Limitless - Chapter 115: The Truth

Lin Shi sighed, "My master told me that the Solar System is the best place for cultivation. Before long, the various clans from the Mirror World will cross over and head for the Solar System."

"This is going to be catastrophic for us!"

"I was born in the Solar System, which means I was born in the blessed land. I want to learn and understand the Mirror World. This would ensure that we understand our enemies better when they finally make the crossing."

"You are right!" Chu Yu was uncomfortable inside.

To be honest, he did not want to be separated from Shishi like that.

"6000 years ago, our ancestors fought valiantly and many people lay down their lives for this cause."

"They had given us 6000 years of breathing space, sealing our world for that time."

"This seal was made such that the higher one’s cultivation level, the harder it would be for him to enter!"

"My master told me that the breaking point was at the True Lord Realm. Only people at this realm and below can cross over."

"However, if those incredibly powerful forces tried again, they would reinforce the seal."

"This had been working for many years."

"There are still many of our kind in the Mirror World."

"When our ancestors left the Solar System aeons ago, a portion of them chose to move to other solar systems and are currently untraceable, the other portion... set up base in the Mirror World."

"After 6000 years, those people now identify themselves as citizens of the Mirror World."

"They have been completely brainwashed. As such, when we meet them in the future, we must be cautious, don’t treat them like our allies."

"When our world was sealed, many of those powers were greatly weakened, so for now, our world is safe."

"But my master says, soon..."

"For now, there are already many talents in the Mirror World getting ready for the crossover. They are eagerly trying to recruit people."

"Many of them are even saying that they want to come here to hunt, kill the aborigines who are roam this wasteland..."

Chu Yu became more and more solemn, he was fuming!

The center of the world should be a prosperous place!

It should have been like the Tang and Song Dynasties, where people came from every corner of the universe to engage each other!

Yet now, it was a wasteland despised by others. This thought was rather depressing.

However, he knew that his anger now was merely a manifestation of his helplessness.

He swore to himself that he would get stronger, quickly!

Then, they would see who would be the prey!

Lin Shimeng said seriously, "Based on my understanding, our world does not have the most resources, but we do have the most superior resources. Futhermore, our foundation is the deepest! No where else even come close."

"However, when those talents begin to coming in, we, the so called aborigines, will be oppressed. We will find it difficult to fight them; thus, the time we have is not much."

"I have asked my master how do we let others enter the Mirror World. My master told me that even though the Mirror World is the converging point for multiple universes, it has already gone dark and become a world of its own."

"As such, even though the Mirror World was built by the powerful individuals, even they cannot interfere."

"There is no route to enter the Mirror World. Entry is purely based on luck!"

"However, once entry is gained, one will be affirmed by the Mirror World. However, the resources required to return to our original world is way too much for us to handle right now."

"My master never thought that I came from the Solar System. She thinks I am from another universe."

"For 6000 years, the cultivators from the Solar System who have gained entry into the Mirror World are few and far between. Even if they have gained entry, the would hide their identities and keep a low profile."

"This time, in order to return, I had to beg my teacher repeatedly before I got a set of resources. However, when I return, I’m afraid it’ll be difficult for me to return..."

Lin Shimeng’s voice was pained.

Chu Yu was silent. He understood Lin Shimeng’s intent, but after this goodbye, it’ll be very long before they saw each other again.

Even though those talents in the Mirror World think that they can cross over soon, that time frame for a cultivator... could be between three to five years, or even three to five centuries.

For a powerful cultivator, the concept of time was foreign to them.

In comparison with 6000 years, another thousand years would just be another stroke of the hand.

"Then, Shishi, what is your current cultivation level?" Chu Yu asked solemnly.

"Elementary King’s Realm." Lin Shimeng did not hesitate to tell Chu Yu her real cultivation level.

"..." Chu Yu had expected Lin Shimeng to have attained Xiantian, but he did not expect that she would have attained King’s Realm in such a short time frame.

This was shocking!

"The resources there are too good, my Divine Lady Scripture can be fully utilised!"

"However, my cultivation level is nothing over there, it is barely noticeable."

"All of my seniors in the institution are at least Supreme Realm cultivators. Those in the best institutions are even in the True Lord realm..."

Lin Shimeng sighed, "To be honest, our talent is not necessarily worse than them, and our pace is not slow."

"But our world has been sealed for 6000 years and the resources... are too little!"

"Oh yes, I have brought over some medicines and teachings from the Mirror World. I will hand them over to you personally when we meet at the Heaven Lake.

"Also, I plan to teach those idiots a lesson before I leave. They don’t know anything, they only know how to fight aimlessly!"

"Based on your cultivation level, you can definitely whip them..." Chu Yu smiled.

"I just want to let them know that they are really weak!"

Lin Shimeng said faintly, "After I leave, I hope you will concentrate on your cultivation. Don’t partake in those things that do not concern you. Our enemy is not within."

"I understand." Chu Yu agreed, but he felt helpless.

Now that he knew of the existence of the Mirror World, he knew part of the truth of the catastrophic robbery which took place 6000 years ago.

However, the issue remained... most people on this earth didn’t know!

They were still day dreaming!

Fighting to be in control!

Even if this was revealed, it would not do anything much... other than incite mass pandemonium.

It was just as if we had learnt of the apocalypse suddenly. Other than fear and pandemonium, what else could we do?

After switching off his messenger, Chu Yu could not find peace. Previously, he had been excited about understanding the art of pill refining. However, now, he was solemn.

He did not think that the catastrophe 6000 years ago had happened this way.

As the home of cultivation and the center of the universe, it had been robbed in such vicious fashion.

Countless powers salivated at the thought of attacking and occupying this place.

Come of their ancestors had laid down their lives in the defence of this place! They had fought valiantly to repel the invasion!

Finally, that group of ancestors had used the remnants of their energy to seal the entire Solar System.

They used their lives to protect their homeland!

Maybe back then those powerful ancestors had already known that their defences would be broken through one day.

But they had already done their best!

Perhaps, one of these days, those powerful beings would return if they still lived in the ancient monuments and continue defending this land with their lands.

However, were we as descendants going to be bystanders and not try to help?

Maybe even become prey and punching bags for the talents in the Mirror World?

No!

Definitely not!

I will never agree to that!

Chu Yu’s eyes became red with fury and he took a deep breath to try to calm himself down.

Cultivate!

Now that he had broken through all 12 of his true meridians, he still had another eight meridians to go.

Chu Yu prepared to break through the rest in the fastest time and enter the Xiantian Realm!

First, he had to breakthrough the Conception Meridian and the Governor Meridian!

In the ancient stories, it was said that breaking through these meridians will make one a martial art expert.

That was the truth.

However, the people who could really breakthrough these two meridians were rare!

Some of the most talented were born with these two meridians flowing smoothly.

As a result, they reaped much greater rewards and progressed much faster than anyone else.

There were even those who were invincible in their teens!

Even without considering the little metal ball in his forehead, Chu Yu had the saint’s superclass for foundation cultivation as well as the support of the Killing Days Heart Technique.

In the foundation stages, such conditions were most superior.

There was no reason why he would not be able to match those talents!

It was three days to the battle between Lin Shimeng and Chai Yue

Chu Yu calmed himself down and began cultivating.

November the third, 2056, the Northern Heaven Lake was filled with people!

Many people rushed over upon hearing the news that Lin Shimeng had accepted the challenge.

Previously, many were content with watching the broadcast. However, this time, they wanted to watch the battle with their own eyes.

As such, when Chu Yu arrived, the place was already packed full of people.

It was early November, and the cold north had already begun to snow.

However, due to the difference in the physiques of people, most of the people wore thin clothes but did not feel cold.

When the live broadcast begun, social media was abuzz about this uneven fight.

Almost everyone felt that Lin Shimeng was too irrational.

How could she be so brash?

If the disciples of China’s ancient sects do not dare to make a peep, why do you accept the challenge?

This was akin to using an egg to smash a rock, suicidal!

It was no exaggeration to say that even Lin Shimeng’s most loyal fans did not believe in her.

They all thought that if Chai Yue was vicious enough, Lin Shimeng was bound to die!

Lin Shimeng arrived, accompanied by the confusion, pity, and sighs of the crowd.

She wore a body hugging white dress which showed off her slender hips. Her snow white skin glimmered!

