Chapter 210

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Ou Peng took a sip of water to moisten his throat and said: “What I just told you was about the Dao of Immortality; now, let’s talk about its annihilation.”

“What I mentioned earlier—those immortal cultivators, demon cultivators, devil cultivators—all of them base their cultivation on the Yuan Qi of Heaven and Earth. The only difference lies in their methods and approaches. For our four immortal cultivation sects, we don’t even know how long our traditions have been passed down. But around ten thousand years ago, something inexplicable happened in this world. The earth quaked, mountains collapsed, seas turned into mulberry fields, and following that, the state of the world began to change. Not only did the four great sects notice this, but countless smaller sects also discovered that the Yuan Qi of Heaven and Earth was gradually diminishing, becoming thinner and thinner.”

“This Yuan Qi of Heaven and Earth is the foundation of the Dao of Immortality. Without Qi, immortality simply cannot exist. So, whether it was the immortal cultivators or devil cultivators, they put aside their grudges and disputes to join forces in investigating the cause of this depletion. However, despite the efforts of countless individuals, they couldn’t find the source. All they could do was watch as the Yuan Qi of Heaven and Earth dwindled day by day, until, in the end, it completely vanished. Thus, the Dao of Immortality was annihilated.”

Zhang Chengyue found this puzzling and asked: “Weren’t the founders of the four immortal cultivation sects supposed to have arrived here using that ‘Teleportation Array’? Why didn’t they just use it to leave again?”

Ou Peng chuckled and replied: “This was something the immortal cultivators had also considered. However, that array was designed to allow entry, not exit. Moreover, the ‘Teleportation Array’ was extremely difficult to construct. By the time countless cultivators exhausted their strength to rebuild it, there was no longer enough Yuan Qi to power the array. Even the most skilled craftsman cannot work without raw materials. In the end, all they could do was stand helplessly before the ‘Teleportation Array,’ unable to use it.”

“Alas,” Zhang Chengyue sighed, feeling sorry for the people of the past. To have meat so close to their mouths, only to be unable to eat it—it must have been incredibly frustrating.

“Then what happened next, Master? Since the Path of Immortality was annihilated, did martial arts begin to rise?”

“Yes, when the Yuan Qi of Heaven and Earth disappeared, cultivators lost their divine abilities and naturally sought other ways to compensate. Martial arts were developed by great minds who, using their profound wisdom, drew on the experiences of immortal cultivation to forge a new path. If you look at the inner strength cultivation methods, you’ll notice many of the terms are the same as those used in immortal cultivation—such as meridians, true qi, and dantian. Especially this concept of true qi; it’s astonishingly comparable to the true qi of immortal cultivation. While immortal cultivation draws qi into the body, martial arts can actually generate qi from within the body itself. Truly remarkable. Although its power is much weaker, it still far surpasses the capabilities of ordinary mortals. Moreover, after tens of thousands of years of refinement, top martial arts experts can rival qi cultivators. That said, the meridians described in martial arts manuals are the same as those in immortal cultivation. However, the true qi cultivated through martial arts is limited in strength and can only flow through the basic, superficial meridians. The deeper, more profound meridians remain out of reach.”

Zhang Chengyue pondered for a moment before asking: “What about techniques like fist arts, sword arts, and spear arts?”

At this, Ou Peng couldn’t help but laugh. “Speaking of fist arts, there’s an interesting story. Back in the day, when I was practicing martial arts with your eldest martial uncle, I once asked about the origin of fist arts. Your grandmaster told me that the fist arts of this world evolved from a single set of three hundred and sixty moves called the Great Celestial Cycle Star Fist. It was created by a reclusive expert who practiced under a bodhi tree and passed it down to various individuals, which led to the formation of different schools of fist arts. Many sword and spear techniques also evolved from this very first fist art. At the time, I had a question: if only that reclusive expert mastered the complete Great Celestial Cycle Star Fist and everyone else only learned fragments of it, how could anyone know that the full set actually consists of three hundred and sixty moves?”

Zhang Chengyue suddenly understood.

Ou Peng continued: “But your grandmaster left right after telling that story, using the Piaomiao Step so swiftly that I couldn’t possibly catch up. Later, I never had a chance to ask him more about it. It wasn’t until I took over the leadership of the Piaomiao Sect that I finally got the real answer from him. While the Great Celestial Cycle Star Fist may not have been the first fist art under heaven, it is the only fist technique developed by cultivators that doesn’t rely on the Yuan Qi of Heaven and Earth. All the battles of cultivators rely on Yuan Qi as their foundation. To preserve this lone fist technique that doesn’t require it speaks volumes about its value.

So, after the Path of Immortality was annihilated, many fist arts became unusable or completely ineffective. Only the Great Celestial Cycle Star Fist flourished, unmatched by any other fist technique. However, this fist art originally belonged to the Divine Blade Sect. After the sect disappeared, no other sect managed to learn the full set. Without a complete manual to document it, countless other fist techniques evolved from the incomplete Great Celestial Cycle Star Fist.”

At this point, Zhang Chengyue understood and said: “Master, no wonder you value Zhang Xiaohua so much. Could it be that his fist technique is the Great Celestial Cycle Star Fist?”

Ou Peng shook his head and said: “It shouldn’t be. The Great Celestial Cycle Star Fist consists of 360 moves, while his Big Dipper Divine Fist has only 108 moves. However, even if it isn’t the true Great Celestial Cycle Star Fist, if those 108 moves are part of it, they must be incredibly powerful. There must be some sort of secret within them.”

