Chapter 2021: Rising

“Dao Seizing Tendril, seize it now!”

Within the temporal realm, a silvery-white light suddenly shone brilliantly through the darkness. The tendril connecting War Ancestor and Xu Xiaoshou began to tremble violently, emitting wave after wave of powerful suction. It looked as if it intended to completely drain War Ancestor, shriveling him into a husk.

“Ugh!”

War Ancestor’s pupils constricted violently, and he let out a low groan. A searing pain of forced extraction assailed his body, soul, and consciousness, like knives tearing and axes cleaving, as if he were being dissected for complete analysis. He felt his entire being begin to disintegrate, as if torn apart, almost to the point of bodily rupture and death.

“Buzz, buzz, buzz…”

Mystical Dao-essence mist surged. Rainbow-colored streams of light were plundered from War Ancestor’s Dharma Idol and poured frantically into Xu Xiaoshou through the Dao Seizing Tendril.

Compared to War Ancestor’s agony, Xu Xiaoshou at this moment could barely suppress his pleasure, almost letting out a moan. “So… so comfortable…”

It was as if he were enveloped in a warm cocoon; every part of his body, spirit, and intent was protected by an unnamed power. And even though the insights, knowledge, and experience within War Ancestor’s Dharma Idol were immense, under the blessing of the Perfected Path of Intent, they caused Xu Xiaoshou not the slightest harm. He transformed into a massive sponge, endlessly absorbing and demanding, feeling no sense of being oversaturated, only wanting more, always more. With every influx of Dao essence, his understanding of the Body Path, War Path, and the Ancient Martial Arts’ acupoint-piercing techniques deepened significantly.

“Nine Palaces Planar Warfare…”

Xu Xiaoshou witnessed the Ancient Martial Arts’ Nine Palaces that Shen Yi had unveiled when he fought the Demon Ancestor, using the world to assert his self. War Ancestor’s was even more profound; his Nine Palaces encompassed the Dao laws of entire planes, touching not only space but also time. Whatever his mind conceived, his opponents had no escape. Everything could surge forth, be summoned, placed before his fist, and reduced to dust.

It wasn’t just about application or mimicking; even the theoretical understanding was presented to him in meticulous detail: “Two and four for the shoulders, six and eight for the feet, three on the left, seven on the right, nine worn on the head, one trodden underfoot, five residing in the center…”

He read War Ancestor’s concept of the Nine Palaces’ orientations, which he had pondered day and night, scratching his head for years before finally grasping it. He read how War Ancestor, through extensive practice, had applied the theoretical Nine Palaces to both his inner and outer worlds, and by understanding the principle of Yin-Yang balance, found the perfect anchor point for his self. Basic Nine Palaces, Advanced Nine Palaces, Perfect Nine Palaces.

Not only these, but also the Eight Gates of the inner world, the Eight Gates of the outer world, the Seven Mansions of the inner sky, and the Seven Mansions of the outer sky—all abilities Shen Yi had displayed, War Ancestor possessed and mastered them all. Or rather, this was fundamentally a reversal of cause and effect. It was clear that War Ancestor had first paved the path, and Shen Yi had later followed in his footsteps. Shen Yi’s path resembled Ancient Martial Arts, but when he transitioned to the Six Paths and Three Realms, his understanding fell short, and he borrowed the power of Resentment, partially entering the Buddhist Path, thus no longer purely Ancient Martial Arts.

Shen Yi’s Path was undeniably powerful. After all, with the War Path as a combat-oriented Grand Dao and the Buddhist Path as an insight-oriented Grand Dao, the two complemented each other; given time, he had a chance to grow to a height even greater than War Ancestor. But when it came to the pure War Path, who reigned supreme… Without a doubt, it was War Ancestor! He was the pioneer of the Dao, the very first. Everything Shen Yi had mastered, War Ancestor knew; what Shen Yi had not yet grasped, War Ancestor possessed both extensive theoretical understanding and terrifying practical foundation. In a word, it was all blood, sweat, talent, and countless hours of practice!