She wore a pair of crystal high heels. Her 1.8m tall body was perfect, neither too fat nor too thin, she was the embodiment of perfection.

Her presence caused the crowd to pale.

Her long flowing hair rested on her shoulders and her exquisite face broke out in a smile.

The chilly air did not seem to affect her. Without any hesitation, she began scaling the mountain.

Her presence caused a huge stir.

Limitless - Chapter 114: Mirror World

Many of them felt enraged!

Of these seven people, five of them were foreigners!

Even though they were all of Chinese blood, they did not seem to care about their fellow men.

In challenging those on the Heaven’s Pride board, they showed no mercy, killing three instantly. Eight others were seriously injured to the point of being ruined.

The remaining few were all seriously injured. The best of them still had to be bedridden for months.

This was not just a challenge and sharing of techniques, this was completely inhumane towards those on the Heaven’s Pride Board.

To make things worse, one of the seven had said that in the 33 years since the world recovered, there was no one in China who was decent!

The only one who barely made it, Song Hong, was dead.

Other than him, they were all trash!

This statement angered too many people, and even included many of the talents in China’s ancient sects.

Some of the disciples of the ancient sects rose to challenge, but they were all smashed by him.

Then, he posted again on social media, "With countless ancient sects in the whole of china, is there no one who is my match?

What is the Heaven’s Pride Board? A children’s playground?"

"There is only one person left, a lady named Lin Shimeng. I heard that she is a beauty. I don’t know where you are hiding, but if you see me, please step out. If I like you, I’ll accept you as my servant."

The most active of the group said on social media.

On the 30th of October 2056, one week after everyone on the Heaven’s Pride Board had been defeated.

Lin Shimeng came out of isolation, and accepted the challenge!

"Chai Yue isit? See you at the Heaven Lake in the Northern Territories in three days, on the third of November! Also, bring all seven of you." Lin Shimeng replied on social media.

Lin Shimeng’s challenge had stunned many people.

Hundreds of them tried to persuade Lin Shimeng against fighting.

Any one of the seven were easily Xiantian Realm cultivators.

What was Lin Shimeng’s cultivation level previously?

Advanced Acupoint Charging Stages?

Too weak!

There is no way she is a match for them!

Furthermore, she wants to fight all seven of them... that is courting death!

She must be crazy!

"Goddess Lin, please don’t fall into the trap, ignore them!"

"They are just a group of people who don’t know their roots, don’t bother about them."

"You will always be a Heaven’s Pride and a goddess in our hearts, don’t go and fight!"

Lin Shimeng did not reply to these statements.

Very quickly, there was an announcement - this battle would be broadcast worldwide.

Turn back the clock by one day, on the night of the 29th, Lin Shimeng came out of isolation.

In the shortest amount of time possible, she tried to understand what was going on.

Then, she switched on her messenger and looked at the various messages. The first one she chose to see was Chu Yu’s.

"Brother Song says that there are treasures in the nooks."

Lin Shimeng looked at the sentence, stupefied. After a while, she took a deep breath and called Chu Yu.

"Shishi, you’re finally out, how was it? What cultivation level are you now?"

"Let me tell you, in the time that you’ve been in isolation, you’ve missed so many great shows..."

"Also, there have been a few idiot bananas [1] who are challenging everyone, please don’t bother about them."

Chu Yu did not even give a chance for Lin Shimeng to get angry and he rattled on for what seemed like ages.

Lin Shimeng listened quietly, her expression changing from anxious to happy multiple times.

Chu Yu spoke for almost 10 minutes and recounted all of the incidents that had happened.

He finally stopped.

"You’re done?"

"Mm..."

"Then tell me, what treasures are there in the nooks?" Lin Shimeng’s tone was dangerous, like a small cat extending its sharp claws.

"Shishi, as for that, you have to listen to my explanation."

"Mm, I’m listening." Lin Shimeng wore a smile, but her tone was flat.

"Mm, you do know the situation then..."

"Mm, I do." Lin Shimeng replied flatly.

"You’re... not angry?" Chu Yu was cautious.

"I am not angry, you did that to protect me, why should I be angry? Wouldn’t that be very immature of me? You know that I am not willful." Lin Shimeng smiled lightly.

"Ok Shishi, I admit that I made a mistake this time, I didn’t think it through..."

"Ok la, I was just a little disappointed and thought that you should have come clean with me at the first possible opportunity. However, upon deeper thought, it really wasn’t suitable for you to tell me."

Lin Shimeng smiled, "But, aren’t you afraid I would fall for Song Hong?"

"I believe that our relationship can survive any trial!"

"Mm, no matter what, that will not change." Lin Shimeng replied seriously, then she said, "Chu Yu, do you know why I’ve been in isolation for so long?"

"I was wondering too, it shouldn’t need to take so long."

Lin Shimeng said, "I may have to leave... this place! Maybe it’ll be temporary, maybe... it’ll be for a long time."

"What do you mean?" Chu Yu was confused.

"I know some things, some... things that have to do with the apocalypse 6000 years ago." Lin Shimeng said.

Chu Yu was silent, his attention fully on her.

"The world that we live in, mm, our entire universe, has a border and an end, in theory at least!

Chu Yu was astounded, the universe was supposed to be endless.

The word universe meant limitless!

Both space and time were embodied in the word universe!

That was the meaning of universe!

Timeless and limitless!

Even according to the hypothesis of modern science, there was no way of finding the ends of the universe.

The universe extended to billions of light years away.

Lin Shimeng said, "The concept of the universe, and what we know now... is inherently different. Do you still remember what is said in the Buddhist Scriptures?"

"One needs to return to their roots?" Chu Yu asked.

"Yes."

Lin Shimeng smiled and said, "The world actually has a universe which is timeless and limitless. In order to travel within the universe, say, to a place light years away..."

"Even a saint, which can travel thousands of miles a minute will need a long time on the road."

"As such, the best way is to travel using the network of black holes."

Bending space and the black hole theory were not foreign to Chu Yu.

Even before the earth had recovered, some scientists had suggested this, but the technology at that time was insufficient for experimentation.

However, such a theory had already been proven. Even quantum mechanics were all real and proven.

The knowledge of humans were limitless. These ideas had been brought up in the ancient times and had even been used by many of the powerful cultivators.

"The universe we live in, according to some, is the center."

Lin Shimeng’s voice was clear, "To be exact, it is the central region."

"And our entire solar system is the center... of the central region!"

"This isn’t the physical meaning of center, but rather the "cultivation" center!"

"This land is special and magical. The sanctuaries here are much simpler than in other places!"

"That means that people are many times more likely to succeed here!"

"However, it is very difficult to enter this region. One require major costs and sacrifice, and success is not a given."

"In order to enter our solar system, this center, is even more difficult!"

"6000 years ago, countless powerful individuals paid a huge price and tried to cross over and break through the walls of the central region. They failed, but not completely!"

"Someone managed to breakthrough and leave a passageway."

"Else, our world would not have been robbed like that."

"The universes are not separated as what we previously thought, in fact, there are points of overlap!"

"As such, until now, the billions of light years of space that we have explored could contain countless other universes. Some of these are far away, others are right next to us."

"However, because they are in a different plane, we cannot sense their existence."

"Under normal circumstances, this overlap does not have any effect."

"However, at the point where the most number of universes intersect, this place is called the Mirror Dimension!"

"It can link multiple universes!"

"When those powerful individuals retreated, they opened up a new world in the Mirror Dimension. They built a society there, recuperating and hiding, awaiting their next opportunity."

"That world is called the Mirror World."

As Lin Shimeng spoke, Chu Yu became more and more solemn.

This was an ancient event, over 6000 years ago. The people who knew about this were rare.

"When I was in isolation training with the Divine Lady Scripture, I accidentally connected with a door to the Mirror World. As such, I was lured into it."

As Lin Shimeng spoke, she sighed softly.

Her experiences during this time was almost like a dream!

It was hard to believe, even now when she thought about it, it still seemed dreamlike.

In the Mirror World, almost all of the universal sects had Heaven’s Pride cultivators. Anyone of them could stun anyone on this earth.

"That world is much more complicated than the one we live in! There are a lot more races although more than half take on a human form."

"The leader of the Mirror World is the sect that was formed by the powerful individual who attacked the solar system back in the day. The rest are those who had joined from the various universes, as well as their descendants."

