Chapter 461 Part 3
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Chapter 461 Part 3: The 300-Year-Old Ancestor and the Ancient Ancestor (3)
"Back when Qiao Qijin left Zhong Province for Western Province, I supported his decision,".
"Before you leave today, why not have a drink with me?".
After speaking, without waiting for Qiao Mu’s response, he called out, "Bring two jars of wine.".
"Bring two jars of wine.".
Before long.
The trusted Flying Fish Guard brought two jars of strong liquor.
Without hesitation, the two sat on the ground in the ruined Taoist temple.
Founding Emperor Yan lifted his wine cup and said, "Let’s toast."
"A few years ago, I met Qiao Jin in the Imperial Capital palace and was defeated by him."
"Since then, I have regarded Qiao Jin and the later Qiao family member as my mirrors, reflecting on myself through them."
"Today, Senior Qiao Shuangtu may consider me as his mirror," said Founding Emperor Yan.
"What do you mean by considering me as your mirror?" asked Qiao Mu.
Founding Emperor Yan finished his drink and said,
"Three hundred years ago, I was the top martial artist in the human world, the founding emperor of Great Yan, creating unparalleled achievements."
"In terms of martial arts, no one in the world can rival me. In terms of power, no one can compare to me, and in terms of status… Even the emperors of future generations cannot be compared with the founding emperor."
"Nearly three hundred years ago, I reached the pinnacle that no one could stand beside me."
"However, people will eventually grow old, whether they are emperors or the world’s greatest martial artists."
Founding Emperor Yan looked at the food in the bowl, his deep eyes reflected in the wine, telling a story from the past:
"Soon after my grandson named Yan Shenji passed away, I abandoned my identity as the founding emperor and started a new life under the name ‘Yan Shenji’."
Founding Emperor Yan’s eyes showed a hint of sadness:
"But I am no longer young."
"After avenging my poor grandson and returning to the world, I no longer had the same youthful spirit as before."
"I wandered in the world like a lost soul, without opponents or friends, feeling lonely like an avalanche."
"Later, using the name ‘Yan Shenji’, I returned to the palace and felt better. For nearly two hundred years, I rarely left the palace and no longer yearned for the world outside the palace gates."
Founding Emperor Yan talked about the past in a rambling way, raised his wine bowl, drank it all, and mumbled to himself.
After living for three hundred years in the mortal world, all the friends, enemies, lovers, and descendants of Founding Emperor Yan’s era had long passed away, turning into dust.
In the human world, there are still descendants of the royal family, but they are many generations apart and not his own grandchildren….
"Even though those descendants in the palaces aren’t very close to me… they call me ancestor," Emperor Yan suddenly brightened his eyes a little:
"So I am the royal family ancestor, not a wandering ghost who lives forever in the mortal world."
"If one day this Great Yan Imperial Court disappears, my royal descendants are gone too… then I truly become a lonely wandering ghost."
"This…" Emperor Yan lowered his eyelids, gazing at the wine in the bowl, his eyes deep as the vast sea:
"This is my lifelong obsession."
"That’s why I have become the steadfast anchor of the Great Yan Royal Family, surviving till now."
Qiao Mu listened quietly, starting to understand what Emperor Yan meant.
It may seem like a drunken confession… but this was the first meeting between "Qiao Shuangtu" and Emperor Yan.
No one is a child, who would tell a stranger their thoughts after drinking together for the first time?
Secrets should be kept to yourself, revealing too much too soon is a big mistake.
But that’s exactly what Founding Emperor Yan did.
It’s not that he doesn’t understand the world, he’s just too naive and honest, sharing his true feelings with someone he just met.
This is not how an emperor should behave.
But Qiao Mu understood.
Initially, Founding Emperor Yan used the Qiao family member as a mirror, but now he noticed something different with Qiao Shuangtu, and tried to open up about his own unknown past as a 300-year-old man.
At this point, Founding Emperor Yan spoke again, "Qiao Shuangtu, you must have interacted with many cultivators before, you must have heard about their ways of ‘indifference and detachment’, right?"
Qiao Mu nodded in agreement.
