An idea suddenly springs to Qin Yu’s mind.
“Uncle Feng, as far as I can see, Xiuzhenists seem fight Heaven and Hell to overcome the human limits. But, to pursue the human limits, is the way of entering the Jindan stage then forming the yuanying as you said the only way? Could there be another way?” says Qin Yu doubtfully.
According to his thinking, because Xiuzhen is about pursuing the human limits, there should be various ways.
Uncle Feng thinks for a while then shakes his head and says with a smile: “Xiao Yu, forget about it. I don’t know who the first Xiuzhenist was. Perhaps there were already Xiuzhenists several million years, or even several tens million to 100 million years ago. You mentioned different ways. There are different ways. Humans can choose either Xiuxian or Xiumo while most animals take the Xiuyao way. Xiuxianists and Xiumoists go different ways but they all form the jindan then the yuanying. Animals form the neidan, but I don’t know too well about the Xiuyao way.”
“Is it a must to form the jindan then the yuanying?” Qin Yu whispers.
Could this be a manifestation of the fact that different ways lead to the same ultimate universal principle?
“Ah, right.” Fengyuzi suddenly says. “Xiao Yu, a long, long time ago, of course I hadn’t been born at that time, a great incident happened on the Qian Long continent -- the War of Immortals. Perhaps that mysterious man who fought in the War of Immortals didn’t follow a way of practice which forms the jindan and yuanying.”
Chapter 17 The 3 Diagrams
“War of Immortals?” Qin Yu asks doubtfully.
With his eyes glittering, Fengyuzi says: “Yes, I heard about it from my seniors when I was still practicing in the Overseas Immortal Islands. The participants in that event consisted of several loose immortals and several tens Kongming stage and Dujie stage experts. Their leader was even a Dacheng stage Xiuzhenist…”
“Hold on, what’s a loose immortal?” Qin Yu says hurriedly.
Fengyuzi shakes his head and says with a smile: “I even forgot to talk about loose immortals. While enduring the 9 From 9th Heaven Tribulation, some Xiuzhenists knew they wouldn’t be able to overcome it so they tried their best to save their own yuanyings and souls. Because their physical bodies then got destroyed, they could only keep practicing as loose immortals. You should know that loose immortals are very powerful. Generally they’re a bit more powerful than even Dujie-stage experts.”
“Loose immortals are this powerful? A Dacheng-stage Xiuzhenist, who had overcome all the tribulations, several loose immortals, and even several tens Kongming-stage and Dujie-stage experts, why did they gather together?” asks Qin Yu.
“To kill a man. Only to kill a man.” Fengyuzi’s expression becomes solemn.
“To kill a man? So many experts only to kill a man?” Qin Yu cannot imagine that so many people gathered just to kill a man.
Who was this man? Qin Yu even thinks about a real immortal.
Fengyuzi says with a nod: “Yes, according to the Xiuzhen world’s legends, that mysterious man basically wasn’t a yuanying Xiuzhenist. In the end, he went mad and burst forth an incandescent kind of energy, as if he was ... the Sun. This energy was world-shattering. It killed all of that many experts at that time including the Dacheng-stage Xiuzhenist!” Saying to here, Fengyuzi even becomes excited.
“Xiao Yu, do you know what happened next? Do you know?” Fengyuzi’s entire body has become excited. He holds Qin Yu’s shoulders with a movement and asks him while staring at him.
Qin Yu hurriedly shakes his head.
He cannot imagine there was such a powerful person, who could kill even a Dacheng-stage expert in addition to several loose immortals.
“Those weak Xiuzhenists who were hiding very far away unexpectedly discovered that … after killing so many people that mysterious man started to undergo a heavenly tribulation. It was the 9 From 9th Heaven Tribulation. My goodness, he killed a Dacheng-stage expert, he killed so many loose immortals and Dujie-stage experts, but that mysterious man hadn’t even gone through the last tribulation!” Fengyuzi’s entire body becomes excited. “He hadn’t gone through the last tribulation, Xiao Yu. Without going through it his power was already at such a great level. If he had overcome the tribulation then …”
Qin Yu is also shocked.
