep the mountain gate at midnight, and after thirty years of hard training they cannot earn even half a diploma, while the junior disciple of Wudang Sect's headmaster Wang Chonglou, Hong Washeng..."

"... who only loves herding cattle and reading, never cultivates, each day rides a blue ox backward to tour Wudang's seventy-two peaks, yet says he will not descend the mountain unless he becomes the number one under heaven."

"... yet he is still held in high hope, said to be capable of shouldering both the martial way and the heavenly way."

Wen Hua clicked his tongue in amazement:

"Isn't he just like you, a reincarnated immortal, able to suddenly comprehend and cultivate great divine powers!"

"Just a fake Daoist, not worth being called an immortal." Zhuang Buran laughed.

"If you say he's an immortal, I think I could be the ancestor of immortals."

Wen Hua followed with a laugh:

"Your arrogance knows no bounds; since you are the ancestor of immortals, then I, as a brother of a reincarnated immortal, becoming the future number one under heaven should be a matter of course."

Having said that, he asked somewhat curiously:

"How exactly are the martial arts realms of the world divided?"

Zhuang Buran said unhurriedly:

"The most common on the jianghu are warriors of the ninth to third rank; these warriors are mainly graded by how many layers of armor they can pierce: for example, wounding but not piercing is lower third rank, piercing six layers or less is middle third rank, piercing eight or nine layers is upper third rank."

"Those who can pierce more than ten layers of armor are second-rank minor masters; if they enlist in the army, they can at least become a general, which is also the limit ordinary warriors can reach; without some special opportunity, they will stop there for their whole lives."

"The first rank is divided into the Diamond Realm, the Profound Mystery Realm, the Heavenly Phenomenon Realm, and the Earthly Immortal Realm; jianghu warriors cultivate progressively, tempering their bodies in the Diamond Realm to make their physiques as hard as diamond."

"In the Profound Mystery Realm, one cultivates mental techniques, gaining the ability to foresee the unknown and anticipate the enemy, and can also comprehend various profound secret arts."

"In the Heavenly Phenomenon Realm, one cultivates heaven-man resonance, harmonizing with heaven and earth, achieving the ability to borrow the power of heaven and earth through law, thus being able to summon wind and rain, command thunder and lightning; after completing these three realms, the next step is the Earthly Immortal Realm."

"The Confucian, Buddhist, and Daoist schools each study deeply in the Diamond, Profound Mystery, and Heavenly Phenomenon realms; upon entering these three realms, further advancement leads directly into the Earthly Immortal Realm."

"Moreover, because the three schools each cultivate only one realm, while jianghu warriors cultivate all three realms together, they are mostly no match for them."

"For example, the lord of Martial Emperor City, Wang Xianzhi, progressed sequentially through the four realms of the first rank and thus became the number one person under heaven."

Wen Hua, having heard this, couldn't help but ask:

"Then what realm are you in?"

The grey-clothed hemp-shirt youth smiled and said:

An ordinary person who has never practiced martial arts.

"What?" Wen Hua spoke while gesturing with both hands:

"You previously had words that became law, summoning a flaming dragon several zhang long, and your complexion has been improving day by day, as if you were reborn."

"Your skin is no longer the rough, dark complexion of before; smooth as jade, like the finest porcelain, like glittering stars in the night sky."

He said with an indescribable expression:

"You have undergone such an earth-shaking change; how could you still be an ordinary person?"

"I have penetrated the heavenly Dao, naturally knowing some divine abilities; what's strange about that?" Zhuang Buran said calmly.

Wen Hua felt speechless, then asked again:

"Then can those divine abilities of yours compete with the so-called earthly immortal?"

"I haven't compared, who would know?" The gray-clad hemp-shirt youth said leisurely:

"But speaking of which, although I have just understood my true self and returned to the mundane world, in the eyes of martial practitioners my strength is roughly at the celestial phenomena realm, but as a true immortal, I can kill earth immortals with celestial phenomena; that shouldn't be excessive, right?"

After hearing this, Wen Hua was completely speechless; it turned out that this ordinary person who had never practiced martial arts could actually contend with an earthly immortal.

Zhuang Buran suddenly spoke:

"What I teach you, if you achieve something, is enough to make you an invincible sword god under heaven; leave now."

"So sudden?" Wen Hua said, caught off guard.

"I like tranquility, while you have your own martial world dream." Zhuang Buran gave him a sideways glance:

"Moreover, I dislike you being a burden."

Wen Hua didn't understand:

"What do you mean?"

"The dog-thieving bandits look like beggars, but are actually the heir of the King of North Liang; soon there will be endless masters, assassins, and warriors coming to kill me; you say you're not a burden?"

Wen Hua's pupils contracted, then he said immediately:

"I also don't know how strong an earthly immortal is, but I know that two fists can't fight four hands, a hero can't withstand many people, a fierce tiger fears a pack of wolves."

"Moreover, you said you just understood your true self and returned to the mundane world; clearly now is not your prime. If you don't leave with me, wait until you return to your peak, then you can naturally regain your standing."

The gray-clad hemp-shirt youth raised his eyes to gaze at the white clouds above, and softly chanted:

"Snow weighs down the branches low, though low it does not touch the mud; when the red sun rises one morning, it still stands level with the heavens."

He casually rose and walked toward the inner room:

"In this world, if I call myself invincible, who dares say not undefeated? Go away."

(End of chapter)