The person who walked out of the darkness was a Taoist priest. He wore a long, cyan robe, and his long black hair was tied up in a bun.
That wooden sword from before, the one that was so overwhelmingly domineering, which perfectly exemplified the principle of using pure force to overwhelm an opponent, and which had struck Jiang Fei with almost no chance to fight back, sending him flying backward and nearly making him spit blood – that sword had somehow returned to the priest’s back, sheathed as if it had never been drawn at all.
That’s right. This priest, who had lured Jiang Fei out of the hotel late at night and nearly made him run around naked, was Jiang Fei’s cheap master, Xuanjizi. He was the former head of the Tianji Sect!
No wonder Jiang Fei had felt from the beginning that this person’s aura was very familiar, as if he had encountered it before. It must have been Xuanjizi deliberately disguising himself, which was why Jiang Fei felt that way.
This also explained why Jiang Fei, who had sensed no danger whatsoever and detected no killing intent, was suddenly met with such an earth-shattering strike that he was nearly caught off guard and sliced in two by the sword.
Jiang Fei only recognized this mysterious person, who had lured him out in the middle of the night, as his cheap master Xuanjizi when that pitch-black wooden sword came slashing at him. Although the design of this dark wooden sword wasn’t particularly unique or ancient-looking – it was just average in appearance – the intangible sense of heaviness it gave off was something Jiang Fei had never seen before. Only the wooden sword carried on the back of his cheap master, Xuanjizi, had ever given him such a feeling.
Seeing Xuanjizi slowly walk out with a face full of smiles, Jiang Fei felt a surge of annoyance. He said, displeased: “This is ‘not bad’? I didn’t get cut down by that shameless old Yagyu Munenori, only to almost get cleaved in half by you! If I had died like that, tell me, wouldn’t that be unjust? If I die, who will take on the heavy responsibility of our Tianji Sect?”
That strike from Xuanjizi had truly scared Jiang Fei half to death. Jiang Fei wasn’t sure in his heart if that strike had been his cheap master Xuanjizi’s full-powered blow. If he hadn’t been his disciple, but an enemy or something, would he really have been able to block it? Would he still be alive to talk to him?
That sword strike… was incredibly terrifying!
Although Jiang Fei had nearly reached the highest level in swordsmanship and couldn’t improve any further within his current realm, having reached the pinnacle of ‘the supremacy of no-sword’ and formed his own sword path, he still found himself lacking when faced with a truly absolute threat.
Unless, he could continue to improve his internal energy, strengthening it infinitely, and accumulating decades of profound inner power. Then, when he used the realm of ‘the supremacy of no-sword’ to unleash it, his lethality would naturally increase greatly.
What Jiang Fei was curious about now was exactly what level his cheap master had reached. Yagyu Munenori was at the so-called ‘Dan Jin’ level. What about Xuanjizi? Could he really be close to ‘shattering the void’ as he had said?
Thinking of this possibility, Jiang Fei found it a bit hard to swallow. He used to think that the various heroes in the martial world had extraordinary skills, each one a master. But even if they were incredible, they couldn’t be too incredible. ‘Shattering the void’ was something only found in fantasy novels.
Now, it seemed… maybe it wasn’t so impossible after all…
“Since you were able to defeat Yagyu Munenori, I was naturally confident that my sword strike just now wouldn’t kill you. Mm, not bad at all.” Xuanjizi spoke again, nodding his head, seeming quite satisfied with the formidable strength Jiang Fei had displayed.
Not mentioning it was fine, but bringing it up made Jiang Fei unable to hold back. He questioned with displeasure: “You have the nerve to talk about it? Is this how a master acts? You had already anticipated long ago that this old guy Yagyu Munenori would come looking for trouble and challenge me. Why didn’t you come out and deal with him? No, you just had someone send me a message to ‘be careful.’ Is this how you act as someone’s master?”
Seeing Jiang Fei’s angry expression, Xuanjizi neither got angry nor felt ashamed. His skin, in some ways, was even thicker than Jiang Fei’s. And as for Jiang Fei’s character, he had understood it completely back then in Huacheng when he passed the ‘Tianji Diagram’ to him.
This disciple of his… he was a monster!
“The reason I didn’t step forward was because I knew you would win. Aren’t you fine now?” Yagyu Munenori said with a smile.
Like hell you knew!
Jiang Fei silently cursed in his heart. If he hadn’t used his ultimate reward at the critical moment to elevate his Dugu Nine Swords to the third level, the Great Perfection stage, he would have been chopped into eight pieces by Yagyu Munenori long ago, dead as a doornail, and wouldn’t have had the chance to be standing here talking.
