Chapter 1 A Single Word

A single word fell, and the Da Dao was instantly silent.

An Qisheng's expression was calm, a hint of a smile in his eyes.

Throughout history, fortune tellers in the martial world always seized the initiative with their first three sentences, shocking and awing people, making them believe they were heavenly beings. Only in this way could they control the situation.

Although Han Changgong possessed the art of Qi Observation, capable of deducing military formations and calculating national fortunes, he couldn't escape the fact that he was, at heart, a fortune teller from the martial world.

An Qisheng was well aware of this.

Although this was their first meeting, he had already seen Han Changgong thousands of times when he practiced the Myriad Fate Qi Observation Art in Huangfu's dream. Naturally, he understood his background.

Therefore, he didn't even blink, and said calmly:

"Fortune tellers in the martial world say, 'Observe intention before entering, seize the heart before speaking!' Mr. Han is employing it with great skill, but there's no need for such tricks."

Because of Huangfu, he didn't dislike Han Changgong, but he was too lazy to spar with him verbally.

Han Changgong's expression remained unchanged after his trick was seen through.

He only sized up An Qisheng a few times before saying with some curiosity:

"Although Daoist's face is one of longevity, it's not one of extreme nobility. He is destined to have a tribulation, and his lifespan should not exceed a hundred years..."

Lifespan not exceeding a hundred?

An Qisheng's heart stirred. If he hadn't arrived, Old Daoist Wang Quan would probably be cold in his grave by now. This was indeed correct.

But on his face, his gaze turned cold:

"Are you cursing me?"

Whoosh~

Falling with his words was an icy chill.

'This old Daoist has such great killing intent...'

Han Changgong's heart trembled, but he wore a smile on his face:

"The art of face reading has its limits and is difficult to fully comprehend. Perhaps I was mistaken..."

"Daoist!"

Stirred by the killing intent, Gui Xiaoer suddenly woke up. When he opened his eyes and saw An Qisheng facing Han Changgong from afar, his expression changed drastically:

"Daoist, please have mercy!"

Gui Xiaoer was anxious.

Earlier, Huangfu had asked him to send a message, but Han Changgong noticed and brought him along.

He had seen the battle on the city wall and was shocked by An Qisheng's peerless killing intent.

Now, seeing the two confronting each other, he couldn't help but jump up.

"Xiaoer!"

Han Changgong glared at him, then straightened his sleeves and looked at An Qisheng:

"The world says Daoist's killing intent is monstrous, but Han knows that Daoist is not a bloodthirsty person!"

An Qisheng had risen to prominence in just two years, and the number of people he had killed was in the tens of thousands. Everyone feared him like a tiger, yet someone was saying he wasn't bloodthirsty.

Gui Xiaoer's face twitched involuntarily.

The atmosphere was still filled with killing intent, and An Qisheng remained noncommittal:

"Is that so?"

"The six thousand miles of killing intent has been completely vented. Daoist's spiritual light is now complete and clear. His nature is pure, and he has likely achieved perfection. Any further reckless actions would be a case of diminishing returns."

Han Changgong sighed slightly.

Although this was their first meeting, he had already learned of An Qisheng's state based on his Qi Observation and face reading. That was why he dared to come after the annihilation of Ji Chonghua and his army.

Ordinary people's minds are scattered and hesitant. They often change their minds and forget their intentions. Their spirits are scattered and uncollected.

Those who have achieved success in martial arts are strict with themselves and have firm wills. Once they make a decision, they are not swayed by external objects. However, various distracting thoughts still arise, making it difficult to concentrate.

'Astral Projection' (yin shen chu qiao) is a necessary path for the Divine Vein (shen mai), but not everyone is qualified to condense an 'Astral Soul' (yin shen).

An Qisheng was currently in an extremely strange state. He was complete, perfect, his Astral Soul was strong, and no distracting thoughts arose. Passing through 'Astral Projection' was almost a certainty.

Passing through a killing field without being tainted by killing intent was a state he could not achieve.

While everyone was shocked by An Qisheng's killing intent and dared not approach, he knew that An Qisheng was perhaps at his most peaceful.

"That, you are mistaken."

An Qisheng shook his head.

His state of mind had long been cultivated to the point where his original nature was like a mirror hanging high, and no distracting thoughts lingered in his heart. How could he be troubled by distracting thoughts?

Walking these six thousand miles, he had mostly been sorting out his spirit, martial arts, and comprehending the transformation of 'spirit'.

Cultivation is about allowing things to come to fruition naturally.

In his opinion, breakthroughs during battle or breakthroughs through the addition of great momentum were nothing more than unorthodox methods.

Those who seek breakthroughs in battle are often killed.

The addition of great momentum is no different. Feng Qingxuan's example is not far away.

He experienced the addition of great momentum and the cleansing of the spirit through contending with the spirit of a nation, but he did not want to use this momentum to break through.

"Alright, Mr. Han is afraid that I will start a massacre, but there's no need. I came on a whim and will return on a whim, that's all."

An Qisheng lightly stroked the red tassel of his spear and said indifferently:

"I came here just to tell you that things in the world are not as arbitrary as you think. He is also a person, not heaven!"

Han Changgong's heart trembled. He felt that this old Daoist was extremely familiar with him.

Every word was just right, and strangely inexplicable.

"I will truthfully convey these words... However, what I said before was not false either."

After a moment of silence, Han Changgong slowly raised his head and looked at An Qisheng calmly:

"Even if Daoist defies the heavens and changes his fate, surviving the death tribulation he should have experienced, it is only postponed by sixty years. After sixty years, it will be Daoist's Heavenly寿 (tian shou - lifespan)!"