“The Six Paths…”

“Heavenly Path, Human Path, Hell Path: Intent, Body, Spirit…”

“Hungry Ghost Path, Asura Path, Animal Path: Greed, Anger, Delusion…”

And the techniques of the War Path and Ancient Martial Arts could be combined with the various Paths Xu Xiaoshou himself had mastered, verifying them one by one, proving the fundamental roots of the Dao and its deviations. Xu Xiaoshou almost instantly fell into a state of epiphany.

He couldn’t grasp it all! He simply couldn’t comprehend it all!

The exhilaration of being immersed in that ocean of Grand Dao knowledge was more intoxicating than any acquired Spirit Refining Realm cultivator experiencing drug-induced highs from breathing techniques. He almost lost himself in it. However, due to the unfolding Sea of Intent beneath his feet, he maintained a sliver of his self, anchoring his return, allowing him to fearlessly explore any previously unknown beautiful corner of the Grand Dao.

“The Four Abodes: the discarding of body, spirit, intent, and self…”

“Indeed, War Ancestor had touched upon this concept, but he hadn’t fully organized it or completely grasped it.”

“Instead, he went down a blind alley, reaching a temporary peak by maximally exploiting his body’s potential, sacrificing his self for absolute power.”

Xu Xiaoshou saw the essence, but also found the errors. The War Path naturally had flaws; otherwise, War Ancestor would have already reached Zeroing and become the first among the Ten Ancestors.

“Wrong.”

“The Four Abodes were fundamentally all wrong.”

“If one could use the concept of the Two Poles to apply the Four Abodes, with Yin and Yang mutually dependent, there would be no need for external aid or drugs to activate the Four Abodes.”

“Therefore, Ba Zun’an’s path was more advanced, capable of maintaining the peak state more enduringly. The concept of ‘Yi’ was an absolutely astounding brilliant idea.”

Yet, the situation took a turn, and fortune followed misfortune. Even though the Four Abodes were flawed, the emergence of the Three Realms elevated the War Path by more than just one level. Clearly, at this point, War Ancestor had realized that simply relying on “recklessness” could lead to mistakes, so the Three Realms ascended to the ultimate Path of Intent.

“Sever, Depart, Annihilate…”

“Completely opposite to the Three Realms unveiled by Shen Yi and Resentment, War Ancestor still pursued the path of extreme recklessness.”

“But his application of the Three Realms was simply too wild!”

War Ancestor suddenly shifted from the Body Path to the Intent Path. He precisely located the whereabouts of his consciousness, its geometric outline, and its essence. Then, much like Hua Changdeng peering into the world from a soul perspective, he transitioned from the Body Path to observing the world from a consciousness perspective. Subsequently, he tempered his consciousness in the same manner one tempers the body, creating the Three Realms of Severance, Departure, and Annihilation within his consciousness body. He nurtured them like Calamitous Shadow’s spirit-nurturing techniques and connected with the Path of Intent, linking the consciousness bodies of everyone in the Five Domains.

During normal times, he constantly nurtured and tempered them. In battle, when needing to activate the Three Realms, he would completely abandon his self-consciousness, gaining power in return. But unlike the Four Abodes, where what was discarded couldn’t be retrieved, he divided his self-consciousness into three parts and temporarily placed them into the three realms of the consciousness world he had created.

Using loss to gain power. Using power to fight. At the end of the battle, he would retrieve his self from within the Three Realms. The risk was considerable; if someone reached the extreme of the Intent Path, they could potentially locate his fundamental essence and harm or wound him. However, in that era, no one possessed the strength to cultivate the Intent Path to its extreme, effectively making the risk negligible.

Through this method, War Ancestor didn’t need the blessing of an insight-based Grand Dao like Resentment’s Buddhist Path. He simply held firm to his original intent, maintained his integrity, and could open and close the Three Realms entirely by himself. He used a reckless approach to carve out a path. First, he would discard his mind to fight, and after the battle, he would retrieve it.

“How insane is that?”