"Sometimes I wonder…" Founding Emperor Yan said slowly.
"The longer a person lives, the more likely their temperament will become cold and indifferent, and their youthful heart will fade away."
"People like me who have lived for too long may end up becoming lonely spirits in this world."
"The path of immortality is far more advanced than the path of martial arts. The ancient cultivators of immortality were long-lived beings, and they must have had strategies in place for this. Unlike us martial artists in the mortal realm, who rely solely on our own guesswork, stumbling blindly forward."
"Are you suggesting their answer lies in abandoning emotions?" Qiao Mu asked.
"Indeed," Founding Emperor Yan’s expression turned bleak.
"If I, from two hundred years ago, had learned to cut off earthly attachments like those cultivators, instead of clinging to the legacy of Great Yan and royal descendants, then perhaps I would have found liberation long ago. I could have lived freely in this world, and might have even transcended from martial arts to immortality."
With Founding Emperor Yan’s martial arts skills, as long as he ignored his descendants and didn’t involve himself in the current affairs, no one could control him, be it walking sideways, jumping, or even descending underground.
"But you wouldn’t do that," Qiao Mu said slowly.
Emperor Yan didn’t speak, after a long silence, he raised his wine cup and clinked it with Qiao Mu:
"Perhaps this is the difference between humans and immortals."
They both raised their wine cups, drank the strong liquor, feeling the burning sensation as it went down their throats.
"So, in fact, martial artists in this world, like me, like you, like Martial Saint, are all like this."
"Emotionless and detached, the more we practice, the further we are from the human world. This is the path to immortality, with a long and endless journey of cultivation."
"With determination in our hearts, sharpening ourselves like iron, this is the path of us ordinary martial artists, unable to achieve immortality, our future unclear, without any predecessors."
"Qiao Shuangtu, I won’t persuade you to be emotionless and detached, I know you must be quite old, perhaps even older than me…" Emperor Yan continued.
"But in this world, it’s not just for Qiao family members. Sometimes, when you carry a heavy burden, it’s better to let go and move forward."
Qiao Mu squinted his eyes and at that moment, he put down his wine cup.
"Maybe you have misunderstood something…"
"I understand what you’re saying. It’s just that you might have underestimated me a little."
Qiao Mu thought for a moment, then suddenly had an idea.
He made a slight movement with his hand, his empty left hand forming the "Immortal’s Guidance" gesture from the Long Life Fist technique, two fingers pointing together like a sword towards Founding Emperor Yan’s throat.
As his fingertips reached their target, there was no evident powerful force, indicating that he didn’t intend to harm Founding Emperor Yan.
Founding Emperor Yan, confused, also adopted the Long Life Fist technique and pointed his two fingers like a sword in the Immortal’s Guidance stance.
Their fingertips met in the air, creating faint ripples of True strength, like circles forming on the surface of a wine cup without spilling over.
"I… I understand now." Founding Emperor Yan withdrew his fingers, gazing at Qiao Mu with a hint of complexity, then drank a bowl of wine.
Founding Emperor Yan had mastered the Long Life Fist technique to a nearly perfect level.
The abundance of rare treasures and materials has kept him alive for over three hundred years, still youthful and energetic thanks to his mastery of the Long Life Fist techniques.
Back when he clashed with Qiao Jin and others in the royal palace, he could estimate the martial arts skills of Long Life Fist practitioners after just a brief encounter.
And now, this extraordinary figure in the world of martial arts, Qiao Shuangtu, appeared out of nowhere…
"How many years have you practiced the Long Life Fist? Thousands of years? Ten thousand years? Are you so old that you can compete with cultivators in longevity?"
The Founding Emperor Yan was deeply shaken.
At over three hundred years old, he relies on his natural affinity for herbal medicine and plants to prolong his life with medicinal substances.
But how could a member of the Qiao family… Could it be that there is also a path to immortality in the world of martial arts?
Even the hidden clan elder Qiao Shuangtu of the Qiao family in front of him, Yan wondered when he was born, in which era…
Although the history of the human race in Jiu Province spans more than ten thousand years, the specific dynasties and reigns from ten thousand years ago are unknown even to Founding Emperor Yan.