Of course, Jiang Fei couldn’t say these things to his cheap master. Suffering the bitterness in silence, he could only snort: “When did you get here? Don’t tell me you were like last time, just watching from the sidelines while I fought Yagyu Munenori for my life?”
Xuanjizi, however, shook his head and said, “You guessed wrong this time. I only just arrived here. When I got here, you had already finished your contest with Yagyu Munenori.”
“Alright.” Jiang Fei felt a little better.
If this cheap master had been like last time, watching him in countless dangers and almost dying without lifting a finger, then his conscience would truly be terribly bad.
“In this period, while cultivating and pondering the ‘Tianji Diagram,’ have you gained any insights?” Xuanjizi asked again with a smile.
“Pretty good. I can basically understand more than half of it.” Jiang Fei said calmly, without changing his expression.
In Jiang Fei’s view, although this statement wasn’t much, its impact should be tremendous. Xuanjizi, who understood the Tianji Diagram very well, should be quite shocked. Because the Tianji Diagram was incredibly difficult to comprehend. If he hadn’t first elevated his Art of Divination and Concealment to the second level, he wouldn’t have been able to understand more than half, or even a small part, or even just get started!
So, Jiang Fei was prepared to see Xuanjizi’s surprised expression and hear him exclaim that he was a genius.
But the result was disappointing. Upon hearing Jiang Fei’s words, Xuanjizi showed no surprise, as if he had already anticipated it. He still smiled slightly and nodded, saying, “Not bad, not bad…”
The corner of Jiang Fei’s eye twitched. Had this old man forgotten how to talk?
“Just… just ‘not bad’?” Jiang Fei asked.
Xuanjizi nodded and said, “I’d say it’s quite outstanding.”
“Then why are you so calm, with that ‘nothing special, I already guessed it’ look on your face?” Jiang Fei said, displeased.
“Because you are the successor I chose. I recognized long ago that you were extraordinary. Now that you tell me you’ve comprehended more than half of the Tianji Diagram, it’s not really that unbelievable, is it?” Xuanjizi said matter-of-factly.
“——————”
Jiang Fei was utterly defeated by this old man.
Fine. The real reason he could comprehend the Tianji Diagram so quickly was all thanks to the master’s excellent judgment.
After a moment, Jiang Fei’s expression turned serious. He looked at his cheap master with great curiosity and asked earnestly: “Master, what level of cultivation have you actually reached? That strike of yours just now was so ferocious. Even though I’ve reached the ‘supremacy of no-sword’ and formed my sword domain, I had little room to resist against it. I know Yagyu Munenori has fully broken through the Inner Energy stage and reached the ‘Dan Jin’ level. The founder of the Seven Kills Group, the Lion King, is probably also at the ‘Dan Jin’ level. Master, what about you? Are you really close to shattering the void?”
Hearing Jiang Fei’s question, the smile on Xuanjizi’s face faded, and he became serious.
“Before, I thought your strength was still too weak, so I didn’t want to tell you too much about these things. I never expected that your peculiarities would be so great, far beyond what I could have imagined. In such a short time, you’ve reached the ‘supremacy of no-sword’ and can defeat Yagyu Munenori.” Xuanjizi shook his head, his face full of emotion.
Wearing his Taoist robe, he waved his sleeve, sending a gentle breeze to blow away the falling yellow leaves from the sky. Adopting a very pretentious 45-degree angle to gaze at the bright moon in the sky, he said: “The division of martial arts realms has a long history. It’s just that in modern society, with the decline of ancient martial arts, there are very few martial artists left. Even if there are some, most are frauds using it as a means to seek wealth and status. For example, those kinds of stage performances like the ‘Martial Arts Tournament’ held by TV stations. So, most martial artists nowadays have no idea about the true division of martial arts realms at all.”
“A martial artist first strengthens their body and tempers their muscles and bones. This is the most basic process of accumulation. If one can reach the pinnacle in this process and cultivate Inner Energy within the body, then they can be considered a master. In modern society, a master who can cultivate Inner Energy is considered a figure of note in the martial world. By continuously cultivating at the Inner Energy level, after ten or more years, one can reach the Transformation Energy level. For instance, the Miyamoto Kazuma you killed before, and those you know like Little Drunkard, Bai Kedi, and Qingxu of Wudang Mountain, are all masters at the Transformation Energy level. And they can all be considered at the peak of Transformation Energy.”