Xu Xiaoshou was utterly dumbfounded. Using loss to gain power, and then being able to recover what was lost. In other words, wasn’t this a technique that, once unleashed, could instantly transform him into the ever-changing Zeroing Calamitous Shadow, gaining peak combat state and power, and then, at the end of the battle, allow him to reclaim his past and present self, returning to a weakened state, effectively becoming the strongest Calamitous Shadow?

If this wasn’t madness, what was?

It seemed Calamitous Shadow wasn’t extreme enough! If he could be as extreme as War Ancestor, he wouldn’t need to seize Shennong Hundred Herbs’ body; he could lose and gain power on his own. What a pity. After all, Calamitous Shadow was not War Ancestor. He was caught between being a schemer and a reckless brute, neither succeeding grandly nor settling comfortably. He couldn’t be purely reckless, nor could he outwit others with pure calculation. Being pushed to a dead end was a matter of his nature.

“But when it comes to who’s stronger or weaker…”

“War Ancestor has long since fallen, while Calamitous Shadow is still struggling now…”

From this perspective, Xu Xiaoshou couldn’t easily judge who was fortunate and who was unfortunate.

Within the temporal realm, streams of Dao-rhyme mist surged forth. After enduring the initial pain, War Ancestor’s Dharma Idol gradually adapted. For Xu Xiaoshou, enduring hardship was as difficult as ascending to heaven. Yet, for a martial artist, it was the most natural comfort zone to adapt to.

“I am still whole…”

As he gradually regained consciousness, watching his own Dao insights being heavily plundered, War Ancestor was surprised to find that Xu Xiaoshou’s “Dao Seizing” was fundamentally different from his own understanding of it. Or rather, his entire being was originally condensed from the restrained power within the Origin True Stele, so the concept of being “completely plundered” didn’t apply. Strictly speaking, Xu Xiaoshou merely “copied” his insights and concepts; what he lost, the Origin True Stele would re-condense. And apart from the insights and concepts, the actual physical enhancements gained through practice—the Dao Seizing Tendril had limitations and couldn’t take those away.

“Just barely surviving…”

War Ancestor’s Dharma Idol smiled in relief. Since he wouldn’t die, did this mean there was a real possibility that he could wait until Xu Xiaoshou’s Dao was perfected, and then witness the glory of the Spirit Refining Era? After all, he had emerged from that grey Sovereign Extremity Slash space into the real temporal realm. This meant that after leaving the temporal realm, he would be able to directly confront ancestors like the Demon, Medicine, and Calamitous Shadow, to see them, to interact with them… What did that mean? He could fight! Only combat truly manifested the fundamental meaning of human existence!

Suppressing his fervent desire, War Ancestor’s Dharma Idol looked at Xu Xiaoshou with increasing fondness, practically unable to let him go. “The Nine Palaces, Eight Gates, Seven Mansions, Six Paths, and Four Abodes—all were thoroughly understood and completely mastered in an instant.”

“Even the Three Realms…”

That ultimate combat method, unique to him, Xu Xiaoshou also accepted entirely. After all, under the blessing of the Perfected Path of Intent, he effortlessly opened his personal Three Realms within his consciousness body. In other words, the Three Realms he had painstakingly cultivated for years, Xu Xiaoshou had mastered in an instant.

“What a solid Dao foundation!”

“What perfect talent!”

Who wouldn’t be green with envy upon seeing such a piece of fine jade? War Ancestor wondered if the Demon, Medicine, and Calamitous Shadow were blind. Given their dispositions, how could they have overlooked Xu Xiaoshou and not tried to seize his Dao? Or perhaps, he needed to think from a different angle…

“This prodigy, from the very beginning of his rise, intentionally avoided the attention of the various Ancestors, remaining hidden until now without his monstrous talent being discovered?”

Considering there was also Ba Zun’an in the Five Domains, whom Xu Xiaoshou greatly praised for his “one-step Zeroing,” and who also transcended the Ancestors’ control. It’s likely these two are good brothers, iron buddies, working together, one in the open, one in the shadows.

Brothers! Combat! This is what it means to be a man!

War Ancestor’s eyes burned with renewed fervor. Throughout his life, he had never found a kindred spirit, a brother who could keep pace with him in combat. Xu Xiaoshou had actually found one, which made him so envious.