Who would have thought that a man who had not experienced the last tribulation would kill a Dacheng-stage expert and even kill so many loose immortals and several tens Kongming-stage and Dujie-stage experts? This is simply unimaginable. If he had been practicing the jindan-yuanying way like the other people, how could the difference between their power levels have been so enormous?
“Countless elders have confirmed one thing: This mysterious man was also a Xiuzhenist, but he definitely wasn’t a Xiumoist, a Xiuxianist or a Xiuyaoist. He was a new kind. The Sun-like incandescent energy he burst forth from his body in the end alone simply isn’t something Dujie-stage experts are capable of. Even if Dacheng-stage experts faced such a great power, they would also get killed.” Fengyuzi seems to be imagining the War of Immortals that year.
Qin Yu is also imagining it.
After a long time, Fengyuzi slowly calms down. He looks at Qin Yu and says smilingly: “Xiao Yu, the story about this War of Immortals has always been circulating. The people in the Overseas Immortal Islands all seem to know about it. Even many people on the Qian Long continent also know about this event.”
“Oh, many people on the Qian Long continent know about this?” Qin Yu is slightly startled. If it had not been for Xiuzhenists’ narration, how could people on the Qian Long continent have known about it?
Fengyuzi nods and continues: “Don’t worry. At that time many Overseas Immortal Islands’ elders were watching from afar and saw with their own eyes how this mysterious expert underwent his tribulation.”
“Did he overcome it?” Qin Yu somehow is somewhat worried about this mysterious man.
Fengyuzi shakes his head and says: “He failed. When the 9 From 9th Heaven Tribulation came down, the mysterious man’s entire body turned into a sun. Unlike the other Xiuzhenists, who use holy weapons and so on to resist heavenly tribulations, he always used his own body’s power to resist the tribulation directly. After fighting several tens Xiuzhenists in a great battle, this mysterious man basically had to endure the heavenly tribulation without being able to take a break. When the 9th thunderbolt struck down, the mysterious man couldn’t persevere anymore. His body was shattered and his power suffered a huge loss.”
“But he didn’t die immediately. He gathered the last bits of energy and gave his final talk to the entire Qian Long continent’s population including the Xiuzhenists around --“ Fengyuzi seems to be enwrapped in his memories.
Qin Yu does not dare to disturb Fengyuzi’s recollection but he is curious about it.
“I’ve been roaming the boundless space and experiencing the cosmos’s evolution. I’ve been drifting around for some thousand years and visited countless celestial bodies. How come today my soul is falling apart? Heaven doesn’t help me. Stellar transformations! How can the Sun be the final destination? How?! How?! Everyone on this continent listen, today I’ll leave behind the 3 Trans-Heaven diagrams. Anyone who can obtain them and figure out their secret will inherit my technique. Ha-ha …… O blessing, O disaster ……”
With an indistinct voice, Fengyuzi recites every sentence.
Qin Yu continuously ponders about the meaning of these few sentences. What is the boundless space? What is the cosmos? What are celestial bodies? And what are stellar transformations? He cannot understand their meanings but he understands the meaning of the mysterious man’s last sentence. Obviously those 3 Trans-Heaven diagrams contain the mysterious man’s entire technique.
However, what is the meaning of the “O blessing, O disaster” exclamation afterwards? Could it be obtaining this technique is also a disaster?
“Before the mysterious man died, using a great amount of energy,
he created 3 diagrams. They were none other than the 3 Trans-Heaven diagrams. The 3 Trans-Heaven diagrams were scattered on the Qian Long continent. As countless years went by, even people from the Overseas Immortal Islands were able to collect the 3 diagrams. For so many years, so many people have also been able to bring the 3 diagrams together. But no one has ever been able to discover the secret of these 3 diagrams and obtain the mysterious man’s legacy,” says Fengyuzi with a sigh.
