Chapter 22: Enlightenment, Breakthrough
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For Yang Zhao, falling off a cliff of thousands of feet absolutely does not represent the end. On the contrary, everything is just about to start from here.
The fierce battle on the plank road, despite this young master of the Sui family doing his utmost, breaking through again and again and narrowly escaping death. However, he also knew that he had already reached the limit of his limits. Whether it was martial arts skills, techniques, or combat experience, Fan Qinghui surpassed him in every aspect. Under the three-foot green sword of this unparalleled swordsman, no matter how long he struggled to prolong the fight, it would be utterly meaningless. Without a miracle, the final outcome would absolutely not change.
Miracles never appear when they are most needed. Destruction before rebirth, seeking life in death, is the only way out Yang Zhao can think of.
Of course, this path is absolutely not relying on some vague luck. Because although he was a traverser, Yang Zhao had never expected that there would be any dog-blooded, so-called absolute halo that could make everything impossible possible. He had never hoped that 'at the bottom of the cliff, there would be a hidden world master who happened to live there, and happened to lend a helping hand, and then very coincidentally poured out his skills for one or two lifetimes, and then added a lovely loli daughter' such a dog-blooded plot would happen to himself.
No matter when and where, the only thing that humans can rely on in desperate situations is themselves. To be more specific, Yang Zhao relied on the "Dark Ice and Fire Seven Heavens" secret manual on his body.
Dark Ice and Fire Seven Heavens was created by the dark incarnation of Bodhidharma, the first ancestor of Eastern Earth Zen. Each heaven has its own unique abilities. However, the cultivation process is extremely perilous, requiring seven consecutive life-and-death trials to complete. Every breakthrough at the boundary between life and death can achieve a heaven's worth of merit and law. Legend has it that cultivating all seven heavens can break through any martial art in the world.
Tianzhu monk Tian Fa Rang, in those years coincidentally encountered Bodhidharma and his own dark doppelganger's battle in a secret cave of Goguryeo, and from then on obtained the Ice Fire Seven Heavens Technique, as well as the first three layers of the Dark Seven Heavens Technique. Due to Tianzhu monk's limited innate talent, he was unable to cultivate the Dark Seven Heavens. However, before his death at Yema Bridgehead, he passed on the secret manual to Yang Zhao.
Since then, Yang Zhao has been fleeing in the mountains to avoid Fan Qinghe's pursuit. The several confrontations with Jing Zhuan's people were all precarious, and he was lucky to have escaped by relying on his three-point ferocity and two-point luck. He knew that if he continued like this, he would eventually run out of luck and be captured. To protect himself, he had to find a way to greatly enhance his strength in the shortest possible time. It was only natural that the Ice Fire Sevenfold Heaven Secret Book by his side was the only choice.
Yang Zhao did not go to practice the Ice Fire Sevenfold Heaven's mental method, because from the difficulty of practice and the power after success, this set of martial arts has a very low cost-effectiveness. However, the secret book about the application method of Ice Fire Two Forces, as well as the Seven Styles Ice Fire Mantis Fist, Yang Zhao carefully pondered and integrated them into his own Easy Jing Xuanjian. As for the Dark Sevenfold Heaven, he naturally would not give up. He had already memorized the first three layers of Gongfa mental methods in the secret book in an absolutely dark environment, according to the hints obtained from reading comics before crossing over.
However, he did not start practicing. The training method of the Dark Seven Heavens was too dangerous, and without a determination to die, even the most talented person would absolutely not be able to succeed. And this determination was the most mysterious thing, until the last moment, who could know whether they had made sufficient preparations?
The Battle of the Plank Road was a godsend opportunity. Fan Qinghui had been frustrated repeatedly, and finally revealed his killing intent, refusing to let Yang Zhao continue living. Since both left and right were dead ends, Yang Zhao steeled himself and decided to burn his bridges, destroying the plank road and leaping into the abyss. He was betting on whether he could successfully cultivate the first stage of Dark Heaven before hitting the ground.
This is a gamble that has never been seen before, and the stake is this life. If successful, I can live on. If failed, then just wear it white, die in my heart, go to Naihe Bridge to drink a bowl of Meng Po soup.
