Chapter 14: A Moment of Realization

The night was cool as water.

In a quiet, secluded courtyard, Daoist Fufeng sat silently, sipping tea. This was top-grade immortal tea offered by the Profound Tide Sect, yet Fufeng drank it without tasting it; only a few names kept revolving in his mind. And now, there was one more name that should not have appeared in Fufeng's heart: Xiang Weiyuan.

Thinking of Xiang Weiyuan, Daoist Fufeng felt restless. He irritably placed his teacup on the side table and prepared to take a walk in the courtyard. This small Profound Tide Sect had a courtyard layout that was still quite elegant.

Just as the teacup was set down, Daoist Fufeng's body suddenly stiffened. He then slowly stood up, forcing a smile, and said, "Junior Brother Zhang! If you have any business, Junior Brother, just send word, and I would naturally pay a visit..."

Zhang Sheng stepped into the room, as if he hadn't heard Daoist Fufeng's greeting, and sat directly on the chair to the side.

At this moment, Sun Yu also appeared at the doorway, saying repeatedly, "Don't be impulsive! Everything can be discussed!"

Seeing Sun Yu's panicked appearance, Daoist Fufeng's heart skipped a beat. He stole another glance at Zhang Sheng and was shocked: "Junior Brother's Dao power has recovered?"

Zhang Sheng said calmly, "Although Senior Brother and I have had little contact, Senior Brother should have some understanding of me. I have come this time only to know one thing: how was Yuan'er's score evaluated?"

Daoist Fufeng's expression changed several times, and he inwardly groaned; it was truly a case of fearing what might come. Although he had been cultivating for much longer than Zhang Sheng, sitting next to Zhang Sheng at this moment felt like sitting beside a peerless immortal sword, making the hair all over his body stand on end. He suddenly recalled Zhang Sheng's various deeds from back then, and his heart skipped another beat.

Daoist Fufeng forced a smile: "Why is Junior Brother suddenly concerned about this? This evaluation was quite fair..."

Halfway through his words, Daoist Fufeng could not continue. He looked at the composed Zhang Sheng and Sun Yu standing to the side, his expression gradually turning serious, and asked, "Junior Brother, you must know?"

Zhang Sheng said calmly, "This is a struggle of the Dao; I will not concede a single bit!"

Daoist Fufeng sighed and recounted the evaluation process for the Dao and literary tests one by one. He admitted that he had given Xiang Weiyuan an evaluation slightly lower than the standard to prevent him from entering the top three of the Grand Void Palace, all of which he confessed truthfully.

After hearing this, Sun Yu stamped his feet and sighed: "It was mainly those two Confucian scholars who were detestable! But Senior Brother Fufeng, you... sigh!"

After listening, Zhang Sheng finally said, "Thank you, Senior Brother, for telling me the truth."

Zhang Sheng rose and went to the desk, spread out paper and brush, dipped the brush until it was saturated with ink, and then said, "For the past six years, my Dao power was sealed, which allowed me to observe the world with a calm heart. Although I had moments of realization, it is also thanks to the various factions today that I can produce this piece."

Zhang Sheng set brush to paper. Just as the tip touched the page, the sky outside suddenly turned deathly pale, and a bolt of lightning streaked across the night sky!

Zhang Sheng seemed not to notice, his brush moving like a dragon or snake. In the blink of an eye, he had written a sprawling Dharma technique. With every character he wrote, his face grew paler, until in a flash, it was as white as paper. Just halfway through, another thunderclap shook the heavens and earth, and a thick bolt of lightning fell from the sky, striking directly onto the Profound Tide Sect's mountain-protecting array. The entire Profound Tide Sect shook, and the protective array was nearly shattered by this heavenly might!

Zhang Sheng let out a grunt, and a streak of fresh blood flowed from his nose.

"Junior Brother! Your injuries..." Sun Yu was shocked and reached out to support him. But halfway through, he pulled his hand back as if electrocuted.

Zhang Sheng seemed not to hear. His brush did not stop. After an unknown amount of time, he finally pressed and hooked, finishing the last character.

A drop of fresh blood fell, blooming into a blood flower on the paper, with specks of starlight shimmering within the blood.

