Scripture of Days Past

Zhong Shan'e clearly felt that it was too early for Chu Qiguang to be thinking about the Dao Comprehension state, but Chu Qiguang naturally disagreed.

At this point, he had already accumulated eight tentacles, and there was a very good chance that he would gain a ninth one taking the four pills he had just received as rewards for his stellar performance in the half-yearly examination.

Ten years is far too long to wait! Even ten months is too long!

Unwilling to drop the subject, Chu Qiguang decided to take another approach, asking, "Head Instructor, you must've been very young when you reached the Dao Comprehension state, right?"

A reminiscent look appeared in Zhong Shan'e's eyes as he replied, "I was thirty years old when I reached the Dao Comprehension state. By then, I had already been at the fifth state for ten years, and aside from the few Dao Comprehension-state seniors in the Demon Vanquishing Department, I had no equal."

"So you reached the fifth state when you were twenty? That's not bad," Jiang Longyu remarked. "Having said that, at the rate that I'm progressing, I should be able to get there at around sixteen."

Zhong Shan'e's expressions instantly darkened. As one of the Eight Han Resurgence Generals, Jiang Longyu's aptitude for martial arts was matched only by the size of his ego.

In comparison, the earnest and modest Chu Qiguang was much more pleasant to interact with.

Next year... I'm going to reach the Dao Comprehension state next year! Chu Qiguang vowed to himself.

"So how exactly did you reach the Dao Comprehension state, Head Instructor?" Chu Qiguang asked.

The reminiscent look returned to Zhong Shan'e's face as he continued, "During the winter of that year, I was in the southeast, tasked with capturing followers of the White Sun Religion and investigating a local child-trafficking case. However, when I ventured deep into the enemy's lair, I encountered the heavenly maiden of the White Sun Religion at the time, Wei Qingyun.

"She was an extremely notorious figure in the southeast, with martial arts abilities that were unmatched across the three southeastern provinces. She had also managed to seduce the young masters of many prominent clans into joining the White Sun Religion. I didn't fear her in battle, but I was worried about the possibility of falling prey to her seductive abilities, so I decapitated her on the spot and killed all the other cult followers present as well.

"As a result, the pope of the White Sun Religion at the time began hunting me personally. He was a Dao Comprehension-state cultivator, and he had reached the Dao Comprehension state by cultivating the Azure Sun Water Tribulation."

"The Azure Sun Water Tribulation? Is that a martial art or a Dao art?" Chu Qiguang asked.

"The Azure Sun Water Tribulation is the foundational Dao art of the White Sun Religion, and throughout the religion's history, only those who had mastered it could be appointed as pope," Zhong Shan'e explained. "The White Sun Religion believes that the changes in the color of the light of the sun, from the yellow of the present day, to azure, to red, and finally, to white, represent major tribulations that the world will face.

"They are the azure sun tribulation, the red sun tribulation, and the white sun tribulation. During the azure sun tribulation, it's said that a great flood will descend from the heavens, transforming the entire world into a vast sea. That followers of the White Sun Religion refer to that period as the deep sea age. Mastery of the Azure Sun Water Tribulation grants the cultivator the ability to manipulate water and breathe underwater, among other extraordinary abilities that would allow them to survive the deep sea age.

"Of course, the so-called changes in the color of the light of the sun and these tribulations are nothing more than tall tales fabricated by the White Sun Religion to attract followers. However, the Azure Sun Water Tribulation is truly an incredibly formidable Dao art, ranking near the top even among the twenty-five orthodox arts. At the time, I was naturally no match for the pope of the White Sun Religion, so I could flee northward, and on that journey, I survived many close encounters with death.

"However, the immense pressure that the pope of the White Sun Religion placed on me also forced me to constantly tap into my latent potential, and each close encounter with death brought me a sense of enlightenment. That was what ultimately allowed me to reach the Dao Comprehension state."

There was a hint of pride in Zhong Shan'e's voice as he spoke, and it was clear that this was a story he enjoyed telling.

Jiang Longyu had no interest in Zhong Shan'e's story, but Chu Qiguang was eager to stroke his ego, asking, "What happened next?"

"After I reached the Dao Comprehension state, I called upon a thousand-man commander of the Demon Vanquishing Department from the East Sea Province at the time, and I ordered him and his subordinates to help me set up an ambush," Zhong Shan'e recounted. "We lured the pope of the White Sun Religion into an extremely dry and arid area to restrict his use of the Azure Sun Water Tribulation, then launched a surprise attack and caught him off guard. In the end, I managed to sever one of his arms."

Chu Qiguang immediately began heaping praise on Zhong Shan'e.

This was far from the first time Zhong Shan'e had recounted the story of his first battle after reaching the Dao Comprehension state, but he was still very pleased to receive Chu Qiguang's praise and admiration.

Chu Qiguang's praise seemed very sincere, and his earnest display of admiration stood in stark contrast to Jiang Longyu's bored and disgruntled demeanor.

Chu Qiguang began asking about all kinds of details concerning the battle, and Zhong Shan'e was happy to answer his questions.

When Chu Qiguang asked about the prerequisites for reaching the Dao Comprehension state, Zhong Shan'e explained, "The two of you have both joined the Fiend Assassin Faction, so if you're deemed worthy of inheriting one of the Demon Vanquishing Department's four orthodox arts, you'll receive our faction's Lightning Screech.

"In order to reach the Dao Comprehension state through cultivating the Lightning Screech, you must first build a sufficiently strong foundation through a combination of specialized breathing techniques and medicinal baths.

"After that, you must refine your body using lightning from the heavens. Once that process is complete, the final breakthrough all comes down to an instant of enlightenment. All these steps must be completed for full mastery of the Lightning Screech. Otherwise, there's no way you'll be able to reach the Dao Comprehension state by cultivating it."

Feigning ignorance, Chu Qiguang asked, "I heard that the Hunter Hand Faction's Sumeru Strength Scripture orthodox art is also a martial art. Is the process required to reach the Dao Comprehension state through the Sumeru Strength Scripture the same as that of the Lightning Screech?"

"Of course not, you silly child," Zhong Shan'e chuckled. "How could the Sumeru Strength Scripture compare with the Lightning Screech?"

"What's the difference?" Chu Qiguang asked, continuing to feign ignorance.

"An ignorant minority within the Demon Vanquishing Department claim that all the martial arts among the twenty-five orthodox arts grant their cultivators a similar level of power," Zhong Shan'e explained. "Most of these people belong to the Hunter Hand Faction. However, the rest of us all know that the Sumeru Strength Scripture was only derived from an incomplete version of another orthodox art from the Vajra Monastery, so how could it possibly compare with true orthodox arts?

"Of all the orthodox arts, the Sumeru Strength Scripture has the easiest cultivation prerequisites to fulfill. All you have to do is attain a certain foundation in physical cultivation, then take certain pills to cultivate the Sumeru Strength Scripture to the Dao Comprehension state."

So a foundation in physical cultivation is required. Is that why I've been able progressing much faster in the Sumeru King Scripture ever since I began cultivating the Primordial High Zenith Demonic Arts? Chu Qiguang wondered. Why didn't he didn't mention anything about reading Buddhist scriptures. Could that be something the Demon Vanquishing Department isn't aware of?

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