It is not difficult for Xiuzhenists to gather the 3 diagrams but no one has been able to figure out the 3 Trans-Heaven diagrams’ secret.
“Your ancestor Qin Shi Huang once gathered all the 3 diagrams as well but he couldn’t find out their secret either. If he had been able to figure out the secret, perhaps he wouldn’t have died,” says Fengyuzi with a smile.
Qin Yu, however, is having a sudden impulse. That is a yearning from the bottom of his heart, a yearning for the world of Xiuzhenists.
“Xiuzhenists can fly their swords to the 9th level of the sky, or dive into the boundless deep ocean, or explore the Immense Wilderness, or fight the Wilderness’s demonic beasts. Ordinarily, they absorb the world’s holy energy. To pursue the human limits, they fight Heaven and Hell. Disregarding live and death, they fight experts of the same level. This kind of life is really enjoyable,” thinks Qin Yu and sighs emotionally. Having heard about the world of Xiuzhenists, he yearns for it badly from the bottom of his heart.
Qin Yu heaves a sigh.
After withdrawing his mind from this description of the Xiuzhen world, he understands he is merely a mortal. Worse still, he has not reached the Xiantian level. Even among the Qian Long continent’s 10 billion mortals, he cannot be considered a figure on the top of the pyramid either.
He needs to be realistic because those 3 Trans-Heaven diagrams or something are very vague. At the moment Qin Yu’s greatest pivots are -- the Meteoric Tear and his own effort. Relying on the fantastic Meteoric Tear and his own effort, he must reach an unprecedented level in external practice, the Xiantian level.
“Xiao Yu, what holy weapon do you want? I’ll forge it for you.” Fengyuzi looks at Qin Yu and asks.
The things regarding the Xiuzhen world are just like an indistinct legend to Qin Yu. At the moment he is still very, very far from that world. He is only a son of the Chu kingdom’s East Vanquishing Prince on the Qian Long continent and a common expert who does external practice, the most painful path in martial arts, and has not even reached the Xiantian level.
“Holy weapon?” Qin Yu is startled.
“Weapons forged out of In-rock Flaming iron are certainly holy weapons. But you don’t have elemental energy so you can only make use of a holy weapon’s physical sharpness without being able to alter its size or use some special strikes.” Fengyuzi shakes his head and says. “But a holy weapon can fuse with the body. Moreover, its sharpness is far superior to that of you mortals’ weapons. Having a holy weapon you won’t have any problems protecting yourself. I think you’d best forge a suit of armor as well.”
Qin Yu says with a smile: “That’s not necessary. Please help me forge a short sword based on the Yuchang sword’s measurements. Also, please forge a pair of gloves to protect the knuckles for me. And just forget about the other things. I want to leave my father a bit more.”
“Only these?” Fengyuzi asks in disbelief.
A short sword and a pair of gloves use very little In-rock Flaming iron whereas, after all, this chunk of In-rock Flaming iron belongs to Qin Yu.
“They’re already enough. I practice external techniques. If I depend too much on external objects, it won’t be good for my training. Uncle Feng, I won’t bother you anymore. I’m leaving first.” Qin Yu immediately bows then turns around and leaves.
Fengyuzi follows Qin Yu’s back with his eyes. Only now does his mind become clear. He immediately says: “It’ll take quite some time to forge these weapons, about 35 days.” After Qin Yu has left, Fengyuzi lets out a sigh: “Perhaps this brat wants to forge only a few things just to give his father a bit more of this In-rock Flaming iron chunk.”
After exiting the secret room, Qin Yu looks skyward. It is dark at the moment. Cold gusts of wind are blowing.
“I’ve never helped father in anything since childhood. This can also be counted as the first time I’ve helped him.” Qin Yu’s face has a faint smile. It then disappears suddenly. “Well, there are still 35 days. During this period of time I’ll still have to train hard and, moreover, with an extremely heavy training load. I want to see if I can reach the Xiantian level through external practice or not.”
