Chapter 158: Exiting Seclusion! The Intent of Dawn
Chapter 158: Chapter 158: Exiting Seclusion! The Intent of Dawn
The early moonlight shone on everyone’s faces.
Everyone was brimming with ambition.
As for the rules of the Six Paths Palace, no one thought they were bad—on the contrary, everyone thought they were almost too good!
In a world teeming with people, how many could actually eat their fill? How many had the chance to practice a Cultivation Technique and embark on the path of cultivation?
Let alone find protection under a power like the Six Paths Palace?
Fewer still.
Once you joined a faction, it meant your future was not your own—you were at their beck and call.
But the Six Paths Palace?
According to what Liu Jianjian had told them, the Six Paths Palace sounded too good to be true.
They would receive a monthly stipend of thirty copper coins. That was three hundred and sixty copper coins a year, equivalent to thirty silver coins.
Furthermore, Liu Jianjian had said the palace would provide free training and instruction, all with the goal of helping its disciples attain a certain level of strength.
And after that?
Disciples could take on all kinds of jobs, and every single one came with a salary!
For example, they could farm, raise silkworms, go on military campaigns, hunt, raise Demon Beasts, or work as Darts Masters...
Anything was possible!
And it wasn’t for free, either. The palace would take a commission based on the disciples’ performance.
For instance, take raising Purple-Feathered Black Chickens. The Six Paths Palace would provide sixty chicks. As long as a disciple returned sixty adult chickens each year, they would pass. And any surplus?
It would be split based on market price!
For example, if one chicken was worth ten silver coins, and you turned in sixty-one, the Six Paths Palace would reward you with five silver coins.
And on top of all that, the Six Paths Palace would still provide the monthly stipend!
Who here had ever heard of such a wonderful Sect?
You’d be lucky if other Sects didn’t work you to death.
Besides, people were everywhere, but there were only a handful of Sects.
Finding one with such good conditions was a rare opportunity.
Unfortunately, the Six Paths Palace had its own entry requirements. Now, all they could do was wait for its master, Zhu Ge, to emerge from his seclusion.
Everyone’s attention was fixed on the mound of earth at the valley’s entrance, waiting expectantly for Zhu Ge to emerge and accept them into his ranks.
...
Zhu Ge was sleeping.
Or rather, it felt as though he had been.
In his dream, countless Martial Arts flowed from the depths of his mind, converged within his body, and were unleashed through his every move.
From the subtle raise of an ant’s head to the immense power of bulls locking horns.
As light as the Rain Swift Fist, as heavy as a great pendulum hammer.
It was as if he had practiced every stance and every form within the dream.
From 0 to 1.
From 1 to 3.
From 3 to infinity.
And then, from infinity, they merged back into one.
Finally, Zhu Ge threw a punch and opened his eyes.
The sky above roiled, the weather turning in an instant.
Endless Spiritual Qi surged from all directions, sweeping up leaves and gathering dark clouds.
"What’s going on?!"
The nearly three hundred people outside the Six Paths Valley were utterly baffled.
RUMBLE...
Dark clouds blotted out the sun, and the sky grew dim. Faint rumbles of thunder could even be heard.
"Look! The red mist over there is gone!"
"That’s Zhu Ge!"
"What was that red mist? Why did it give me such a sinister, chilling feeling?"
"Quick, look at the sky!"
A few people cried out in alarm, and the crowd followed their gaze, looking up.
A faint, almost illusory phantom materialized, its face identical to Zhu Ge’s.
The phantom raised its hands high, slashed them forward as if to grab hold of the air, then viciously tore them apart.
Instantly, the dark clouds vanished, and the gale died down.
Yet everyone watching felt their own hearts suddenly lurch.
As the phantom tore at the empty air, they felt as if their own hearts were being ripped in two.
Those with slightly stronger perception even felt as if everything from their souls to their bodies—and even their clothes—was about to be torn asunder.
A moment later, the phantom flowed down into the man on the ground like sand through a funnel, disappearing completely.