Lin Shimeng had joined a San Liu school inside the Mirror World. The techniques that she had learnt could not be found anywhere on this earth!

"Those Heaven’s Prides are too scary. I did not feel a sense of belonging there. I am not scared of you laughing at me..."

Lin Shimeng sighed, "Even the ordinary slaves in the San Liu school were much stronger than me!"

Chu Yu listened silently as Lin Shimeng recounted her extraordinary experiences. Even though he was smart, it took time for him to digest all the information.

"There, due to my physique, I went to find a master. She does not know where I come from, but she is good to me."

"I can’t even begin to guess her cultivation level, but she must be at least a Divine Lord. She is well respected in the institution. Ever since I became her disciple, my life has become a lot easier."

Lin Shimeng laughed lightly, "Oh ya, my master changed my name. She thinks that I should be called Lin Shi, without the meng, because dreams... are things for the ordinary people. I also think Lin Shi is better, what do you think?"

"Mm, I’ve always called you Shishi instead of Mengmeng, because I had foresight." Chu Yu joked as he tried to liven the mood.

He had a premonition of what was about to happen.

[1] banana is a derogatory term used to describe an Asian who has completely forgotten his roots.

Limitless - Chapter 113: Pill Analysing Technique

Yu Rui wept and told her ancestor Yu Tong how much she trusted Yang Xiaofeng. The Three Leaves Sect trained and nurtured Yang Xiaofeng since he was young. Who knew that he had become such an ungrateful b*stard!

Not only did he betrayed Yu Rui's trust, he also invoked tension between the Three Leaves Sect and the Wu Clan of Qing Hai. He even ruined the Spiritual Concentration Formation!

If this b*stard was captured, only when his soul is extracted and hacked into millions of pieces, will the deep hatred be quelled.

Today, things have finally come to light.

Even though there were not enough evidence to determine that Yang Xiaofeng was the culprit, the facts have already clearly lead to that notion.

Yang Xiaofeng is deemed to be the culprit whether or not it is the truth!

To be frank, at the end of this matter, Yu Rui of Three Leaves Sect have to find someone to blame.

Although she was deceived by Yang Xiaofeng, this situation made her looked dumb.

However, from another point of view, it could also be seen as how much Yu Rui trusted her disciples, with the exception of Yang Xiaofeng. He is an anomaly and is worse than a beast! He betrayed her trust!

No matter what, blaming Yang Xiaofeng is surely much better than taking the blame herself.

The ancestor of the Three Leaves Sect, Yu Tong, has been listening attentively in silence. In the end, he sighed and said, "Forget it, let's momentarily put aside the disputes with the Chu Clan..."

"Why? Ancestor, if it weren’t for the Chu Clan, we wouldn’t be in this predicament today. Also, the Chu Clan has…"

Yu Rui became anxious and her face was filled with grief as she did not want to go against the ancestor’s wishes.

"If the Chu Clan was easy to handle, would we have lost so much? If he was someone you raised since young, why would he betray you? What benefits did the Chu Clan promised him?"

Yu Tong gave Yu Rui a cold look and boomed, "It is a matter of time that the Chu Clan will be exterminated, but the time is not now! Right now, our most important thing is to train and progress! Let's choose this place here to rebuild our sect since the Feng Shui here is not bad. It will also make the Chu Clan restless."

Yu Rui wanted to continue but Yu Tong had flung his sleeves and walked off.

He suffered heavy injuries and required a place to recover.

The Spiritual Concentration Formation is no longer reliable. If it remains here, it was reckoned that their injuries would worsen.

…

The crisis have been averted.

The Chu Clan celebrated!

The result was hugely unexpected

Even Master Chu Tianyu and second Master Chu Tiannan did not expect things to end up like this.

They trusted Chu Yu without a doubt, but in their eyes, he is still a child.

"The new waves of Yangtze River pushes those in front!" Chu Tianyu let out an uncontrollable sigh.

"The new generation replaces the old!" Chu Tiannan said emotionally.

Chu Yu felt awkward as the seniors of the Chu Clan praised him. His face flushed red from embarrassment.

Those that did not know Chu Yu personally would misjudged him as a shy person.

Fortunately, the large majority of the Chu Clan were not clear on the specifics of the process.

Otherwise, they will despise Chu Yu.

Someone almost died because of you and yet you are still able to act shy and embarrassed?

Chu Tianyu and Chu Tiannan were tight-lipped on this matter.

If not this will lead to greater problems for Chu Yu and the Chu Clan.

Saying is easy. However, in reality, it is a double edged sword. A slight mistake could result in the situation to be beyond redemption.

Chu Yu had the entire situation under control. His understanding on how the major characters think has reached to a whole new level.

Saying is easy, but to let it become a reality is much tougher.

One wrong step could lead to a different outcome.

To be gifted, smart and humble... of course, being humble was just their own point of view.

No matter what, there would always be biasness towards children from their own clan.

They had already received the news that the Three Leaves Sect had chosen a place to build their Sect school.

How can you stand having someone hostile sleeping so close to you?]

The problem now is that the Chu Clan is definitely no match for the Three Leaves Sect.

Although the Three Leaves Sect had suffered heavy losses, they are still a threat.

They are of no comparison with the ancient legacy that had the same rank as them, but compared to the Chu Clan, they are still a huge monster.

It is impossible for the Chu Clan to move.

Chu Yu was puzzled about the current situation. Under such circumstances, after being badly beaten in the battle, the Three Leaves Sect should have retreated.

Instead they chose to stay.

If the Three Leaves Sect were to do this just to threaten the Chu Clan and make them uneasy… it seems too childish.

Perhaps, there is something in the Chu Clan that is attracting them!

Chu Yu asked the two clan masters in private if there is anything special about the Chu Clan.

Chu Tian Yu pondered and replied, "There is really nothing special other than the higher spiritual energy."

"Of course, we chose this place because of its Feng Shui which suggests that the land is very valuable," Chu Tiannan added.

Chu Yu frowned and thought deeply.

"Why? Do you think that the Three Leaves Sect has ulterior motives for our land?" Chu Tiannan asked Chu Yu.

Chu Yu nodded, "I believe that the spiritual energy alone is not enough to impress them."

Thinking about the Spiritual Concentration Formation of the Three Leaves Sect only strived to further validate Chu Yu’s point.

How is it possible for the Spiritual Concentration Formation from an ancient sect to stay put just for the land’s spiritual energy?

Chu Tianyu and Chu Tiannan also thought about this. They looked at each other, puzzled.

Chu Yu laughed bitterly, "In the olden days, the Chu Clan was just an average clan. They have a pathetic amount of skills to pass on to their future generations. I don’t see a problem here."

Chu Tiannan laughed bitterly, "If we knew that there was any treasure here in our land, we would have taken it already!"

Chu Yu agreed.

Soon after, Chu Yu bid the clan masters farewell and strolled off.

He could not think of any reason why such a place would attract the Three Leaves Sect.

He had a tinge of regret. He should not have let Yang Xiaofeng exposed him so early. However, the situation was not for him to dictate.

Who knew that the vertical eye would explode so suddenly and took back the aura at an instance. Even Spiritual Concentration Formation was not sparred.

Chu Yu sighed and felt slightly despondent.

When Chu Yu returned to his residence, he quickly resumed his training.

Training past his limitations has enabled him to better appreciate the wealthy knowledge the Immortal Crane Pill Scripture has to offer.

For the past few days, the tension with the Three Leaves Sect has prevented him from gaining any enlightenment.

Now that the crisis have been averted, Chu Yu resumed his studies and rigorous training at the Immortal Crane Pill Scripture.

The rate of recovery of the world started increasing and a large number of warriors emerges. Chu Yu has to quickly improve his strength in order to deal with any possible complications.

"Pill Analysing Technique?"

Chu Yu gave a light frown and his eyes glimmered.

He could not help but blurted out, "F*ck, there is such a technique?"

Chu Yu was surprised and began studying the Pill Analysing Technique."

As he delved deeper, he felt the great prowess of the Immortal Crane Pill Scripture, which was far beyond his imagination.

It consist of all sorts of complex knowledge!

It gets harder to comprehend as well!

It helps greatly with the consumption of spiritual power.

Chu Yu finally understood the need to become stronger. The stronger one becomes, the more knowledge one can acquire from the Immortal Crane Pill Scripture.

For example, Chu Yu can only see the words ‘Pill Analysing Technique’. The following sentences requires a lot of pondering.

