Chapter 275: Commanding, the Rift-Sea Profound Whale (Part 2)

The sky?

The scholar blinked slightly, and Li Yuan also looked in the direction he pointed, seeing only the night sky, four bright moons hanging high, and stars scattered like dust.

What kind of question is this?

Li Yuan frowned slightly; he felt this time was different from the last, yet he could not see where the difference lay.

"The Great Moon, the stars."

The scholar scratched his head, seemingly long accustomed to the Old Master's inquiries, and answered in a rigid, formal manner.

"What do you think the Great Moon and the stars are?"

The Old Master asked again.

"The Three Lights are the essence of Yin and Yang; the Great Sun's brilliance is self-generated, thus called the Great Yang; the Moon is formed from Yin Qi, its light originating from the Great Sun, thus called the Great Yin."

The scholar replied respectfully.

While the master and disciple exchanged questions and answers, the classroom had already emptied; the other scholars seemed to have no objection to the Old Master giving private lessons.

"The Great Yin, the Great Yang."

Li Yuan glanced at the youth; this was a very standard answer.

Over these years, he had read much and understood something of the Three Lights: the Sun, Moon, and stars are the Three Lights; this is the common understanding of celestial bodies in this era.

That is, all things are transformed from Qi; all light comes from the flow of Qi mechanisms; turbid Qi sinks to become the earth, while clear Qi rises to become the sun, moon, and stars.

Simple, crude, unadorned.

The Old Master gave no opinion and asked again:

"Where is the Great Sun?"

The scholar answered: "When Yin is prosperous and Yang declines, the moon rises and the sun sets; this is the principle of the Yin-Yang cycle."

"Is this your answer?"

The Old Master gave no opinion; seeing the scholar's puzzled look, he shook his head, paced to the window, gazed at the stars and moon from afar, and wore a subtle expression:

"Have you ever considered that perhaps the earth beneath our feet is also a Great Moon, or even a star?"

"?! "

The scholar looked up, and Li Yuan also turned his gaze; both were somewhat surprised.

Good heavens?

Li Yuan suddenly became alert, sizing up the Old Master from head to toe; upon this scrutiny, a Solemn feeling immediately arose in his heart.

Before, he had clearly seen the Old Master's exquisite control of True Qi, yet upon close inspection, he discovered not a single trace of Wu Gong on the Old Master's person.

"This, how is this possible?"

The scholar was somewhat wide-eyed.

"Perhaps?"

The Old Master smiled, asked no more, and instead said:

"Do you know why you cannot learn martial arts?"

"Ah? They all say my bone structure is extremely poor... Master, do you perhaps have a method?"

The scholar shook his head, yet a few traces of joy inevitably welled up on his face; clearly, he possessed little guile.

"I once heard that when you were born, a red light accompanied you, illuminating the entire room?"

The Old Master asked again.

The scholar scratched his head: "This, this is what my mother said; I truly do not know..."

A red light accompanied you?

As the master and disciple exchanged questions and answers, doubt flashed through Li Yuan's heart; why did this sound so familiar?

"Your bone structure is actually very good, or rather, extremely good."

Li Yuan leaned very close; he could sense that this Old Master was clearly concealing much.

"Ah?"

The scholar was stunned.

"What is talent? And what is bone structure?"

The Old Master asked and answered himself: "I believe that form is bone structure; humans have a thousand kinds, and forms number in the myriad; this is human endowment, that is, the external manifestation of Essence, Qi, and Spirit!"

"The superiority or inferiority of bone structure lies in the form possessed by the body; inferior bone structure often has only a flawed form; medium bone structure may have one form; superior bone structure often has two forms..."

The Old Master, fond of teaching, began to explain bone structure.

"Above that, six is the Minor Dragon, nine is the Dragon, thirteen is the Great Dragon; furthermore, all forms are divided into Mortal and Spiritual..."

The scholar listened with great interest, while Li Yuan felt somewhat bored; he had heard similar words many times, but in the next instant, his expression changed.

"You, you are different from most people; you, you are a freak."

A strange look flashed across the Old Master's face, Yu Yu Xuanji he reined it in:

"You, since birth have been protected by the Sun God; you possess no Mortal or Spiritual form, yet you are born with the form of Heaven and Earth, and moreover, it is the Sun Form, a rarity since ancient times!"

Sun Form?!

The scholar was bewildered and confused.

Li Yuan, however, stared at him fixedly, a towering wave surging in his heart:

"Great Fortune Emperor Pang Pang Wenlong?!"

What this Old Master said bore far too great a resemblance to what was recorded in the Annals of the Great Fortune Emperor!

"But this, how is this possible?"

The Heavenly Sound heard this time actually came from over a thousand years ago?!

Li Yuan fell into shock.