"After sixty years..."

An Qisheng muttered to himself.

Heavenly寿 (tian shou - lifespan) is different from a death tribulation. Tribulations can be avoided, hidden, or eliminated, but the limit of one's lifespan is predetermined by heaven. To live past one's Heavenly寿 (tian shou - lifespan), one must seize life from the heavens!

However, he was only in his nineties, which, calculated with the Divine Vein's three hundred year lifespan, was still very young.

Unless he didn't want to live, there was no reason for him to die young at the age of one hundred and sixty, right?

"I have said all that I need to say, farewell!"

After Han Changgong cupped his fist, the Golden Eagle King descended from the sky.

With a single leap, he carried Gui Xiaoer up into the sky, landing steadily on the Golden Eagle King's back.

Just as he was about to leave, he suddenly heard An Qisheng's flat voice in his ear:

"One who can heal cannot heal himself, and a fortune teller cannot read his own fortune. One who observes Qi cannot observe himself... You read my fortune, so I will read yours once as well."

Beside the snow-covered road, An Qisheng sat cross-legged in meditation, his expression serene:

"The building is about to collapse, and strength cannot hold up the sky. It is better to withdraw early and follow me into the world to be a Daoist."

His eyes were deep, his words were calm, but the words he spoke made Han Changgong's heart tremble.

Did he know too?

Did Huangfu tell him this as well?

Or was it...

Han Changgong's gaze sharpened, then he laughed loudly, urging the eagle to fly into the sky:

"So what?"

Whoosh whoosh~~

Between the falling of the withered yellow leaves.

An Qisheng walked away with his spear, disappearing in a few flashes.

A breeze blew through the forest, causing the accumulated snow to fall with a '簌簌' sound, also blowing away An Qisheng's sigh.

"I hope you don't regret it next time I see you..."

While waiting for Han Changgong to land, he had entered Ji Chonghua's dream and saw much more than Cao Tiangang, Liu Yanchang, or even Han Changgong.

For example, although Ji Chonghua didn't know exactly which celestial weapon was in the royal city, he had truly witnessed the power of that celestial weapon.

And according to An Qisheng's speculation.

That celestial weapon was seventy percent likely to be…

The Dragon King Armor!

........

The more important the event, the faster it spreads.

In a short time, the battle in front of Fengdu City had spread throughout the seventy-three states of the world, known to countless people!

The deaths of Grand Preceptor Ji Chonghua, Supervisor Cao Tiangang of the Eastern Depot, and Commander Yang Lin of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, three Divine Vein (shen mai) experts who were the most powerful and influential in the entire Da Feng, caused far more of a stir than the killing of the Red Sun Dharma King!

For a time, the entire martial world was completely boiling.

Killing Feng Qingxuan in front of the Righteous Alliance, beheading the Red Sun in the Liang Province mountains, slaying Yang Lin on the snowy plains, killing Ji Chonghua in front of Fengdu City, and beheading Cao Tiangang above the city walls!

Any one of these events would be enough to make someone famous throughout the world, let alone when these events were all done by one person?

What's more, this person was said to have not even broken through to the Divine Vein (shen mai)!

In a short time, the name An Qisheng had shocked the world three times, becoming the most talked about name among countless martial artists.

Under the embellishment of the many martial artists who had witnessed this battle, some even adapted his story into a storytelling performance that swept through many states, further adding a layer of mystery to him.

There were not a few people in the martial world who had seen An Qisheng. Not counting the thousand or so martial artists in front of the Righteous Alliance, he attracted thousands of martial artists as he walked across Liang Province.

But even so, how high his martial arts were was still a matter of much speculation.

All that was known was that he, alone with his spear, was besieged by three Divine Vein (shen mai) experts leading the Scarlet Flood Dragon Army, yet he single-handedly defeated them and killed Yang Lin, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. After that, he chased them for two thousand miles and killed Ji Chonghua in front of Fengdu City!

Some speculated that he was accumulating momentum to break through to the Divine Vein (shen mai) with the overwhelming force of one person pressing down on a nation!

Therefore, no one knew how terrifying his martial arts had become after the battle of Fengdu City.

Even if the imperial court no longer updated the Weapon Rankings.

Many martial artists all believed that he was a peerless expert who could stand alongside the five Grandmasters ranked in the top five of the Weapon Rankings: Pang Wanyang, Mu Qingfeng, Yixiu, King of the Wheel, and True Man Baiyue!

........

Three great suns hung in the sky, but there was not much warmth in the world.

Instead, the uneven official road of Nanliang County was smoothed out and thickened by the thick snow.

Sasha sasha~

Amidst the sound of hooves treading through the snow, three horses, one red and two black, appeared on the official road.

"Master, I'm so tired..."

Jiang Tingting, wrapped tightly in her scarf, tugged at her scarf. Her chubby little face was covered in sweat.

More than a year had passed, but the poor little guy still hadn't been able to cultivate inner strength.

Although she had entered the doorway of stance training and had some skill in her fists and feet, she couldn't withstand the hardship of long-distance running.

On the other hand, Zhang Hao, who was clearly more energetic, was also a little tired, but his spirit was extremely good. Having practiced inner strength for more than a year, he was still no match for his junior sister, but his endurance was much stronger.

On the red horse, An Qisheng pointed to the distance:

"Don't you recognize that mountain?"

The two little guys were confused from the journey. At this moment, they came back to their senses and saw a familiar mountain peak in the distance:

"Black, Black Mountain? Are we back?"

"Not right..."

An Qisheng chuckled and corrected the two little guys:

"From today onwards, call it Kingly Power Mountain!"