And there are days where he could not comprehend anything at all.

As his comprehension deepens, Chu Yu was filled with joy!

He finally understood why so many people were crazy over attaining the Saint’s Legacies.

It was really powerful!

The Pill Analysing Technique is a profound complex knowledge system!

It does not consist of just the study of medicine.

For example, there were toxic pills. When Chu Yu was in the Three Leaves Sect, he heard that the big crocodile was merely a puppet, but he questioned on why the toxic pills would be able to poison and kill the puppet.

According to puppetry, no matter how lively the puppet looks, it is still a deceased animal.

How could a deceased be poisoned to death again?

This was very abnormal!

All this while, Chu Yu had been able to decipher these thoughts; until he learnt a portion of the profound meanings behind the Pill Analysing Technique.

Thereafter, when he used this understanding to analyse the toxic pill, he finally understood the reason.

The strength of the toxic pill is not solely based on its medicinal properties but the strength of the toxicity it contained as well.

Inside, it contains information about the herbs extracted from the various elements, refined to the molecular, atomic level.

In the process of the pill concoction, where modern science was unable to explain, every pill is able to be cultivated to become something similar to a nuclear bomb.

In other words, when the toxic pill begins to take effect, every atom is similar to a miniature nuclear bomb.

It is highly toxic!

Once attached it will explode!

Even if we reached to the level of the true lord realm and attained an indestructible body, a moment of carelessness could allow the intrusion of this miniature nuclear bombs into our system.

Explosions would then occur in our body!

Such a display of destructive force is rarely seen but it is definitely frightening!

The poison will flow into our veins, arteries and bones. When the explosion occurs, it would result in a fatal blow.

This is the real prowess of the toxic pills.

It is low in cost and there is a high abundance in raw material. It is definitely the ultimate weapon.

It is recorded that in the year the Crane Saint attained this technique, it was used very cautiously.

The technique was recorded in the Immortal Crane Pill Scripture and the knowledge was not leaked out.

Of course, at the true lord realm, there are a myriad of superpowers and the people are not easily deceived by an attack.

Although that big crocodile from before is from the true lord realm, it is still a dead being.

The toxic pill would be a nightmare for those below the true lord realm!

The Pill Analysing Technique is indeed a powerful and explosive source of knowledge.

In the past, Chu Yu didn't know the theories behind concocting pills, he could only concoct pills according to the pill formula.

Now, he understood the nature of pill cultivation.

The composition of each pill, the percentage of what herbs should be used and their purpose...

This knowledge was not only limited to toxic pills, but all pills as well. Once Chu Yu internalises the technique, he will be able to discover all of its secrets.

Only after studying the Pill Analysing Technique, one can understand the theories of pill cultivation and therefore enter the highest level of alchemy.

Otherwise, one is just another pill processor!

This is similar to the workers that manages the assembly line in a modern factory. They handle the production but never understood the principles behind the pill production.

If they were to leave the assembly line, they will never be able to replicate the process.

23 October 2056, autumn.

Seven disciples of the ancient heritage challenged the Chinese Heaven's Pride Board, besides Lin Shimeng who was cultivating behind closed doors and did not respond to the challenge. The others from the top 20 lost desperately.

In that moment, China was in a state of uproar!

Limitless - Chapter 112: The Miserable Three Leaves Sect

Fortunately, this live broadcast is transmitted through satellite. If it was not, both sides of the battle would not have been properly captured.

Yet, almost no one can distinguish the two sides of the battle – they were only able to catch glimpses of light and shadow.

Chu Yu stood far away and raised his head to the sky.

Deep in his heart, there was a powerful sense of admiration when he looked at the two terrifying cultivators fight.

This should be how the Earth Gods are, right?

He could not resist opening the vertical eye in his forehead to look beyond the skies and analyse the battle between the two ancestors.

By scrutinizing with his vertical eye, Chu Yu finally understood their fighting techniques.

Instead of utilising any weapons, the ancestors depended purely on their pure energy to conjure a variety of magical equipments to attack and kill the opponent.

Sword, spear, dagger, halberd, battle-axe, hook, fork … These are amongst the numerous other assortments of weapons the ancestors could conjure any time they wanted.

Sadly, these weapons could not be seen with the naked eye!

Only huge rays of light could be observed.

This was the true powers of sacred art!

Only old monsters that have lived for thousands of years could have used such remarkable methods!

Chu Yu stared intently and thought, If pure energy is used in the same realm, it can directly determine the outcome!

Of course, if those who used it to attack the cultivators are not proper warriors, they might lose their senses if they are lucky, but if they are not, they might even die.

So, that’s how pure energy is utilised in the realm of the cultivators…

Chu Yu focused and watched raptly, absorbing as much information as he can.

He stood there and watched happily whereas the Three Leaves Sect Elders, Yu Rui, and the people wept.

Who would have thought that attacking such an insignificant clan did not result in their defeat but instead led to such a big loss.

In this situation, with an entire army overwhelmed… there is no more hope.

"Dammit… where did the problem come from?"

"We were getting along fine, why did the Wu Clan of Qing Hai rush here?"

"Even if the two storage rings that we got came from Wu Clan of Qing Hai, how would they know if nobody told them?"

"How… how did we land up in this stage?"

"No… it is definitely not a coincidence!"

"No one provoked them, so how could we allow this unreasonable monster, who have no regard for his status, attack us?"

Yu Rui frowned and pondered deeply. She thought about it and had a sudden realization that the person who found out about this issue the earliest was Yang Xiaofeng from Wu Clan.

That intelligent child…

Yes, really intelligent. Thinking about it, she couldn’t help but smile.

She even personally sent him for Spiritual Concentration Formation… with all intention to shape him into a good role model for Three Leaves Sect!

However, the more she thought about it, the more it felt like something was off.

Was each and everyone of Yang Xiaofeng’s actions normal? Did he act like other normal human beings?

Upon discovering the corpse in the Supreme Realm, a normal person’s reaction would either be to flee far away, or… to find valuable treasure on the corpse.

However, Yang Xiaofeng was not even the slightest bit perturbed. He still ran back to report.

Is there really anyone in this world who, when faced with such a huge temptation would not even feel the slightest bit tempted?

Well, even if there is such a person with such extreme kindness and honesty, but before he entered the Spiritual Concentration Formation, he posted the card which still posed a big problem!

At that time, the child looked very simple and innocent, but in actual fact, he was loyal and devoted to the other sect.

But now that they thought about it, was it because he wanted to disclose something on purpose?

Right now, if someone informed the Wu Clan of Qing Hai on Yang Xiaofeng’s suspicious actions and on the card he posted, and if they probed deeper…

A sudden cold shiver ran through Yu Rui’s spine.

She could become the head of Three Leaves Sect, without relying on the fact that she is the direct descendent of Yu Tong.

Other than that, she is also quite intelligent.

Now, she could almost conclude that this Yang Xiaofeng… is a very problematic person!

Yu Rui, faced with the gloomy prospect of taking out the communication device, and not caring if her words could be picked up by the audience watching the live broadcast, commanded, "Hold on to the big door of the Spiritual Concentration Formation and come out, Yang Xiaofeng!"

A timid voice squeaked, "Sect Leader, I was about to inform you that… there is no more spiritual activity in Spiritual Concentration Formation already. It’s as if… it has disappeared!"

Thud!

The communications device on Yu Rui’s hands fell to the floor. She was in complete disbelief!

The building of Spiritual Concentration Formation has almost exhausted the resources that the Three Leaves Sect took thousands of years to set up.

That was the blood and sweat of countless of people!

They… they have now disappeared!

"AHHHH! Yang Xiaofeng… you are a traitor! I will shred you into thousands of pieces!"

Yu Rui was almost going crazy from anger. She headed towards the direction of Three Leaves Sect at lightning speed.

There were a few of the Supreme Realm Elders left, who gazed at each other in speechless despair. Their mournful faces were etched with loss and they were unaware of what was happening.

Seeing the Sect Leader storming away, the Elders could only hurriedly remove the remaining few survivors of the Three Leaves Sect who were seriously wounded and left with her.

At this moment, beyond the clouds, there finally was a clear winner in the battle between the two cultivators.

Wu Jianghai from Wu Clan of Qing Hai prepared to use his most vicious skill which seriously injured Yu Tong, who fled in panic.