The master and disciple exchanged questions and answers as they spoke.

"Your body bears the form of Heaven and Earth; this is the reason you cannot master martial arts, yet it is also your greatest fortune."

When Li Yuan came to his senses, the old master spoke softly:

"I will teach you a method. Cultivate according to it, endure daily hardship, and in fifty years, you may transform the sun into form and achieve perfect mastery of this divine art!"

Everything matched up!

Li Yuan felt his teeth even ache; he had actually heard a voice from over a thousand years ago?!

The old master pulled out a secret manual:

"This method is named Bai Shen Fa."

Bai Shen Fa?!

Crack!

Just as the shock in Li Yuan's heart flashed through, the academy and the scene before his eyes cracked apart, like a bronze mirror shattered on the ground.

"Damn it!"

Seeing the secret manual within arm's reach, Li Yuan was truly frustrated, but Pang Pang Wenlong clutched it tightly, clearly having no intention of opening it, and instead bowed and retreated.

'You should at least open it and take a look!'

Li Yuan sighed as this scene completely shattered.

In the final instant, he saw only the old master standing with hands behind his back, gazing at the bright moon in the night sky, his eyes welling with a light that made Li Yuan's heart race:

"The Eight Directions Temple..."

Hum!

Inside the room, Li Yuan suddenly opened his eyes. The little tiger cub on the windowsill, as if startled, had all its fur standing on end:

"Mrr?"

Li Yuan's expression was dazed; he sensed the Wooden Talisman, and a voice sounded in his ear:

【Before the Great Yun established the nation, the Taizu Pang Pang Wenlong sought learning throughout the world and once received guidance from immortals and gods, learning the Bai Shen Fa...】

【An old man who called himself "Long Xing" constantly gazed at the starry sky, suspecting that beyond the sun, moon, and stars in the heavens, perhaps beneath his feet, there were also...】

【He pursued the "Eight Directions Temple," yet he did not know that when that unknowable place reappeared, it would be fifteen hundred years later...】

【Legend has it that all methods originate from the Eight Directions Temple...】

This time, the heavenly voice he heard was even more complex than the first; Li Yuan struggled for a while before his eyelids drooped, and he fell asleep in one second.

"Mrr?"

The little tiger cub quietly approached the bedside, looked at the sleeping Li Yuan, and fell into deep thought.

Early the next morning, Li Yuan woke from his dream, feeling as if his head would split apart, like being hungover for three days and three nights after a heavy drunk, with his temples throbbing "thump-thump."

"Pang Pang Wenlong, Long Xing, Eight Directions Temple..."

Li Yuan quickly swallowed a Spirit-Conserving Little Return Pill, sat cross-legged in meditation, and only after a while did he recover, the sights and sounds of the previous night surfacing in his mind.

He got up, took out paper and brush, and recorded what he had seen and heard last night in the Sound-Listening Ledger.

"The Palm Sound Talisman can actually hear voices from over a thousand years ago?"

This shocked Li Yuan far more than seeing Pang Pang Wenlong; after recalling the event several times and confirming nothing was missed, he began to analyze what he had witnessed yesterday in his mind.

The Annals of the Taizu record that the Taizu Pang Pang Wenlong entered the Imperial Academy of the previous dynasty to study in his youth, but was shunned by his teachers due to his poor spiritual roots.

Fortunately, he received guidance from immortals and gods, returned to Mingpo to cultivate in seclusion for fifty years, and only emerged when the world was in turmoil; by then, he was already over seventy years old.

"... And there is the Bai Shen Fa; everything matches up perfectly."

Li Yuan remembered Pang Pang Wenlong vividly, not only for his terrifying military achievements but also because this man lived long enough; historical records state,

this Taizu outlived eight generations of his own descendants...

"And that Eight Directions Temple; 'all methods originate from the Eight Directions Temple'—what a grand claim! What kind of thing could be worth the pursuit of 'immortals and gods'?"

Remains of the ancients?

A cave dwelling of immortals?

It couldn't possibly be a prehistoric civilization, could it?

"Eight Directions Temple, Eight Directions Tower; if there is no connection between them, I would never believe it even if you beat me to death. Could the Star-Picking Tower also be pursuing this Eight Directions Temple?"

Li Yuan's imagination ran wild, unable to hide his agitation; he suddenly felt that the waters of this world were deeper than imagined.

After a while, the medicinal power of the Spirit-Conserving Little Return Pill was digested, Li Yuan's spirit recovered somewhat, and only then did he get up and normally practice a few sets of stance training.

Having already forged the Supreme Autumn Water Sword that Xin Xin Wenhua requested, he had no desire to go out at all, simply waiting for Liu Zheng to deliver the final batch of iron hammers.