Furthermore…

“Perfected Path of Intent!”

War Ancestor’s Dharma Idol naturally also saw the Sea of Consciousness beneath Xu Xiaoshou’s feet. Compared to his own Intent Path, which he had only stubbornly explored in one direction within the Three Realms, Xu Xiaoshou’s Intent Path was cultivated too perfectly. A single glance revealed a vast galaxy. This child, barely twenty years old, cultivated multiple Paths, which should have led to chaos, yet he excelled in every single one. Before him, even an Ancestral God would seem like a child wielding a sword. While ignorance might offer bliss, those who truly understood would surely cover their faces in shame and retreat, wouldn’t they?

“The Three Realms, too, were completely grasped.”

Soon after, anyone with discerning eyes could see that Xu Xiaoshou had fully absorbed all insights from War Ancestor’s Three Realms. Yet, at this point, concerning advancement in Ancient Martial Arts techniques, he forcefully halted, ceasing to comprehend the Two Poles.

“Why?” War Ancestor grew anxious. The Path of the Two Poles, further reaching One Sovereign, and then ascending to the Limitless. This was the essence of the War Path; this concept directly led to Zeroing, a brilliant concept that had astonished even the Saint Demon, Medicine Ghost, and Art Calamity.

You, don’t think much of it?

And indeed, War Ancestor’s Dharma Idol observed carefully, and it seemed Xu Xiaoshou truly didn’t think much of it! Or rather, he had already comprehended the paths of the Two Poles, One Sovereign, and the Limitless, and possessed alternatives outside of the War Path.

“A sword…”

Within his body, a renowned sword resided, clearly embodying the mutual dependence of Yin and Yang. Xu Xiaoshou was still, showing no outward signs, but when he gained enlightenment, that sword stirred, occasionally darting out of his body as if for a breath of fresh air. Human is Yin, sword is Yang. When Yin and Yang shifted, through the method of "Yi Gai," a faint trace of the power of One Sovereign was clearly leaked for a brief moment. He had already grasped One Sovereign. And this Yin-Yang balance, along with the concept of "Yi Gai," inherently approached the Limitless path of Zeroing.

“He already possesses a fully mature concept of Zeroing?”

When the four words “body, spirit, intent, self” were mentioned earlier, War Ancestor’s Dharma Idol had thought Xu Xiaoshou was still in the pondering stage. Now it seemed he had clearly pondered them with extreme thoroughness, and even with a main path leading to the Zeroing Ancestral God available, he was looking at other auxiliary paths, desiring even more.

“Greedy!”

“So greedy!”

“Extremely greedy!”

War Ancestor, however, was not disdainful; on the contrary, he was filled with admiration. Because Xu Xiaoshou’s greed was not the insatiable craving of a toad desiring countless swan meats, but a structured, planned, and highly achievable ambition. He wasn’t a toad; he was a golden toad!

“Whoosh…”

The Sea of Consciousness surged, and small consciousness-bodies condensed, commencing their practice and training. Xu Xiaoshou truly just glanced at them and then completely abandoned the Ancient Martial Arts’ Two Poles, One Sovereign, and Limitless paths. He began to absorb insights from the Body Path!

“This…”

A strong sense of loss assailed his heart, leaving War Ancestor somewhat bewildered. His proud path, the path he couldn’t complete, someone else finished it in a different way and then dismissed it? A magnificent Dao lay before him, available for the taking, yet he chose not to seize it?

“Darkness is me, and so is righteousness…”

Only then did War Ancestor understand why Xu Xiaoshou could utter that phrase; his self-definition was too clear. Greedy when it was time to be greedy. When it was time to give up, he could make choices. He had said that the Dao he wanted to seize was the Ancient Martial Arts Path, and the Body Path blended with the War Path. His goal was set, and his actions mirrored it. He rejected anything that might interfere with, control, or influence his self, taking only what aligned with his own plan.

“If this child doesn’t succeed, who possibly can?”

“Body Path Disk.”“Body Path Disk.”