Seeing that Zhang Sheng had no intention of hiding it, Sun Yu and Daoist Fufeng both looked at the blood-stained technique on the paper. At a single glance, Sun Yu's eyes were stung by the four large characters at the beginning.

Heaven and Earth Madman!

Daoist Fufeng, whose cultivation was higher, continued to read. Every word and every sentence was like wild thunder and shocking lightning, fiercely striking his mind. After reading only a small portion, Daoist Fufeng couldn't help but say, "Is this a secret technique of Qi luck? But it is so overbearing and violent; who could possibly use it?"

"Yuan'er can."

Sun Yu said, "This... I'm afraid that won't work, right?"

Daoist Fufeng also said, "I have seen Xiang Weiyuan; he is indeed brilliant and talented, but I fear he is still a bit short of being able to drive such a heavenly secret technique. Junior Brother, this secret method is unprecedented, but precisely because of that, if the Qi luck is slightly insufficient or the operation slightly careless, it will be a disaster where one's body dies and the Dao vanishes!"

Zhang Sheng extended a finger, and a wisp of black Qi slowly floated up from his jade-like fingertip. As soon as this black Qi appeared, Sun Yu and Daoist Fufeng's expressions changed drastically, as if they had seen their own instantaneous demise! This feeling was so real that even with their firm Dao hearts, they subconsciously trembled.

Zhang Sheng said, "This is the thing that sealed my Dao power for six years. With it, Yuan'er will naturally be able to operate it."

Looking at the wisp of black Qi on Zhang Sheng's fingertip, Daoist Fufeng was both envious and fearful, saying, "What kind of Qi luck is this? Why have I never heard of it?"

Sun Yu, however, said, "This is a supreme treasure of heaven and earth! If Junior Brother used it yourself, your cultivation would soar within at least three years, and attaining the Dharma Form in the future would be as easy as reaching into a bag! Using it to help others operate a Qi luck secret technique is truly a waste."

"It is merely an external object; what is there to waste?" Zhang Sheng picked up the technique and vanished into the night in the blink of an eye.

Sun Yu only felt his waist go empty; the waist token that allowed free entry and exit was gone. Daoist Fufeng looked in the direction where Zhang Sheng's figure had disappeared, lost in thought, and said, "Junior Brother is truly exceptionally attentive to this disciple."

Sun Yu asked, "What does Senior Brother plan to do tomorrow?"

Daoist Fufeng smiled bitterly and said, "I was originally still hesitant, but since I have seen 'Heaven and Earth Madman,' I should naturally do my utmost tomorrow."

"Are you not afraid of those families blaming you?"

Daoist Fufeng spread his hands and said, "At worst, I'll just return the immortal silver and treasures I received, and compensate with my entire net worth; it's just losing some money. But here, one is the person who wrote 'Heaven and Earth Madman,' and the other is someone who can use 'Heaven and Earth Madman.' My future immortal path is still long; do I even need to think about how to choose?"

Sun Yu mocked, "You people of the Heavenly Mystery Hall are indeed all slippery, best at fence-sitting!"

Daoist Fufeng laughed, not feeling ashamed in the slightest, and said, "I call this acting in accordance with heaven! I can't make sense of you Feng Shui idiots from the Profound Brilliance Hall; those with different Daos do not conspire together!"

Sun Yu truly had no way to deal with Daoist Fufeng's thick skin, so he could only say, "Then I will leave tomorrow to you, Senior Brother."

Daoist Fufeng said, "Junior Brother, rest assured! The martial test relies most on the performance of the evaluation; tomorrow, just watch Senior Brother's methods!"

However, after saying this, Daoist Fufeng suddenly remembered that 'Heaven and Earth Madman' and his expression changed, saying, "Perhaps... I won't be needed tomorrow."

Sun Yu didn't know what he was thinking, but suddenly sighed and said, "What a pity!"

Daoist Fufeng felt the same, his entire body aching, and said, "It is indeed a pity!"

In the dormitory, many candidates were still rushing back and forth, forming alliances and exerting their final efforts for tomorrow's martial test.