"By the way, the Palm Sound Talisman has not yet advanced."

Li Yuan remembered the important matter, shifted his mind, and the roaring sound appeared again.

Not long after, he rubbed his temples, sensed slightly, and found the Palm Sound Talisman had already advanced three tiers:

【Tier Three Palm Sound Talisman】

【Number of Heavenly Voices Audible: Once every two and a half years (Available)】

【Unlocked: Sound-Listening Talisman (Tier Three)】

【Listen to Tier Three sounds two hundred times to advance to Tier Four】

"Two and a half years, hmm, the cooldown has reset."

Li Yuan nodded inwardly; his interest in listening to heavenly voices suddenly surged.

However, since his current state was not good, he naturally did not wish to use this opportunity.

"The Third-Rank Palm Sound Talisman, in theory, allows one unit of Incense to unleash effects equivalent to the earliest Third-Rank stage."

Letting out a long sigh, Li Yuan sat cross-legged in meditation, took a pill, and lit the Spirit-Pointing Incense to restore his consumed mental energy.

"Hoo!"

After a long while, Li Yuan lifted his eyelids, frowned slightly, and rose to leave the room.

Almost as soon as he opened the courtyard gate, Lin Tingfeng, his face covered in matted beard like straw, arrived at the doorway.

"Patriarch Lin."

Li Yuan cupped his hands in greeting.

"I heard Senior Brother Li forged an exquisite Autumn Water Sword yesterday?"

Lin Tingfeng hadn't even entered the gate; he seemed to have been holding back his words for a long time.

"It has only been tempered with fire; the subsequent polishing is still lacking."

Li Yuan nodded and invited him inside.

"Remarkable."

Lin Tingfeng was deeply moved.

Within the Dragon-Tiger Temple, there were no shortage of geniuses; he had witnessed the peerless genius Long Long Xinglie with his own eyes back then, but a prodigy in weapon forging, he had truly never seen before.

He hadn't thought Li Yuan couldn't forge an exquisite famous artifact, but succeeding on the very first attempt was somewhat shocking to the world.

"Just luck."

Daoist Li was very humble and in a good mood.

He held no grudges, but he had not forgotten the several times he had visited Lin Tingfeng only to be turned away at the door.

"The Divine Weapon Valley truly lives up to being the great weapon-forging sect of our Mount Hengshan Dao; it indeed possesses unique strengths."

Lin Tingfeng sighed with emotion; he did not stay, merely inviting Li Yuan to exchange insights at his Patriarch's hall later, then rose to take his leave, never having stepped inside the door the entire time.

"That makes sense; although the Dragon-Tiger Temple has had divine craftsmen, most were recruited from the martial world, and their own weapon-forging arts are not considered top-tier."

Li Yuan pondered, feeling he might have overestimated the weapon-forging capabilities of the Pure Gang Patriarch Hall.

Large scale and high assembly-line output do not mean the upper limit is also high; at the very least, it is not as high as that of the Divine Weapon Valley.

"This is good news."

Having understood this point, Daoist Li began to formulate some plans.

As a direct disciple of the Great Dragon Gate Master and a recognized rising star of the sect by the Ancestral Master, he faced no danger of a tall tree standing out in the forest; at least, not regarding weapon-forging arts.

'Hmm... as long as I don't surpass Eldest Senior Brother Long.'

Li Yuan turned a thought, and before he even returned to his courtyard, many people were already heading toward him; he glanced over and saw that among them were figures of Patriarch level.

"Congratulations, Senior Brother Li (Senior Uncle Li), on forging an exquisite famous artifact!"

"Senior Brother Li, this brother wishes to forge an exquisite famous sword; I will provide all manner of iron materials and am willing to offer ten thousand taels of gold!"

"Beyond the ten thousand taels of gold, I am willing to offer two Jade-Body Pills!"

The wind and snow had not dispersed; Li Yuan's courtyard was bustling with visitors, with those coming to visit and those seeking weapons arriving in an unending stream; the sensation caused by forging an exquisite famous artifact was even greater than Li Yuan had anticipated.

Of course, it might also be because his prices here were slightly lower.

Li Yuan responded to each one individually, accepting all orders, whether for Superior-grade famous artifacts or Exquisite-grade famous artifacts, taking them all without exception.

His asking price was not high; for one, there was more than one person in the Dragon-Tiger Temple capable of forging Exquisite-grade famous artifacts; for another, the trade-in-for-new program was still ongoing.

For those coming to his place to forge weapons, he would buy their old weapons at a discounted price.

After quite a while, Li Yuan finally saw off the visiting crowd; just as he was about to return to his room, he saw Wang Shan Xuan, who bowed deeply:

"Senior Uncle Li, Hall Master Chutang invites you to a banquet..."