This isn’t the top martial artist in the world, this is an old ancestor of the Qiao family….
Founding Emperor Yan felt extremely moved as he looked at Qiao Mu’s long white hair.
But he also knew… that was not the main point.
"I may be only a fraction of your age, I can only be considered a young junior in front of you."
Founding Emperor Yan pondered for a long time before speaking in a hoarse voice.
When he re-entered the martial world at the age of a hundred, he felt like a lost soul or a wild ghost.
Then, what about Qiao Shuangtu who might be thousands or even tens of thousands of years old?
If martial arts in the world is about constantly refining one’s mind until martial will becomes like a blade.
The strength and sharpness of Qiao Mu’s blade clearly surpassed what Founding Emperor Yan could achieve.
"I was a bit abrupt, I deserve a drink as punishment." Founding Emperor Yan raised his cup and drank it all at once.
"I appreciate the gesture." Qiao Mu also raised his cup, recalling carefully:
"Many thousands of years ago… When I was over five thousand years old, I also thought about dying."
"Even though it was a story from thousands of years ago, remembering it felt like it happened just a few days ago."
"Indeed, I faced a major challenge in that lifetime, but later on, I learned a peculiar cultivation method."
"To practice that method, one must envision a ‘sun’ in their mind…"
Qiao Mu found the Divine and Demon Cultivation Method from Giant Kuafu’s memories not easy, it was rather rough and challenging.
Although both are cultivation methods, the martial arts of ordinary people and the Divine and Demon Cultivation Method of the Kuafu tribe are like the difference between two distinct styles of poetry:
They may seem similar when read, but in reality, they are completely different, not at all related.
Moreover, Qiao Mu wanted to learn and use the essence of Kuafu’s Divine and Demon Cultivation Method in ordinary martial arts.
If this succeeds, it will be a monumental achievement unseen in ancient times or the present.
Kuafu’s Divine and Demon Cultivation Method is not a cure-all solution.
To be precise, for Qiao Mu, it is another way to strengthen his determination.
"And since then, I have planted a ‘sun’ in my heart to chase after, and thus, I have passed through those long five thousand years." Qiao Mu gazed at Founding Emperor Yan, his eyes shining like the sun.
…
Note: The following words do not count towards the paid word count.
Current age: 11385 years old
Energy: 99%
Skills:
Techniques: Human Path Sutra (half, thirteenth level), Pure Yang Wuji Skill (ninth level extreme), Military Martial Arts Classic (perfection), Heavenly Demon Forging Body (—), Blood Origin Skill (True strength deep into bones, completion), Divine Transformation Technique (perfection)
Martial Arts: Fragmented Virtual Finger (perfection), Ripple Stacking Wave Strength (Fivefold Wave), Eight Armed Heavenly Dragon Fist (eight arms, perfection), Buddha’s Palm (partial completion), Aotian Divine Fist (mastery)
Weapons: Shadow Transformation Sword Technique (perfection), Heavenly Slashing Swordsmanship (my slash, perfection), Military Martial Arts Classic weapons section (perfection), Birds Adoring the Phoenix Spear (perfection)
Light Body Techniques: Shadow Step (perfection), Heavenly Dragon Eight Steps (ascend to the sky in eight steps, perfection)
Hard Training: Iron Crotch Skill (perfection), Golden Bell Shield Iron Cloth Shirt Skill (perfection), Iron Head Skill (perfection), Iron Palm (perfection), Iron Body (perfection), Vajra Immortal Skill (partial completion)
Explosive Forbidden Techniques: Heavenly Demon Disintegration Method (perfection), Red Moon Burning Blood Technique (perfection), Bloodthirsty Skill (perfection), Blood Sword Technique (perfection), Desperate Strategy (perfection), Blood Meat Oven (completion)
Mystical Gates: Eye Sword Technique (perfection), Military Spiritual Technique (perfection), Spiritual Sound Conducting Technique (perfection)
Taotie Martial Art: Gluttonous spiritual refining method (—), Sacred Spiritual Technique (mastery), Shape Changing Skill (perfection), Ex-human Transformation (partial completion)