Zhang Chengyue then asked: “And what about the other sword and spear arts?”

Ou Peng replied: “Cultivators originally used swords, blades, and spears in their battles, and the techniques for these weapons were passed down. However, all of these techniques required the Yuan Qi of Heaven and Earth to have any power. Without that Qi, they’re nothing more than empty forms. Consequently, many determined individuals adapted some of the moves from the Great Celestial Cycle Star Fist into sword, spear, and other weapon techniques. In this sense, it’s fair to say that the Great Celestial Cycle Star Fist is the origin of these techniques. Of course, while they used to rely on true qi formed by the Yuan Qi of Heaven and Earth, they now depend on the true qi cultivated within one’s own meridians. Over the course of ten thousand years, these techniques have evolved so much that no one can say for sure whose version is the most authentic.”

“And what happened to those senior cultivators from the past?”

“Alas, their longevity was based entirely on the Yuan Qi of Heaven and Earth. Without that Qi, they aged as quickly as ordinary people. Oh, right—besides the Yuan Qi, there was also something formed by its condensation: a stone-like material called Yuan Stones. Toward the end, many cultivators relied on these Yuan Stones to extend their lives.”

“Hmm? Master, didn’t you just say they built a ‘teleportation array’? Couldn’t these Yuan Stones have been used to power it?”

Ou Peng nodded, clearly pleased with the question. “Chengyue, your mind is sharp. Back then, I didn’t think about it either. It was only later, when reading the records, that I learned the truth. Before the Path of Immortality was annihilated, these Yuan Stones contained a great deal of Yuan Qi and were categorized into high-grade, medium-grade, and inferior-grade Yuan Stones. But by the time the Path of Immortality collapsed, it seemed these Yuan Stones were nowhere to be found. Even the ones stored by the Four Great Sects vanished without a trace. Not even a single inferior-grade stone could be located. The combined Yuan Stones of all the sects weren’t enough to power the teleportation array.

As for the Yuan Stones cultivators used to prolong their lives, they were merely scraps—remnants that cultivators wouldn’t have even glanced at in the past!”

Zhang Chengyue suddenly seemed to recall something and asked: “Master, that floating technique in the third level of our Piaomiao Sect—the one you asked me to retrieve from He Tianshu—could it be a cultivation technique once used by immortal cultivators?”

Ou Peng smiled and said: “Precisely. Though the Dao of Immortality was annihilated, many of its techniques were passed down. Our Piaomiao Sect, as one of the Four Great Sects from ten thousand years ago, naturally has records of these immortal techniques. That floating technique was indeed a spell cultivated by immortals to fly freely through the skies. As for the lightness skills we practice now, they were adapted from the floating technique by a wise predecessor of our sect, who combined it with inner strength to create a new Qinggong movement technique. In fact, many of the techniques preserved by various sects still bear traces of their immortal origins. However, as the ages passed, these techniques became useless—without the Yuan Qi of Heaven and Earth, no one could cultivate them. Thus, they, like the Dao of Immortality itself, faded into oblivion, leaving behind only imitations inspired by those techniques.”

“Ah, to think how narrow-minded I was, sitting in a well and looking at the sky, believing that the martial arts we cultivated were peerless in the world. Only now do I realize they’re merely imitations of cultivation techniques. How ignorant I was.” Zhang Chengyue sighed with emotion.

Ou Peng dismissed his self-reproach with a wave of his hand and said: “The times have changed. Without the Yuan Qi, even immortals were powerless, unable to resist their annihilation. This is now an age of martial arts.”

“Master, earlier, you seemed to mutter to yourself that the world is about to change. What did you mean by that?”

Upon hearing this question, Ou Peng’s spirits immediately lifted. He said: “Chengyue, I mentioned earlier, didn’t I, that the five forbidden zones were originally the Five Great Sanctuaries of our Piaomiao Sect. These were places where immortal cultivators stored their treasures and knowledge. They were protected by something called ‘formations’, which were impossible to breach without cultivation abilities. Over the last ten thousand years, the formations in these sanctuaries have been shrinking, a clear indication that the formations themselves were running low on energy. Yet today, they suddenly expanded, clearly having absorbed the Yuan Qi of Heaven and Earth. With the appearance of this qi, doesn’t it follow that immortals might also reappear?”

He continued: “Our Piaomiao Sect, having obtained a portion of the Great Celestial Cycle Star Fist and being the first to learn of the return of the Yuan Qi, naturally has a head start in preparing for this shift. Perhaps we can seize the opportunity in this changing era to reclaim the glory of ten thousand years ago. Otherwise, we too might face the same fate as the Divine Blade Sect, vanishing entirely from this world.”

“In fact, do you know? Chengyue, there’s another reason—an incredibly favorable factor for us.”

Zhang Chengyue looked puzzled and asked: “Please enlighten me, Master.”

“Haha! It’s that secret land!” Ou Peng cleared his confusion with one sentence.

Zhang Chengyue shook his head and said: “Master, I truly hadn’t thought of that.”

Ou Peng smiled: “That’s understandable. You aren’t familiar with matters of the Dao of Immortality. In fact, even I didn’t pay it much heed at first. When we acquired treasures from that secret land, I merely assumed it was the legacy of some martial arts predecessor. But when Lu Yueming failed on his first expedition into the mysterious forest, it dawned on me—that forest is a formation, isn’t it? And formations are unique to the Path of Immortality.”
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