The howling wind poured into his ears, and Yang Zhao plummeted downwards like a falling rock. He focused his mind, silently reciting the incantation of the first layer of the Dark Seven Heavens, and the true energy within him began to circulate. In a manner completely different from the predetermined trajectory of the I Ching, he separated the five elements, traversed the three meridians, and finally converged on the seven wheels. Wherever the true energy reached, Yang Zhao's skin rippled like countless earthworms, constantly bulging or sinking. Suddenly, he opened his eyes wide and let out a heart-wrenching roar, as the ice and fire energies burst forth from his body. His skin became crystal clear, with one half of his body engulfed in raging flames, while the other half was frozen in solid ice. It was exactly the same state as when the Tianzhu monk had reached the peak of the Ice Fire Seven Heavens.
His eyes were half red and half blue, overflowing with a crazy killing intent. Yang Zhao's face was twisted, his expression becoming unspeakably ferocious. Suddenly, his right hand fiercely punched his own chest. His left palm, which had been pierced by the flying wing, disregarded its injury and used its elbow to knock open his right fist. In an instant, his two hands were like sworn enemies, engaging in a fierce and intense struggle. To outsiders, it looked incredibly bizarre, as if he had gone mad, and it wouldn't be surprising if they thought his mind was deranged.
Yang Zhao was not a god, but he was in the midst of a desperate life-or-death struggle. In the Dark Seven Heavens, the first and most important thing to break through was the Ice Fire Seven Heavens. Under the drive of his heart method, he naturally simulated the highest state of the Ice Fire Seven Heavens. And due to the powerful spiritual force born from the mouth incantation, a strange and fantastical scene unfolded in his mind. In this illusion, Yang Zhao seemed to see a giant ice fire mantis, as big as a dinosaur, pouncing on him like a wolf and launching a fierce attack. If he couldn't defeat the ice fire mantis before hitting the ground, then his training in the Dark Seven Heavens would fail, and he would end up crushed to pieces, turned into a meat paste.
The steep cliff of Wanli Mountain seemed high and inaccessible, but it was a straight drop down, and it wouldn't take long to reach the ground. Time flew by second by second, and the vast and thick earth was getting closer and closer. While Yang Zhao was trapped in an illusion, he was still fiercely fighting with the ice and fire mantis born from his own spiritual power, without any sign of waking up.
Bai Zhang, eighty Zhang, fifty Zhang, thirty, twenty... The tallest and largest ones of the ancient cypress trees growing in the depths of the mountains and valleys have already begun to make intimate contact with Da Sui Xiao Wang Ye. As soon as their lush branches and leaves came into contact with the two energies of ice and fire, they were either burned fiercely or frozen by the ice, instantly becoming disheveled and losing their shape.
Ten zhang, eight zhang, seven, six, five... Yang Zhao rolled and fell onto the branches and leaves of the trees, suddenly turning upside down. As soon as he landed, his head was the first to bear the brunt of this superpower that had fallen from a height of ten thousand zhang. At this moment, Little King's life was about 99% gone, having already stepped into the gates of hell.
The battle in the fantasy realm was finally coming to an end, with the giant mantis scythe slashing down to behead its prey. Yang Zhao countered with a desperate backhand slash. In reality, Little Wang's palms clashed together, producing a piercing "crack" as his fingers shattered simultaneously. Yang Zhao let out a muffled roar, like a wounded beast, as the ice and fire energies surged forward in unprecedented fashion, coalescing into a massive, lifelike mantis of ice and fire. Suddenly, it exploded into smithereens, as if dozens of explosives had been planted inside its chest and detonated at once!
Three, two, one! When extreme heat meets extreme cold, the two opposing forces that cannot coexist with each other are pressing against each other. Yang Zhao suddenly made time, which normally flows by, pause for a moment in a small space centered on his body. Yang Zhao's body suddenly suspended in mid-air just before it hit the ground. The tremendous force generated by the rapid fall from high altitude was completely cancelled out.
Time stands still, zero point one second!
His eyes gleamed brightly, and the confusion cleared. Yang Zhao instinctively straightened his waist, flipped over, and pushed off with both legs, instantly shooting up like a fire arrow. The refined and pure internal energy circulated in his meridians, flowing endlessly. The internal and external injuries from the previous fierce battle healed rapidly, and he felt an unprecedented surge of vitality throughout his body. He soared above the ancient trees, riding the wind to the edge of the sky, looking up with closed eyes and taking a deep breath. In that instant, he felt as free as the vast sky, unencumbered and unrestricted.