Wu Jianghai was also slightly injured, but it was nothing serious.

At this moment, everyone from Wu Clan of Qing Hai walked out from afar.

They headed towards the ancestor and bowed. In unison they shouted, "Thank you cultivator for protecting us!"

Wu Jianghai shook his head and let out a big sigh.

This fight was not what he wanted.

After this battle, Three Leaves Sect and Wu Clan of Qing Hai had become enemies.

From today onwards, there would be endless conflict between both parties.

This would bring honour and glory to the whole world!

Who is willing to lay down before dawn?

"From today onwards, we must be more careful and warn our disciples not to provoke the enemy," Wu Jianghai gazed at the horizon and then looked to the skies.

"Alright, it’s about time we packed up, there’s nothing much to see anymore."

With this sentence, the live broadcast had stopped.

However, this only meant that the internet craze had just begun.

Countless of people had witnessed a great battle between the cultivators.

Even though they could not see anything clearly – they could only see flashes of light colliding – this did not stop them from gushing about the battle.

"Wow, such great power actually exists in this world, I always thought that the martial artists of Invigorated Meridian Stage have the actual power."

"According to the Gods of the ancient mythology, do they actually exist? They fly around the earth freely and have the power to move mountains and seas. They are almost akin to the Gods!"

"Today is really an insightful day. After having lived for so many years, I found out that this world contains such powerful humans."

"Comparing today’s battle with the major sci-fi productions filmed by the western countries, I feel that those actors with superpowers are so unrealistic. Today is when I realised how naive I was. In the eyes of the ancestors from China, those ‘superheroes’ are so pathetic!"

Far away at Xiao Zhen, a few decades have passed, but majority of people in this world still have not changed much.

Humans only realised that their sky is blue and that their water is clear. They have become stronger and healthier and were able to live longer.

The sight of people queuing up in hospitals have long since disappeared. Patients in today’s hospitals are sparse and infrequent.

From a layman’s point of view, there is actually no profound change and impact.

Compared to a few decades ago, there is no fundamental change to society at all.

To the whole world, the live broadcast today was considered to be the one that is the most insightful and impactful broadcast ever.

It may even become a legacy in history!

The mysterious mythical world, ancient mythology and legends… has finally, for the first time, unravelled a part of its mysterious veil to the whole world.

Truth Sect and Rainfall ancient school opened a fantasy institution on Earth, which made everything livelier!

The Wu Clan of Qing Hai could not care less about the people of Chu Clan. They did not even bother acknowledging the Chu Clan. A small family like the Chu Clan could be destroyed with very little effort.

This would happen without attracting any attention!

Under the leadership of the cultivator, Wu Jianghai, they headed towards the north.

They also intended to visit the historical site.

It was a place that had caused them great losses and suffering, with a heavy price to pay. If there was nothing beneficial that can be obtained from it, then it would be of no use.

Back to Three Leaves Sect.

Yu Rui, the Sect Leader, was so livid because she had flown back a few hundred miles without stopping!

The house of Spiritual Concentration Formation was barren, just like how Yang Xiaofeng had disappeared into nothingness.

Yu Rui spurted a mouthful of blood and roared towards the sky.

"Yang Xiaofeng…. How dare you deceive me! I will definitely hunt you down and shred you into thousands of pieces! AAAAAAAHHHHH!"

Yu Rui collapsed and burst into tears.

She speculated that Yang Xiaofeng had been bribed by the Chu Clan.

If not, why would he dare to betray his own clan?

"Capture all those people involved with Yang Xiaofeng instantaneously… I will kill them all! With my own hands!"

Yu Rui hollered resentfully, "Chu Clan… an eye for an eye! I will make you pay sooner or later! I will destroy your whole clan!"

The whole of Three Leaves Sect was shrouded in a veil of anguish and rage.

The people left in the Sect had long since watched the entire exchange through the live broadcast.

All the people were sullen, their hearts filled with dissatisfaction and animosity.

They do not understand, why will it become like this?

At this moment, someone can to report again, "Sect Leader, bad news, bad news! A few of our disciples ate that crocodile meat… and died from food poisoning!"

Aiya!

Yu Rui, the Sect Leader, swayed a few times, before she spurted out blood again.

A Supreme Realm even lifted his eyes to the sky.

She was so infuriated that she felt her lungs were going to explode.

"Idiot! Are they pigs? That crocodile… is a puppet. Is that edible?" Another Supreme Realm of Three Leaves Sect bellowed, almost spewing out blood as well.

The discipline who reported the news to Three Leaves Sect smiled bitterly and uttered, "The crocodile meat was very fresh and it smelled delicious. The disciplines had also checked with the ancient books and have found out that this crocodile is a beast that is the best out of the best. Everything was similar compared to the normal creatures. They were also curious too…"

Grief and indignation was written all over Yu Rui’s face, "Curious my ass! We are risking our lives outside while this bunch of assholes dared to stay at home to drink beer and celebrate! Serve them right! Serve them right for dying from food poisoning!"

The disciple who reported the news to Three Leaves Sect bowed his head. His heart was filled with indignation, Weren’t you the one that asked us to prepare a feast for you so that we could have a party when you come back?

Those Three Leaves Sect’s disciplines were the ones in charge of the logistics. They wanted to take advantage of the opportunity before the crowd came, to try out the meat of the spiritual beast that is of top quality. They believed that their skills would be enhanced once they eat the meat.

In the end, tragedy befell upon them. Not all did their skills remain the same, but their lives had been lost.

The cultivator of Three Leaves Sect, Yu Tong, appeared at this very instant. He was seriously injured, badly battered and dispirited.

Once a bunch of people saw him, they immediately rushed over to pay their respects to him.

Yu Tong waved his hand and solemnly announced, "That huge crocodile is an ancient poisonous crocodile, only people who are ignorant and foolish would eat it. They got more than what they bargained for. Serve them right!"

One of the deacon of the King’s Realm meekly voiced out, "Cultivator, Chu Clan is good at handling poison. Do you think that this issue… could be a scheme crafted out by them?"

"You imbecile!" Yu Tong stared coldly at the deacon. "Are you doubting my judgement?"

"No no, I am of a younger generation than you. I would not dare to do that…" The deacon hurriedly lowered his head.

Yu Tong cruelly remarked, "This poisonous ancient crocodile has been trained into a skilful puppet with military capabilities of the True Lord. Nothing can defeat it. Anyhow, it is a puppet beast, can a poison really poison it to death? Please use your brain when you talk next time!"

With that, Yu Tong flicked his sleeves and prepared to leave before remarking, "I want to go to Spiritual Concentration Formation to heal!"

An agonised look passed over Yu Rui’s face, "Ancestor… our Spiritual Concentration Formation is gone!"

"Gone?"

Yu Tong jerked to a stop and turned back. His pair of eyes shot out two icy cold rays of light. He looked coolly at Yu Rui, "You said… the Spiritual Concentration Formation is gone?"

Yu Rui collapsed to the floor with a loud thump. On her knees, she wailed, "Cultivator, it is all because I was an incompetent junior. Just kill me as you please. I am too desolated and beyond console!"

Limitless - Chapter 111: Battle between the superior cultivators

Damn!

What the hell was that?

A transparent... palm shaped cloud?

How scary!

This not only awed those watching the live broadcast, it also stunned the people from the Three Leaves Sect.

Many of them were not even able to react to what happened!

They looked up at the sky, stupefied!

Those who were more agile and quick to respond wanted to escape, but they were suppressed by the suppressive aura emitted from the energy hand.

They were immobilized!

A few of the Supreme Realm Elders and the Sect Leader were quick to respond. They offered their magical equipment and attacked the hand.

They wanted to smash it!

As the hand pressed down at high speed, all the mountains and forests in the vicinity were smashed.

This scene was almost like the apocalypse.

Everyone watching was completely silent!

It was almost like the world had come to a standstill.

This was the power of a true powerful cultivator!

The poisoned Supreme Realm cultivator had died even before he could showcase anything he had learnt his whole life.

The skyscraping trees were all shattered and turned to ash!

The mountains crumbled, forming large craters in the ground!

The power of the palm was unimaginably terrifying!

It was almost that a divine mountain was crashing into the earth!

The few Supreme Realm cultivators who tried to match it had blood spewing out from their mouths as they ran for cover.

They couldn’t resist it!