“If one can go a step further at the Transformation Energy level and break through the shackles, they can release Inner Energy externally, reaching the stage where they can hurt people with flying flowers or plucked leaves. This realm has surpassed the understanding of most people and is what we call the Dan Jin level! The founder of the Seven Kills Group, the Lion King, and the Yagyu Munenori you defeated tonight, both have reached this level.”
Inner Energy, Transformation Energy, Dan Jin.
So this is how strength is divided in the martial world.
Jiang Fei nodded to himself. As someone who had ‘cheated’ his way through, he was completely unaware of all this. Now, finally, someone was clearing it up for him.
“Lion King and Yagyu Munenori are at the Dan Jin level. What about Bai Kedi’s master, Lord Dong of the Northeast, the Little Drunkard’s master, the Old Drunkard of the Western Regions, Qingxu Daoist’s master, and that Weedy Hermit at the foot of Mount Lu? What levels have they reached?” Jiang Fei quickly asked, curiosity piqued.
“Seems you’ve come to know quite a few.” Xuanjizi smiled faintly. “These four you mentioned were considered the top figures in the martial world decades ago. Thirty-plus years ago, their status was equivalent to Bai Kedi, the Little Drunkard, and others today. So, after all these years, all of them naturally crossed into the Dan Jin level long ago. However, as far as I know, one among them has already surpassed the Dan Jin level…”
Jiang Fei was startled by this and quickly asked: “Surpassed Dan Jin? Who? Is it Lord Dong, the Old Drunkard, Qingxu Daoist’s master, or the Weedy Hermit?”
“Mount Lu, the Weedy Hermit.” Xuanjizi said, a hint of approval in his eyes, as if thinking of something.
“Him?” Jiang Fei said in surprise.
Among the top secluded masters he knew of, the Weedy Hermit at the foot of Mount Lu was the only one he hadn’t had any interaction with, either personally or through acquaintances. He had some understanding of the others.
“Mm. Although the Weedy Hermit is the youngest among them, he is the first to break through the Dan Jin level, truly remarkable. However, even if the others haven’t broken through the Dan Jin level, each of their strengths definitely wouldn’t be inferior to Yagyu Munenori’s.” Xuanjizi said.
Alright then. It seemed that even though he had elevated his Dugu Nine Swords to the third level, without his internal energy reaching a miraculous stage and entering the second level of the Northern Profound Divine Art, he still wasn’t powerful enough to be too arrogant and swagger around unchecked.
“What level comes after Dan Jin?” Jiang Fei asked after taking a deep breath.
Xuanjizi glanced at Jiang Fei with a smile before speaking: “After Dan Jin comes Gang Jin! The Weedy Hermit is one who has already crossed into the Gang Jin level.”
Jiang Fei’s eyes lit up, but before he could ask, Xuanjizi took the initiative and said, “Next, you’re going to ask me, your master, what level I’ve reached, right?”
Jiang Fei immediately nodded.
Xuanjizi chuckled and said, “I am also at the Gang Jin level.”
Jiang Fei was stunned and exclaimed in surprise: “How is that possible?”
His master, who was so incredibly impressive and claimed to be on the verge of shattering the void, should definitely be a master two or more levels above Yagyu Munenori. How could he only be at Gang Jin, the same as the Weedy Hermit?
Xuanjizi shook his head and said, “Gang Jin is further divided into two levels: External Gang and Internal Gang. The Weedy Hermit is at the External Gang realm, while I am at the Internal Gang realm.”
This explanation satisfied Jiang Fei.
Although his cheap master and the Weedy Hermit were both at the Gang Jin level, there was still a difference. Clearly, the Weedy Hermit was still one level weaker than his cheap master.
Just then, Xuanjizi spoke again: “Regarding Gang Jin, there is actually another term for it… called… Innate Gang Qi!”
“Inn… Innate Gang Jin?” The corner of Jiang Fei’s mouth twitched, feeling the muscles on his face stiffen.
Hearing this term, he truly felt like he had traveled from a martial world into a fantasy world.
Seeing Xuanjizi fall silent, Jiang Fei waited for a long while, his heart somewhat complex and also a bit apprehensive, before asking: “Master, after Innate Gang Jin… is there an even deeper level?”
“I don’t know.” Xuanjizi said.
“How could you not know!” Jiang Fei asked, eyes wide open.
“I truly do not know. In all the ancient texts, there is no further description after Innate Gang Jin. There are only speculations. So, I have always been searching… what exactly is the realm after Innate Gang Jin…” Xuanjizi sighed emotionally.