Darkness First Layer Heaven - Great Success!
With a mouthful of true energy almost exhausted, Yang Zhao slowly exhaled it, lightly floating down towards the dense forest below. Compared to the earth-shaking momentum just now, at this moment he was as if without substance, not stirring up even a speck of dust.
Breaking through the limits and enhancing one's power is truly a wonderful feeling. Yang Zhao stood still, savoring the taste for a long time, before reluctantly opening his eyes again to carefully examine his surroundings.
This is obviously a primitive forest that has never been set foot in since ancient times. All around, except for trees, are trees, and the atmosphere of desolation is extremely strong. However, this is not a problem, with Yang Zhao's current martial arts skills, beasts such as lions and tigers cannot threaten him. As long as he can find a water source and identify the correct direction, leaving the forest will only take two or three days at most.
Yang Zhao raised his head again, gazing at the mountain peak he had fallen from earlier. Standing in the valley below, the plank road was now hidden above the white clouds and could no longer be seen clearly. During the days when Ning Dao Qi was imprisoned beneath him, Yang Zhao knew that his opponent possessed the technique of observing the stars. By observing his own birth star, he could determine whether he was alive or dead. He didn't know how Fang Qing Hui was doing now, but it was easy to imagine that once she found out he wasn't dead, there would be a 100% chance she would continue to pursue him. At that time... Heh heh, let her fully taste the power of his newly acquired Dark Seven Heaven's Authority!
Yang Zhao smiled confidently and immediately looked around, quickly finding the "Flying Wing" that had been shot out by the Ice Fire Two Qi earlier. He walked over quickly, pulled this earth-shaking sword from the trunk of the ancient pine tree, and swung it in a sword flower pattern. Remembering the difference between having a sword and not having one when facing Fang Qinghui, he couldn't help but shudder again. Although he didn't know how to use a sword, for safety's sake, this weapon absolutely could not be left behind, only to be picked up by Fang Qinghui again and used against him.
In this world, having a top-notch divine weapon in hand is too important. More than 200 years ago, the son of the leader of the Heaven and Earth Alliance, Mie Xing Shen, cultivated the "Dark Sky Divine Technique" and his martial arts skills were already on par with those of the leader of the Dà Luó Shā Sect and the King of Swallows. However, because he insisted on not using divine weapons, he ultimately died a tragic death at the hands of the Tiger Soul Divine Sword. Although many people admired him for adhering to his principles as a martial artist, in Yang Zhao's opinion, Mie Xing Shen was somewhat inflexible. What's the point of adhering to one's principles if one ends up getting killed?
To survive, to achieve success, one must enhance their strength. And to enhance strength, a suitable divine weapon is absolutely indispensable. Recalling the two sentences that Baiyun had sent to him through the Transmission of Secrets method on Mount Wuzhangyuan, "Dragon swims in Minjiang, respects and welcomes the coming", Yang Zhao vaguely felt that it should be related to the Tian Shenbing Yinyangling, the treasure of the Zhendao sect. The reason why he took risks all the way south and did not return north was because of Fan Qinghui's pursuit, but also because he wanted to go to Minjiang to find the Yinyangling. And along the way, using battles to nourish his own strength, it became the third reason.
A master isn't someone who can be created by locking themselves in a small dark room and practicing for decades. Now that he's finally come out, Yang Zhao also plans to go out and experience more things, meet more people, and absorb more practical experience before returning. Of course, doing so will certainly cause trouble for many people. However, for the sake of his father Yang Guang and his master Mohe Ye, it can be ignored for now. His grandfather Yang Jian and grandmother Empress Dugu are not ordinary elderly people who only know how to spoil their grandchildren; they should understand and support him in doing so. As for his mother, Lady Xiao... sigh, as the saying goes, "a child travels a thousand miles, a mother's worries never end," she will certainly be worried about him. However, if he can contact the imperial court soon and order them to send someone back to report that all is well, it should be able to alleviate his mother's concerns somewhat.