The group that the Three Leaves Sect sent had no weak people. Anyone of them would be considered a powerhouse in society!

However, in the face of this hand, they seemed extremely weak.

Other than the few Supreme Realm elders and the Sect Leader, the hundreds of others were all killed by the palm!

Regardless of King’s Realm or Xiantian, they were all ants in the face of this palm.

After this palm, there were only about 15-16 people surviving on the side of the Three Leaves Sect.

They were all seriously injured, moaning on the ground.

The ones with the least injuries were the few Supreme Realm cultivators and the female Sect Leader.

The Sect Leader was about to go crazy. She shrieked, "Who are you? Why do you attack my Three Leaves Sect? I will fight it out with you!"

As she spoke, she took out seven to eight Supreme Realm magical equipment, activated them, and attacked the point where the hand originated from.

After killing hundreds of people, this palm slapped viciously at these magical equipment.

Almost like it was chasing flies.

Bang bang bang...

A whole string of explosions echoed through the air like thunder.

The seven to eight Supreme Realm magical equipment that the Sect Leader had used exploded to smithereens!

This was too terrifying!

Those magical equipment were all Supreme Realm magical equipment!

Yet, they were shattered by a single palm!

After which, that huge hand flew towards the Sect Leader.

At this point, a thunderous voice bellowed from a far distance, "My friend... isn’t this too much?"

A ray of light flew over from afar.

It was almost like a rainbow travelling through space, firing straight for the huge hand.

The hand gave up its quest to grab the Sect Leader, instead, it went to meet this ray of light.

Kaboom!

A huge sound echoed through the air.

All the mountains in the distance crumbled!

Sand and dust flew skyward!

Originally, this place was an ancient forest. However, everything within a large radius was completely flattened!

After which, the huge hand disappeared and so did that ray of light.

A cold voice could be heard from a distance

"All of you from the Three Leaves Sect... deserve to die!"

All of these happened in the blink of an eye. Even Chu Yu did not manage to see every frame of what just happened, not to mention those watching the live broadcast.

As soon as he saw the huge hand appear, he turned and ran.

He ran faster than anyone else!

During this process, he didn’t forget to keep the poison mist.

He did not want to antagonize the Wu Clan of Qing Hai because of the poison mist.

It was clear that his plan worked!

It worked splendidly!

The reaction from the Wu Clan of Qing Hai was more intense than anything he could have imagined!

He had initially thought that the Wu Clan of Qing Hai would just send a few powerful cultivators to fight it out with the Three Leaves Sect, but he never expected that they would react so drastically and activate their ancestor!

Anyone with this sort of power must be an ancient cultivator training for thousands of years.

The Supreme Realm cultivators who entered the realm after the world recovered were mere infants when compared to these ancient cultivators!

A figure rose from the distance. He flew into the sky, a ball of mist enveloping him.

It was impossible to see his appearance, but that hand made of energy came from him!

It had come from the oldest ancestor of the Wu Clan of Qing Hai!

Another figure flew up from the side of the Three Leaves Sect. He too was enveloped by a layer of mist hiding his appearance.

A terrifying aura of power radiated from their bodies. In the blink of an eye, they met.

One could sense their anger, radiating in all directions, from afar.

At this point, Chu Yu had already retreated a great distance, he also shrunk the poison defences to a thirty mile radius.

He looked on coldly.

"Friend Wu Jianghai, are you crazy?" The Three Leaves Sect ancestor, Yu Tong, was fuming. Despite his thousands of years of cultivation, he was still fuming.

The palm from Wu Jianghai had killed almost one third of the Three Leaves Sect elite!

This kind of losses would drive anybody crazy!

"Crazy? I still have more in store!" As Wu Jianghai spoke, he launched an attack on Yu Tong.

The battle between two powerful cultivators was filled with danger, every attack out for the kill.

Wu Jianghai was fuming too. One of the Supreme Elders who died was his bloodline!

His own grandson had died at the hands of the Three Leaves Sect. This wrong could not go unpunished!

Kaboom!

Explosions constantly echoed in the air.

Everyone watching the live broadcast were completely stupefied. They could barely figure out what was happening previously, but this battle was a complete blur.

They could only see two balls of light clashing in the air.

But, it was awesome!

It was a feast for the eyes!

Even fireworks paled in comparison to this!

Bang!

Another explosion of light.

Yu Tong bellowed, "Wu Jianghai... what are you trying to do?"

Having fought, he didn’t even bother calling him a friend.

He was on the verge of crumbling. He did not understand why his opponent was going after the disciples of the Three Leaves Sect with such vengeance. Even after seeing him, it still confused him.

These two men had known each other over 2000 years ago. They had met when they came down to the earth to cultivate. Even though they did not know each other well, they considered each other friends.

Who would have thought that the next time the two of them met would be in a fight to the death after the world had recovered.

"Stop acting!" Wu Jianghai stopped. He and Yu Tong were of similar cultivation levels. Both were at the peak of the Supreme Realm. In a fight to the death, it would be difficult to determine a winner.

Having killed over a hundred Three Leaves Sect elite, his fury had abated slightly and he was not as agitated.

"How am I acting?" Yu Tong’s fury reached a maximum, he really did not know what had happened.

He turned to the injured Sect Leader, she was his grandchild.

"Yu Rui, what is going on?"

Only now did Chu Yu know that the Sect Leader’s name was Yu Rui. He thought to himself, what a beautiful name, wasted on such a person.

Yu Rui looked depressed, "Ancestor, I don’t know!"

Even though she said this, her heart throbbed, Could it be the result of the two storage rings and that huge crocodile?

But did that justify such a reaction?

They had just picked up two ownerless storage rings, was that such a huge crime?

The rings did contain quite a lot of items, but the issue was, there weren’t any ridiculously superior items.

Yu Rui never expected that they had been set up by Chu Yu.

"Do you really not know" Yu Tong looked coldly at her, "Tell me the truth!"

"I... I really don’t know!" Yu Rui said hard headedly, not daring to look into the icy glare of her ancestor. She murmured, "It’s... it’s..."

"What is it?" Yu Tong began to feel a tinge of regret for making her the Sect Leader, she couldn’t even keep her head straight at key moments.

If she could not explain things clearly today, even his presence would not help matters.

They had waited aeons for the world to recover.

They were not aiming to kill, all they wanted to do was to attain higher cultivation levels!

Countless ancestors waited hopelessly for over 6000 years!

In the tides of time, this was not a negligible number.

The aeons of waiting had already destroyed many things.

They were the lucky few.

If it wasn’t for the fact that the Chu Clan were small and insignificant, coupled with the fact that they had something the Three Leaves Sect wanted, Yu Tong would have stopped them from attacking the Chu Clan.

Advancement was the first order of business!

The Sect Leader said softly, "Previously... we found a few bodies on a river bank. One of them was a 30m long crocodile, it was clear that both sides died from the fight..."

"Get to the point!" Yu Tong said solemnly.

He could feel that a crisis was about to befall them, and he did see the gargantuan crocodile carcass.

Yu Rui continued, "We found two storage rings on the three bodies, at that time... we did not find any identification documents on the bodies, so we..."

At this point, Yu Tong understood.

He waved his hand to interrupt Yu Rui. He turned to Wu Jianghai, "Those people were from the Wu Clan of Qing Hai?"

Wu Jianghai stared at them icily and said sarcastically, "What do you think?"

"Wu Jianghai, this is a small matter, do you need to do something so extreme? We didn’t kill them! We just picked up two of your storage rings and you kill over a hundred of our people?"

Yu Tong’s tone was filled with fury, he believed his grandchild would not lie.

As such, he was really enraged and radiated an oppressive aura.

Wu Jianghai laughed coldly, "That’s all? Yu Tong ah Yu Tong, this is the last time I will call you a friend! We have known each other for over 2000 years, today, our friendship comes to an end!"

As he spoke, he tore of a corner of his robe and threw it away.

That piece of robe floated in the air, blown away by the wind.

Everyone watching the broadcast was stunned.

"Damn, ripping off one’s sleeves to signify the end of a relationship, how ancient!"

"This demeanour... so oppressive!"

"My gosh... what is their cultivation level? They are all flying in the air!"

"It is said that after Acupoint Charging comes Invigorated Meridian, after that comes Xiantian, but what comes after Xiantian? Could they be higher than Xiantian?"

"They could even be in the True Lord Realm!"

