Chapter 16: Martial Dao! Great Sun Lapis Lazuli
Chapter 16: Chapter 16: Martial Dao! Great Sun Lapis Lazuli
In the strategy of driving the wolf to devour the tiger, the emphasis is on "driving," but also on the "wolf."
The wolf must be capable of devouring the tiger, and you must be able to drive it.
’And then there’s Yu the Scholar...’
Zhu Ge suddenly thought of Yu the Scholar and couldn’t help but sigh.
Before leaving, a casual glance revealed that white strands had appeared at the roots of Yu the Scholar’s temples.
Yu the Scholar was only a bit older than him, yet his hair was already graying—a clear sign that he had overdrawn his lifespan.
Fortunately, he had achieved his original goal this time. Zhu Ge had gotten the answer he wanted, so there was no need to waste any more of Yu the Scholar’s life.
Still, seeing Yu the Scholar’s black hair turn to white, Zhu Ge couldn’t help but feel a pang of sadness.
He and Yu the Scholar could only attempt to unravel the mystery of the gods by sacrificing their own lifespans, time and time again.
But what about all the other mortals in the world?
They didn’t even have the chance to trade their lifespan for their lives.
Just like the other people in Jianshan Village. They knew nothing, yet they became food for the gods simply because the teacher had left.
The lives of mortals are filled with sorrow, for their existence is a difficult one.
Zhu Ge’s heart was heavy as he left, but he quickly purged these unnecessary emotions.
Worry, sorrow, pain, anger, resentment...
These were all remedies for venting emotions, but also poisons to reason and calm.
He was no longer the young netizen from his past life—well-protected by his country, free from worries about food and clothing. He could no longer afford to vent his feelings online at will.
Now, as a mortal whose life hung in the balance, he had to remain calm and rational at all times, burying all emotions deep in his heart.
All his mental focus should be concentrated on one question: ’How can I survive?’
’If I can’t drive the wolf to devour the tiger, then I’ll have to fall back on the old method. I’ll have to burn all of Jianshan Village to the ground at once, while also ensuring Yu the Scholar survives...’
Zhu Ge looked around as he walked.
The layout of Jianshan Village was actually very clear in the original owner’s mind.
Legend had it that this place was once a mountain peak. The summit was very sharp, and from afar, it looked like a pointed mountain, hence the name Jianshan Mountain.
Later, a Great Power sliced off the peak of Jianshan Mountain, turning it into a plateau where people came to live.
Afterward, they carved terraces down from the plateau, and so the mountain became Jianshan Village.
Burning down Jianshan Village all at once would be very difficult.
There wasn’t a single tree on the plateau where Jianshan Village now stood; it was completely packed with houses.
Most of the houses were built with mud, with wood used only for load-bearing structures. They wouldn’t be easy to set on fire.
But aside from burning it down, Zhu Ge couldn’t think of any other way to destroy the entire village.
Because his goal wasn’t to destroy Jianshan Village itself, but to destroy the hidden shrines within it by destroying the village.
Most importantly, after destroying Jianshan Village, Yu the Scholar needed to remain alive.
The reason Jianshan Village hadn’t been invaded by Second Realm Demons, Ghosts, Spirits, and Monsters was the character for "Confucian" that the teacher had left on Yu the Scholar’s chest.
If Yu the Scholar died, Zhu Ge wouldn’t know how to activate that "Confucian" character.
At that point, he estimated that just after destroying those two gods, he would be swallowed whole by some passing entity.
So, either he drove the wolf to devour the tiger and let them both suffer heavy losses...
...or he killed both the wolf and the tiger himself.
But no matter what, Yu the Scholar had to live.
’So difficult...’
’My fists are still too small...’
Zhu Ge felt awful. His body was already in pain from having his lifespan consumed, and his head was splitting.
Now, beset by worries, his mood was even more depressed.
’I really want to wear the Kunpeng...’
He had to admit, that state of extreme calm was addictive.
But unfortunately, the cost of wearing the Kunpeng was too great. He couldn’t possibly wear it all the time.
As he thought of this, an idea suddenly struck Zhu Ge.
’That’s right, lifespan!’
No matter the type of cultivation—be it the Confucian Dao, the Martial Dao, or the Immortal Dao—they could all increase one’s lifespan!
He was at a dead end with the shrines, so why not think about how to increase his lifespan?
For example, cultivating the Confucian Dao or the Martial Dao!
It was just that the teacher had tested everyone back then, and no one in the village was suited for the Confucian Dao.
Zhu Ge’s constitution wasn’t suitable either.
But luckily, he now had a Martial Arts Technique that Yu the Scholar had given him!
’Cultivating the Martial Dao can increase my lifespan. With a longer lifespan, I can use the Kunpeng more often.’
’Besides, I’m so weak right now. It would be good to use the Martial Dao to strengthen my body. It would give me an extra layer of security to get through this crisis.’
He immediately stopped walking, stood casually under the eaves of a nearby house, and took out a book he kept close to his body.
Great Sun Glaze Body!
Judging by the name, this thing was no ordinary technique!
And Yu the Scholar had said that he and the teacher had found it by chance. They kept it because the name sounded impressive.
