Scripture of Days Past

I can't believe my six months of hard work can't even compare with Instructor Yang's thirty years of cultivation, Chu Qiguang lamented to himself. Even though we're both fifth-state martial artists, he's clearly more skilled than me in every aspect. According to the gatekeeper at the archive building, his saber techniques are particularly exceptional. Veteran fifth-state martial artists like Yang Ling all have a multitude of trump cards up their sleeves. If I want to catch up to them, I'll need to work on my weaknesses while consolidating my current strengths.

Over the past month, Chu Qiguang had been like a ravenous plant rapidly absorbing nutrients from the soil, making significant gains in both his cultivation and his base of knowledge.

He had scoured through all the books on the first floor of the archive building and in the Daoist temple's study, but books that the Ring of Ignorance was drawn to were becoming more and more difficult to find.

In total, he had only received five boons from the Ring of Ignorance, and one of them had been completely ineffective.

One of the boons had elevated his Primordial High Zenith Demonic Arts to the second level, which was reflected by the purple coloration of his skin.

Another boon had integrated his Heavenly Spirit Body Refinement Fist Techniques into his Primordial High Zenith Demonic Arts, enhancing the physical benefits he received from cultivating the Primordial High Zenith Demonic Arts.

For the third boon, Chu Qiguang had chosen to use it on his Heavenly Demon Vanquishing Palms, as he was unable to elevate his Primordial High Zenith Demonic Arts any further.

Recently, the Heavenly Demon Vanquishing Palms was the cultivation art he had been training the most, aside from the Primordial High Zenith Demonic Arts.

These palm techniques placed almost no emphasis on variety. Instead, they encouraged the cultivator to crush their opponents solely through brute force.

When using these palm techniques, all of the qi and blood in one's body would begin to churn audibly like a turbulent river, and the palm strikes themselves would unleash immense power, like crashing waves stacking upon one another.

Just like the Primordial High Zenith Qigong, the palm techniques also had four levels. Upon reaching full mastery, one's palm strikes would become so tremendously powerful that they would risk hurting themselves if they didn't possess a sufficiently strong physical constitution.

As for the final boon, Chu Qiguang used it to elevate his mastery of the Heavenly Demon Vanquishing Palms to the first level.

At the moment, all of his qi and blood was coursing through his body like a mighty river. As he slammed his palm into the granite boulder, an explosive boom rang out, as if a grenade had just been detonated.

A series of cracks had appeared on the boulder's surface, and as Chu Qiguang withdrew his hand, he saw that a clear palm print had been left behind.

At the moment, the entire boulder was already riddled with similar palm prints.

Instructor Yang was right! The Primordial High Zenith Qigong and the Heavenly Demon Vanquishing Palms are a match made in heaven! I've made huge strides in my martial arts over the past month, but right now, I'm still lacking in speed and movement techniques.

Even though I've reached the second level of the Primordial High Zenith Demonic Arts, that's still isn't enough for me to withstand direct blows from weapons with my body alone. I'll need to master some movement techniques so I can dodge attacks that I can't withstand.

After taking some time to assess his current strengths and weaknesses, Chu Qiguang resumed his cultivation of the Primordial High Zenith Demonic Arts. He threw his body against the granite boulder over and over again, slowly erase all the palm prints.

There was no way a third-state martial artist would be able to accomplish this, and he didn't want to reveal his fifth-state cultivation base yet, so he had to be careful to cover his tracks.

By the time he was done, it was almost dawn. He sat down to meditate until it was time to go to the Daoist temple for his morning reading session.

***

As Chu Qiguang opened his eyes, he found himself back in one of the trainee rooms.

Hmm? Am I experiencing another vision?

Unable to move his body, he could only strain to move his eyes and look around, trying to figure out which room this was.

I can see the barricade of wooden boards that Jiang Longyu made, so this is definitely the room I'm sharing with those three.

He did his best to peer through a gap between the wooden boards, and he caught a glimpse of the same figure he had seen in his previous vision.

However, this time, the figure was standing by the desk instead of at the entrance.

Before Chu Qiguang could get a closer look, he abruptly snapped back to reality.

***

Inside the secluded courtyard, Chu Qiguang's eyes snapped open, and a concerned look appeared on his face. He had a feeling that these visions had something to do with the attack on Jade Face Mountain that was set to take place in a few months.

Thus, he immediately rushed back to his room, but upon his arrival, nothing seemed amiss, and there were no mysterious figures present.

He glanced at Li He, Zhang Haizhu, and Jiang Longyu on the communal bed in confusion. Li He and Zhang Haizhu were sleeping soundly, but Jiang Longyu's brows were tightly furrowed, as if he were having a nightmare.

He immediately roused Jiang Longyu from his troubled sleep, then asked, "Are you alright?"

"What the hell's your problem? Why are you waking me up for no reason?" Jiang Longyu snapped. "Are you trying to disturb my sleep so you can sabotage me? If you think that's going to work, then I have bad news for you! The absolute gap in power between us isn't something you can bridge with these little tricks! I can easily beat you even without sleep!"

Chu Qiguang couldn't help but roll his eyes in exasperation.

"I'm glad to see that you have so much energy, but if you're not feeling well, make sure to tell the instructors and lecturers about it."

As Chu Qiguang walked out of the room, Jiang Longyu stared after him with a puzzled expression and murmured to himself, "How does he know I haven't been sleeping well lately?"

***

Bright and early in the morning, Chu Qiguang went to the Daiost temple to read more scriptures.

However, on this day, Zhao Lingxiao was waiting for him outside the study, and he sighed in a forlorn manner, "I've personally seen your hard work and dedication over this recent period, but you remain unable to activate the Demon Vanquishing Talisman. That means your faith is still lacking. The head instructor told me to inform you that you no longer need to come here for daily reading. He must be giving up on you."

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