"The realm of Deity Erlang? Don’t be stupid! Deity Erlang knows the 72 transformations!"

"Damn it, those are legends!"

"Aren’t we living in a world ruled by legends? Is there a problem?"

In the air, Yu Tong almost went berserk when he saw Wu Jianghai rip his sleeves.

"Do you really not believe me?"

"Of course not!"

"Then let’s fight!"

Boom boom boom!

The two ancient powerful cultivators clashed with full force up in the air.

They exchanged blows once again!

Library of Heaven's Path - Chapter 99: A Completely Stunned Ouyang Cheng

Ouyang Cheng and the others felt their insides crumbling apart.

To not even know where the basic tier book collection vault was and to choose to undergo the difficult Pill Debate, they were starting to suspect whether this fellow's head was once crushed by a slammed door.

However, since the other party's determination was resolute, there was no point trying to persuade him otherwise at this point.

After revealing the location to Zhang Xuan and watching as he left, Du Man looked toward Ouyang Cheng and asked, "Isn't he... being too reckless?"

"He is being reckless, but didn't you see that he is full of confidence as well!" Ouyang Cheng said incredulously. "It is truly a wonder where all that confidence came from!"

"Could it be that he doesn't understand the fearsomeness of Pill Debate?" Speaking of such an examination method, Du Man shuddered. "Even though I am a 1-star apothecary, it is definitely impossible for me to pass the Pill Debate!"

Pill Debate was something extremely terrifying. It was equivalent to challenging the ten apothecaries with the knowledge of one. No matter how deep and vast one's knowledge was, how could they compete with that of ten people?

[Furthermore, the main problem is that... You have never forged a pill before!

This is equivalent to the difference between a biologist and a butcher when trying to explain how to slaughter a pig. No matter how excellent your theories are, without trying it out hands-on, it is difficult to succeed!]

"We have already put it out so clearly, it is impossible for him to not to understand!" Ouyang Cheng shook his head. "This person is truly an enigma!"

"Indeed. In the first round, he achieved a perfect score. In the second, not only was his paper flawless, he even turned around to correct our mistakes... Furthermore, he is still so young. It is truly a wonder where his memorization and reasoning abilities came from!"

Recalling what that had happened a moment ago filled Du Man with shock.

The performance of the fellow previously was simply too outstanding! In terms of the ability to discern medicinal herbs, he was probably an entire level higher than them!

An apprentice apothecary that was more knowledgeable than an apothecary himself... Without witnessing it firsthand, it was something no one would believe.

"Actually, it is not that difficult to know where his self-confidence came from. Didn't he go to the book collection vault to study? We can send someone over to follow him. It will just be a matter of time before he gives his secret in!" Ouyang Cheng said.

Since he dared to undergo the Pill Debate, he definitely possessed vast and deep knowledge of pill forging. As long as they sent someone to follow behind him, it should be possible for them to unravel his secret. noveltranslationweb.blogspot.com

"You're right!" Du Man nodded his head. Gesturing with his hands, he commanded his apprentice, "Hua Hua, go and see what he is doing in the basic tier book collection vault. Try to keep your movements silent and inconspicuous so as to not be noticed by him!"

"Yes!" Zhu Hua Hua headed to the basic tier book collection vault.

Not long later, the apprentice apothecary returned with a peculiar expression on his face.

"Why? What is he doing? Is he reading some remote pill forging method?" Ouyang Cheng stared at him.

Apothecaries that participated in the Pill Debate would definitely come up with extremely difficult and remote questions, making it hard for others to answer. If one wanted to pass the examination, not only must they possess vast knowledge, they must also have a deep understanding of these remote pill forging methods as well.

"He isn't!" Zhu Hua Hua's eyes swam around, as though still in a state of disbelief over what he just witnessed. "He is... flipping books!"

"Flipping books? Perhaps he is looking for a specific book. Say, what is he flipping through?" Ouyang Cheng continued his interrogation.

"When I was there, he was flipping through basic pill forging books on the shelves. I secretly took a look, they were 《Basic Pill Forging Methods》, 《How to Extract the Essence of Medicinal Herbs》、《Preserving Medicinal Properties》、《Guide to Moving Cauldrons》 and books of that such. I was afraid of getting discovered, so I dared not get near to him!" Zhu Hua Hua pondered for a moment before replying.

"Basic Pill Forging Methods? How to Extract the Essence of Medicinal Herbs?"

"Preserving Medicinal Properties? Guide to Moving Cauldrons? This..."

Du Man and Ouyang Cheng stared at one another, dumbfounded.

[Those are the most basic books for apprentice apothecaries, alright... They are knowledge that all apprentice apothecaries need to wield, just like how a human can walk and eat. This fellow is going to undergo Pill Debate tomorrow, and yet he is flipping through such books only now?

Are you sure you aren't mistaken?

This is as though after challenging the top swordsman under the heavens to a duel, you suddenly recall that you had to buy a sword and learn how to use it...

Are you for real?]

"Are you certain that he is reading these books?"

Unable to believe it, Ouyang Cheng asked once again.

"I am not certain. He doesn't seem to be reading but flipping... He flips all the book that he passes by, I have no idea what he is doing!" Zhu Hua Hua was on the verge of tears.

He truly had no idea what the other party was doing. It was as though he was a lunatic, flipping all the books from the first row of books all the way over. He didn't seem to be reading through them or searching for a specific book, so what in the world could he be doing?

"Flipping books? All of the book that he passes by?"

Ouyang Cheng and Du Man blinked their eyes.

Why did it sound like nonsense to them?

"How is he flipping through them? Show us!" Du Man said.

"Alright!"

It happened that there were quite a few books in the room as well. Zhu Hua Hua walked in front, grabbed a dozen of books and flipped through them. The sound of the flipping pages echoed in the room.

"You're done?"

Seeing that there were no actions after he was done flipping through those books, Ouyang Cheng and Du Man's eyes enlarged into perfect circles, unable to comprehend the situation.

"Yes!" Zhu Hua Hua nodded his head. "Just like that, after he's done, he moves on to the next shelf..."

"..."

Ouyang Cheng and Du Man stared at one another and saw the frenzy in the other's eyes.

They thought that this fellow went to the basic tier book collection vault to study, but in the end, he was there just to flip through books... [Furthermore, no matter how fast others flip their books, they would at least try to see what was in it. Yet he... What in the world can one see flipping through the book at such speed!

Putting aside the contents in the book, he probably doesn't even know what the book is about…]

"It can't be that... He wishes to see what material the books are made of so that he can burn them down?"

After a long while, Du Man squeezed out a few words.

Other than to burn these books, he truly had no idea what the use of flipping through all those books like that was.

"Impossible. Even though there aren't any secrets of the Apothecary Guild in the basic tier book collection vault, it isn't something that one can burn down casually. As an apprentice apothecary, he shouldn't be that rash!" Ouyang Cheng shook his head.

Even though Du Man's words seemed a little absurd, he was truly at a loss for a better explanation. His frown caused his forehead to wrinkle into large lumps.

"Then, what do you think is going on? What is he trying to do?"

Du Man couldn't help but ask his colleague.

"I…” Ouyang Cheng's face reflected nothing but confusion as well. He had never heard of such a freak in his entire life, needless to say, see one.

"Could it be... Is he trying to look for a specific book? Furthermore, the book is made of a special material such that one can only identify it through touch?" After a long moment of silence, he came up with a new theory.

"That's possible..."

The two of them sat before the desk, frowning at one moment and showing a bitter expression at the other. No matter how hard they tried, they were unable to figure out the secrets of Zhang Xuan.

In a few short moments, they had come up with all kinds of reasons, generating excuses sufficient to last them for an entire lifetime. Even so... they were still oblivious to what the other party was trying to do.

In between, Zhu Hua Hua paid the book collection vault several visits and reported on the other party's situation upon returning.

Upon hearing that his movements had never stopped, and he was still flipping through the books, not even sparing books like 《What are Pills》, 《The Types of Medicinal Herbs and Their Classification》、《Do You Need Cauldrons to Forge a Pill》... Several emotions flashed across their faces: bewilderment, dilemma, contemplation, confusion...

At this moment, they realized that there was still capacity in their minds to generate more peculiar excuses...

Library of Heaven's Path - Chapter 98: I Want to Debate Pills

"Oh? There is such a way too?"

Zhang Xuan's eyes lit up.