The world was serene again, as if nothing had ever happened.
However, the vanished mound and red mist at the valley’s entrance, along with the man who was slowly opening his eyes, told everyone what had transpired.
Zhu Ge, the Palace Master of the Six Paths Palace, had emerged from his seclusion!
Zhu Ge slowly let out a breath, a smile spreading across his face.
’A phantom?’
’No, this is "Intent"!’
In a flash of enlightenment, he had completely grasped the *Xu Family Rain Swift Fist* and condensed it into Fist Intent.
And it wasn’t a simple Rain Swift Fist Intent, but a power that resembled tearing itself.
’I’ll call it Dawn Intent...’ Zhu Ge silently chose a pleasant-sounding name for it.
The way he had just torn through the dark clouds, letting the world see the sun again, felt just like the break of dawn.
Light doesn’t just naturally arrive when the darkness recedes.
It arrives because the great sun descends, tearing the darkness asunder.
Zhu Ge felt his Dawn Intent had deep potential to be explored in the future.
The path to enhancing it lay precisely in that power he envisioned—the power to tear apart darkness and the dead of night.
But that was a matter for the future.
For now, with this Fist Intent, Zhu Ge felt he could even take on an Essence-Devouring Demon Beast like the Sword and Axe Mantis.
Whether he’d win or lose was another question, but at least he wouldn’t be killed in a single blow.
’I should go spar with the Sword and Axe Mantis and see how much my strength has improved.’
’But not right now.’
Zhu Ge turned his gaze to the crowd not far away, about to speak.
The next second, his vision went dark, and he nearly passed out.
"What the hell..."
Zhu Ge was instantly assaulted by waves of hunger from every part of his body.
From his organs to his bones and blood, even every last cell, he was ravenous.
He steadied himself, and his eyes landed on the whole roasted oxen and sheep behind him. With a look of ravenous hunger, he pounced on them and began to gorge himself.
He had to eat, to devour.
He had to gnaw and tear into the meat.
Thankfully, his Bone Monster Avatar had instructed Liu Jianjian and the others to prepare food in advance. Otherwise, Zhu Ge would likely be devouring raw flesh and blood right now.
As it was, the roasted meat was completely unseasoned, but at least it was cooked.
Much of it was even the flesh of Second Realm Demon Beasts, which was extremely rich in energy.
Even though it was cold, it didn’t stop Zhu Ge from eating with gusto.
The feast lasted for a full hour.
Zhu Ge devoured at least seven or eight tons of meat, yet his stomach didn’t bulge in the slightest, nor did he feel the need to relieve himself.
With a slight circulation of his Blood Qi, his body absorbed all the essence, while the impurities were expelled completely through his pores in the form of gas, not liquid.
Finally, a layer of old skin even sloughed off Zhu Ge. With a slight shake of his body, it disintegrated into fine ash.
His hunger sated, Zhu Ge looked at the two-hundred-odd people before him as if nothing had happened, a smile on his face.
"Those who wish to join the Six Paths Palace, stand here. The rest of you, stand on the other side."
Zhu Ge gestured to an empty plot of ground before him.
The crowd, still reeling from the spectacle, immediately separated according to Zhu Ge’s instructions.
On one side stood the prospective disciples.
On the other stood those who had come bearing congratulatory gifts, invitations, and calling cards.
"Everyone, please wait. I will attend to you after I have finished recruiting disciples."
Zhu Ge said, cupping his hands in a fist-and-palm salute to this group.
"Not at all, not at all! Palace Master Zhu, please, tend to your affairs."
"We can wait, we can wait!"
"Congratulations on emerging from your seclusion, Young Master Zhu! Please, you go ahead. This humble one can wait."
The gift-bearers returned his salute, either cupping their fists or bowing formally.
Zhu Ge nodded, then had Hua Liusha activate the Fungus God Destruction Array.
The next moment, countless fungal filaments erupted forth, twisting like gods and demons—a truly soul-shaking sight.