With that thought in his mind, Qin Yu immediately gives a long whistle. In a short while, a black eagle dives down. Qin Yu gets on its back in a jump. They then leave the princely mansion and Yan City directly.
Chapter 18 Stratagems (1)
The Chu kingdom is the number 1 kingdom on the Qian Long continent. At the moment, the clan heads of Qin clan and the Shangguan clan among the 4 big clans are in a secluded small courtyard.
Qin De is sitting at a stone table with a calm expression on his face. Xu Yuan standing by his side is also waiting calmly.
“Ha-ha ... Brother Qin De. Long time no see.” A white-haired old man walks to him in strides. This old man is unexpectedly wearing a pair of gold earrings. His eyes are very cold and sinister. However, at this moment they are full of enthusiasm.
Qin De stands up, points to one side and says smilingly: “Brother Shangguan, please sit down.”
Shangguan Hong, the Chu kingdom’s North Vanquishing Prince, controls the 2 Northern region counties. At the moment, there are 4 people in the courtyard including Qin De and Xu Yuan. The other 2 people are Shangguan Hong and his subordinate Zhuang Jun. However, outside the courtyard, a large number of experts are secretly guarding it.
“Brother Qin De, why do you look for an old man like me this time?” Only after slightly fixing his silver hair does Shangguan Hong sit down. Obviously he cares a lot about his own hair. His subordinate Zhuang Jun stands behind him.
Qin De says smilingly: “I’m not going to beat around the bush. Please help me. We’ll seize the Chu kingdom together.”
Shangguan Hong is startled. He did not think that Qin De would be so straightforward even though he has already guessed why Qin De secretly meets him this time. Shangguan Hong then bursts out laughing: “Brother Qin De, you shouldn’t joke like this. This can cause you to lose your head. I can act as if I’ve never heard about this matter.”
Qin De slowly shakes his head and says: “I ask you, you’ll do it or not?”
Shangguan Hong, however, does not reply. Only after pondering for a long time does he raise his head and ask: “Even if we join forces, how much certainty will you have?”
“80 percent!” says Qin De indifferently.
But Shangguan Hong says laughingly: “Brother Qin De, don’t fool me. That Mu clan has 600,000 troops. The 4 Western region counties have even more than that, 800,000 troops. They amount to 1,400,000 troops. My 2 Northern region counties only have 400,000 troops altogether and yours have no more than 600,000. So how can you be 80 percent certain?”
“I want to destroy the Xiang clan so I can only show 600,000 troops,” says Qin De with a smile.
Shangguan Hong’s eyes glitter: “Oh? It seems brother Qin De also has quite a lot of troops in secret. But the Xiang clan and the Mu clan have 1,400,000 troops together. How many troops do you have in secret that you dare to say you’re 80 certain? Moreover, when your troops secretly increased, how could this have escaped the detection of the Xiang clan’s intelligence service?” Shangguan Hong is obviously very unconvinced.
“I still have 200,000 troops in secret.” Qin De says with a smile. “This brings the total amount to 800,000 troops. My Fierce Tiger Corps is only 50,000 strong but in terms of real offensive power it is equal to 200,000 to 300,000 troops.”
Shangguan Hong’s eyes brighten.
He certainly knows how for
midable the Fierce Tiger Corps is. He calculates in his mind at once then says with a smile: “If we only talk about quality then your 3 Eastern region counties’ army is the best. If you really have 200,000 troops in secret then we’ll still have some hope. But according to what I know, 200,000 troops must be used to threaten the bandits in the Black Water mountain range. Otherwise, those bandits will wreak havoc on the 3 Eastern region counties and plunge your den into chaos.”
Qin De says in a totally unconcerned manner: “You needn’t worry about this. They’re merely bandits. It’s hard to exterminate them because the Black Water mountain range is so vast, but the thing is … the Black Water mountain range’s bandits are no more than bandits. We only need to negotiate with them and give them some benefits, they will quiet down.”
Stellar Transformations Book 2 Page 10