Without years of practice, he knew that it was impossible for him to successfully forge a grade-1 pill. However, Pill Debate was different. With the Library of Heaven's Path, as long as there were sufficient books and knowledge, learning was an easy task for him!

"This method may seem simple, but even master teachers would rather learn to forge pills than to resort to this method!" Noticing the excitement in the other party, Ouyang Cheng interjected and shook his head.

"Why?"

Zhang Xuan was confused.

If one was able to pass the examination based on theories itself to become an apothecary, there should be no need for them to waste their time to learn to forge pills.

"To tell the truth, it is impossible for one to possess an in-depth understanding into an occupation without trying it hands-on. No matter how much theory one learns, if one doesn't verify them practically, no one can guarantee whether they are right or not! For one who isn't even an apothecary yet to debate with a true apothecary based on knowledge one learnt off the books? Who do you think will win?"

Ouyang Cheng said.

"This..."

Zhang Xuan nodded his head.

What one could learn from the books was shallow, to understand the essence of which, one needs to experience it first-hand! This was a famous maxim expressing the utmost truth.

How could one ascertain whether something was right or wrong just by theories itself without trying it out? With just a single error, the entire pill forging would end in failure!

One erroneous move would make a great difference!

"Ever since Pill Debate was created, more than thousands of master teachers had undergone it and they were all incredible geniuses. Their knowledge of pill forging exceeds that of any apothecary. However, it is a pity that... most of them ended up in failure. Of the thousands of master teachers, the ones to succeed might not even exceed the number of fingers on a single hand!"

Ouyang Cheng sighed.

"Not exceeding the number of fingers in a single hand?"

Zhang Xuan was taken aback

[Out of a thousand people, not even five of them succeeded? This success rate is way too low!]

"Indeed, there is a huge difference between theories and practical. This is precisely the reason why even though Pill Debate remained a possible way for one to become an apothecary, not many people used it and it was gradually forgotten!"

Ouyang Cheng shook his head.

Pill Debate might seem easier than Pill Forging, but in reality, the difficulty of which was much greater.

Without practical experience, how could one succeed in it with just theories?

If one didn't have a single mistake in his theory, that meant that his practical should be excellent as well.

If so, rather than engaging in a Pill Debate, he might as well just go for the Pill Forging method. It would be much easier that way.

"Others may be unable to... But I can!"

Ignoring the lamentations of the other party, Zhang Xuan's motivation surged and his eyes glowed.

Pill Debate might be much more difficult for others, but for him, it was nothing short of easy!

With the Library of Heaven's Path, he was able to identify errors and flaws directly. Just basing on theories itself, others were unable to tell whether something was true or not. On the other hand, with a single look via the Library of Heaven's Path, everything was clear to him!

Conducting a Pill Debate with this, it was impossible for him to make an error. He could definitely pass the test easily!

"Since there's such a method, I have decided to try becoming an apothecary through Pill Debate!" Thinking such, Zhang Xuan declared without much hesitation.

"Ah?" Initially, he thought that he would be able to persuade the other party to give up after saying so much. He didn't expect his words to cause him to become even more resolute. Ouyang Cheng was speechless. "Do you know the consequences of failing a Pill Debate?"

"Consequences?"

"Yes. Pill Debate requires the presence of a minimum of ten apothecaries to conduct a debate. All these apothecaries are people of high standing, and if there isn't any price to pay for failure and everyone were to go on and try it, wouldn't they tire themselves to death?" Ouyang Cheng said. "Thus, the guild had set a rule regarding such. If an apprentice who applied for Pill Debate were to pass the test, nothing would occur. On the other hand, if they were to fail, they will have to pay every single apothecary hundred thousand gold coins! On top of that, they will have to suffer a hundred God Slaying Flogs as punishment. Also, they will be banned from taking the examinations to become an apothecary for a decade!"

Zhang Xuan was speechless.

This punishment was truly severe.

Given that a Pill Debate required at least ten apothecaries, if he had to pay each of them hundred thousand gold coins, that meant he would have to fork out a million gold coins in total.

To an apprentice apothecary, such money was an impossibility among impossibilities. Perhaps, they might not even be able to earn that much money in their entire life!

God Slaying Flog was a type of punishment. Depending on the cultivation realm of the person, it would exert a different force. A hundred God Slaying Flogs, even with his current strength, after he was done with the punishment, he would probably be unable to climb out of bed for a month or two.

As for the third penalty, a human's lifespan was only around several decades. To be banned from the examinations for a decade, it was equivalent to keeping one away from medicinal herbs and pills for ten whole years. Basically, this would create an upper limit on a person's future achievements as an apothecary, even if they decided to continue treading on the path.

"Not only are the consequences severe, it is also a daunting task to pass a Pill Debate. This is the reason why no one dares to even try it. Based on what I know, there hadn't been a Pill Debate in Tianxuan Kingdom and the dozen or so kingdoms around it for the past few centuries!"

The dissuasion in Ouyang Cheng's tone was clear. "Given your talents, I think you should just go the conventional route and learn pill forging instead. Pill Debate isn't a suitable option!"

"I have already decided to go ahead with Pill Debate, I hope that Master Ouyang can help me make the necessary arrangements!" Zhang Xuan shook his head in response to his dissuasion.

[What a joke! If Pill Debate can make me an apothecary, I have to go along with it.]

Otherwise, it would take an inestimable amount of time for him to learn pill forging or that sort.

Not to mention how he didn't have sufficient time on his hand, he didn't have the effort to waste on it either!

"Make the necessary arrangements? It can't be that... you wish to carry it out now?"

Master Ouyang staggered.

[You just became an apprentice apothecary. You don't even know what pill forging is yet, and you want to undergo a Pill Debate? Are you for real?

Are you sure you aren't jesting with me?]

"Yes!" Zhang Xuan nodded his head.

"You... Do you know the contents of a Pill Debate? Do you know what the apothecaries will ask you about? You have just barely become an apprentice and you have yet to go through the systematic education, to undergo a Pill Debate now..."

Du Man, who was standing by the side, was also at a loss for words.

"I can go to the basic tier book collection vault now, right? I can study those that I do not know now!" Seeing the anxiety on the other party's faces, Zhang Xuan quickly explained.

"Study?"

Du Man, Ouyang Cheng, and the others were on a verge of tears.

[Brother, to think that you will remember to study!

You have just become an apprentice apothecary. Despite not having visited the book collection vault before, you wish to undergo a Pill Debate. Are you very certain that you aren't pulling my leg?

……

There are hundreds of thousand of books in the book collection vault, and it is impossible to finish looking through them without three to five years of intense effort. Without even paying it a visit, you wish to undergo a Pill Debate...

Are your guts too inflated or is there a problem with your head?]

"Un, I will head to the book collection vault to study later on. Don't worry, it won't take too much time. As for the Pill Debate, I will be troubling the two of you!" Zhang Xuan said.

"Study later on..."

Everyone felt faint-headed.

[Do you intend to study last minute?

Undergoing a Pill Debate without studying?

To be able to do something so brainless, how did this fellow manage to become an apprentice apothecary?]

"Rest assured, I know the severity of it. I won't do anything I am unconfident of. Just go ahead and make arrangements, I have to start reading now as well!" Seeing the crowd rooted to the spot, Zhang Xuan continued.

"Know the severity?"

"Won't do anything you are unconfident of?"

[Your head!

Do you know what a cauldron looks like? Do you know whether a pill is round of square? Do you know how do apothecaries extract the essence from medicinal herbs?

You don't know a single thing at all, yet you want to take the examination for an apothecary, not to mention, a Pill Debate... Are you sure that you are confident?]

"Alright!" Upon his insistence, Ouyang Cheng and Du Man knew that they were unable to convince him otherwise at this point. Trading glances, they shook their heads. "I will make arrangements now, but it will take some time to gather so many apothecaries. So, I will set the Pill Debate to be at tomorrow afternoon! During this period of time, you better carefully contemplate over the matter. Otherwise, once the Pill Debate starts, you won't be able to back out!"

"Un!" Zhang Xuan nodded his head. Then, he flung his sleeves with a confident expression and took two steps toward the entrance before abruptly turning around. "Ah, I forgot. Where is the basic tier book collection vault?"

"..." Ouyang Cheng.

"..." Du Man.

"..." Sun Tao and Zhu Hua Hua.