They just never practiced it, probably because the method was difficult and the barrier to entry was high.
In the past, legacies of Cultivation Techniques and the like were hoarded by major powers, only taught to the most talented disciples after rounds of screening and selection.
But now, such an impressive-sounding Cultivation Technique had been found by the teacher and Yu the Scholar by chance out in the wilderness.
’An Elemental Level Cultivation Technique? Elemental? What kind of level is that? Oh well, I’ll just practice it.’
’Another life-saving skill is always a good thing...’
Zhu Ge slowly began to read the book.
"The heavens are high and the earth is vast; the mountains are thick and the marshes are placid. Such is the nature of change. Exhaust the great Xun thunder sound, cross the Kan and Li waxing and wane..."
The word "Glaze" in Great Sun Glaze Body sounded very fragile and brittle.
But in reality, it was an incredibly powerful Cultivation Technique—visibly so!
Although Zhu Ge didn’t know what "Elemental Level" meant, he could at least tell how good this book was from its contents.
Its full name should be the Great Sun Five-Colored Glaze Body!
Five colors, or rather, five elements.
It used these five elements for Body Refinement, and in the end, even used the great sun itself.
In fact, the vision within this Cultivation Technique seemed to go beyond five colors; it should have been eight.
Sun, moon, mountain, marsh, thunder, fire, water, and wind.
It corresponded to these eight things.
But as of now, the creator of the technique had only conceived of Body Refining Techniques for five of them—wind, water, fire, thunder, and marsh. He hadn’t yet figured out the cultivation for sun, moon, and mountain.
Because this was a Cultivation Technique that no one had ever practiced—including the creator, who had only completed the first refinement!
The rest was pure imagination!
The creator had found the Body Refinement process too painful, so he just quit. It was as simple as that.
The concept and operational logic of this Cultivation Technique weren’t hard to grasp.
Not only were they not difficult, they were actually quite easy to understand.
The cultivation method for this technique was to temper the body with those eight elements.
For example, one would temper their entire body in a strong wind until it began to glow, which would signify mastery.
After mastering the first color, one would then temper themselves with the second color, "water," and so on.
However, the "entire body" here was not meant in the narrow sense, but the broad one.
The internal organs, blood vessels, blood, brain, bone marrow, and so on—all had to be tempered and forged within the corresponding element.
Zhu Ge even had a faint feeling...
...that although the creator of this technique lacked microscopic concepts like cells and atoms, he still believed that one should temper every tiny particle of flesh and blood.
The technique required the "entire body" to be tempered.
For instance, the first refinement, "Wind," was equivalent to dicing his heart into a molecular or atomic state and then letting it be blown by the wind.
And this was precisely what made the technique so difficult.
But it was also what made it so powerful.
Others trained their muscles, bones, and skin externally, and trained a breath of energy internally.
This technique trained the muscles, bones, and skin externally, and the internal organs internally, in order to produce Blood Qi.
When fighting others, if both combatants’ fists, knees, and so on were shattered, they would have no offensive power left.
But what about someone who had practiced this technique?
It would be a different story entirely.
They could use their own liver as a weapon, or even tie their intestines to their two kidneys and use them as a meteor hammer.
Because the hardness of these internal organs would be the same as bone.
This was the power of the Great Sun Five-Colored Glaze Body!
Temper the flesh to produce Blood Qi!
And to successfully cultivate this technique, the most indispensable requirement was...
"...the soul must leave the body, stand outside the cosmos of flesh and blood, and not enter the five elements. Only then can it absorb vitality without harming the treasured body."
Reading this, Zhu Ge couldn’t help but marvel at the wisdom of the person who created this Cultivation Technique.
Soul projection!
One only needed to have their soul leave their body, and they could let their physical form endure the ravages of the elements.
It sounded easy, but the creator also mentioned many difficulties.
For example, the duration of the body’s tempering.
If vitality was separated from the flesh for too long, the body would become a non-living thing like grass, wood, earth, or stone. Therefore, each cultivation session could not be too long.
Moreover, everyone’s physical strength was different, as was their ability to endure pain.
Even with the soul projected, one could still feel pain.
Whether one could withstand the pain of the same tempering method was another factor in whether this technique could be successfully cultivated.
For someone who was afraid of the pain of getting a shot, it would be extremely difficult to endure the sensation of being pricked by needles all over their body—including their eyeballs, private parts, the crevices of their nails, their tongue, and the gaps in their teeth and gums.
And you couldn’t pass out from the pain!
Otherwise, if the tempering went on for too long, by the time you woke up, a perfectly fine person would have likely become a fleshy statue and one of the Wandering Ghosts.
All in all, the conditions for practicing this Cultivation Technique were numerous and extremely harsh.
But the effects were also astonishing.
’No wonder Yu the Scholar thought I could cultivate this technique. It’s because I can project my soul, isn’t it?’
’I’ll find a place with less wind later and give it a try!’
The Martial Dao!
As long as he could temper out the first wisp of Blood Qi, he would step into the First Realm of the Martial Dao!
At that point, he would finally have a sliver of power to protect himself!