Xiang Weiyuan, as always, kept his door tightly shut, focusing on pondering the Southern Zhu Que Unclear Technique, rising from time to time to circulate it. Although the technique stated that Qi luck secret techniques could not be used frequently, Xiang Weiyuan discovered that no matter how he used it, the invisible object in his body—the Qi luck mentioned in the secret technique—remained completely unaffected; it was the same amount as before. He didn't know what the Southern Zhu Que Unclear Technique was actually extracting. This technique specifically noted that the consumption was extremely high, and now Xiang Weiyuan was even more confused about where the consumption was going.

Just as he was practicing, Xiang Weiyuan suddenly felt something in his heart. He turned to look and saw Zhang Sheng had appeared in the room at some unknown time.

He hurriedly bowed and asked, "Teacher, why have you come?"

Zhang Sheng had actually been watching him for a while and said, "You have cultivated the Southern Zhu Que Unclear Technique well, but the situation has changed. You must now switch to cultivating this."

Zhang Sheng handed 'Heaven and Earth Madman' to Xiang Weiyuan, then a wisp of black Qi drifted from his fingertip, saying, "This wisp of heavenly Qi luck once sealed my Dao power for six years. It is fierce and overbearing, and it is most suitable for opening 'Heaven and Earth Madman.' I give it to you now. In a moment, you will experience various pains such as spiritual sense tearing, fire burning your body, and heavenly demons disturbing your heart. You must endure it."

Xiang Weiyuan nodded and said, "Disciple is not afraid of pain."

Zhang Sheng naturally knew Xiang Weiyuan's character, so he pointed at Xiang Weiyuan's brow, sending that wisp of Qi luck over.

Xiang Weiyuan only felt a chill enter his brain, then it dispersed into his limbs and bones, like a drop of water falling into the ocean, disappearing just like that.

Under Zhang Sheng's concerned gaze, Xiang Weiyuan just stood there, and nothing happened.

"Is there spiritual sense tearing?"

"Is there karmic fire burning the heart?"

"Is there confusion in your heart? Are heavenly demons dancing?"

Zhang Sheng asked several times, but Xiang Weiyuan shook his head each time.

Zhang Sheng had anticipated countless possible situations, even preparing to protect Xiang Weiyuan's Primordial Spirit at any cost in an emergency, but he never expected that nothing would happen.

But regardless, nothing happening was always a good thing. Although Zhang Sheng was suspicious, he put it aside for now and explained 'Heaven and Earth Madman' to Xiang Weiyuan.

This Qi luck secret technique fused Zhang Sheng's observations and feelings from walking the human world as a mortal for six years, and was triggered by the various injustices he encountered. It melted the ruthlessness of heaven and earth and wild violence into one furnace, requiring extremely high Qi luck and easily affecting the practitioner's temperament and mind.

Zhang Sheng explained it in detail until Xiang Weiyuan understood it all.

Xiang Weiyuan had awakened his wisdom very early. Hearing Zhang Sheng say the situation had changed but never saying what exactly had changed, he didn't ask. Until Zhang Sheng finished teaching 'Heaven and Earth Madman,' Xiang Weiyuan finally asked, "What must I do in tomorrow's martial test?"

Zhang Sheng stood with his hands behind his back and said, "Flatten them for your teacher!"

"Who are they?"

"Everyone!"

When leaving the dormitory, Zhang Sheng's face was already as pale as paper, and a faint smell of blood began to waft from his nose. Zhang Sheng had long been injured due to breaking through the barrier prematurely, and creating 'Heaven and Earth Madman' had further triggered heavenly secrets, adding injury to injury. By now, he could barely support himself. After teaching Xiang Weiyuan, Zhang Sheng immediately returned to his room to meditate. Tomorrow morning, the master and disciple would each have a great battle.

At dawn, the immortal mountain became bright again. Several ten-zhang immortal cranes circled the distant immortal peaks, and the candidates had already left the dormitory, heading to the examination hall under the urging of the Daoists.

Hundreds of cushions had already been set up in the hall, and a large snake was coiled around each of the four giant pillars at the corners, their glass-like eyes lazily watching the candidates entering the hall.

As before, all candidates saw their numbers and sat down one after another.

That elderly Daoist stood at the head, struck the small bronze bell beside him forcefully, and then said in a long voice, "The martial test, begins!"

(End of chapter)