Chapter 370: Breaking the Shackles

Seeing his serious demeanor, the disciples, unsure what he was examining, grew curious and gathered around to watch.

On the smooth surface created by the sword's cut, they saw a pattern—an intricate network of fine cracks. While it was hard to define precisely, everyone immediately recognized it as the result of their martial uncle’s recent palm strike. The cracks were coarser and less dense at the point of impact, becoming progressively finer and more concentrated further away.

The damage from the cracks was primarily concentrated in the center, with most of the surrounding area remaining intact.

As they observed, the crack pattern, illuminated by the Danjin flame energy, began to blur. A strong gust of wind then dislodged a small particle from within the cracks, rapidly stripping away the entire pattern until it was unrecognizable, leaving behind only a distinct groove.

What did that mean? The disciples uniformly turned their heads to stare at their martial uncle, their eyes catching the faint bloodstain at the corner of his mouth, visible in the glow of the Danjin flame energy.

Li Hongjiu reached out, touching the groove on the cut surface with a pensive expression. Only he truly understood the significance of the palm strike he had just unleashed.

In fact, the mark wasn't formed by his own palm energy, but by Shi Chun's residual energy that had lingered in his body.

His self-devised cultivation method, which he named "Borrowed Realm," hinged on the concept of "borrowing." He excelled at redirecting an opponent’s force, which was why Shi Chun had mistakenly believed he also practiced the "Demon Bathing Art."

The truth was, he had merely cycled the power of Shi Chun's "Demon Disarming Hand," which had struck him, and then redirected it back.

Normally, or based on his previous experience, the power of a palm strike from an opponent of that cultivation level would have been easily manageable for his force-redirection technique.

This time, however, he encountered an anomaly: the opponent’s palm energy inexplicably proliferated, multiplying from one to two, then two to three, and so on. Its unpredictable changes overwhelmed his "Borrowed Realm" method.

He had never encountered such a bizarre palm energy. He only managed to return a fraction of Shi Chun's palm strike; some of the suddenly proliferating energy couldn't be expelled quickly enough, causing him immediate injury.

To make matters worse, the masked man's second palm strike, its power not entirely neutralized, entered his body once more.

The situation was perilous; he couldn't allow the strange, overflowing energy to continue spreading and wreaking havoc inside him, as it would be fatal. He was desperately casting spells to net and contain the "escaped fish." At that moment, he was virtually defenseless; even someone at the minor achievement level of high martial arts could have killed him.

Fortunately, he reacted swiftly, discerning a hint of surprise and doubt in his opponent’s eyes. He then spoke, bluffing the masked man into retreating. Otherwise, given the opponent’s decisive and relentless fighting style, his own life would likely have been forfeit.

After gaining a moment to catch his breath, he managed to expel the lingering strange palm energy from his body. He even intentionally retained a portion of its power to strike the stone, creating a physical manifestation for further observation.

Although he had neutralized the power of both palm strikes, he had indeed sustained internal injuries. To be precise, the masked man’s first strike had injured him, and that initial blow had very nearly cost him his life.

Being injured by someone of a lower cultivation level was truly a first for him. Such incidents had always occurred when he fought those of higher cultivation, or when they happened to others; he never imagined he would experience it himself.

Today, he finally understood what that felt like, thoroughly.

This experience might not be a bad thing; true understanding is impossible without it.

His fingers traced the unevenness within the groove on the stone surface, and a profound, heartfelt joy gradually spread across his face, reflected in his eyes and the corners of his mouth.

This scene utterly baffled the surrounding disciples. It was clear under the Danjin light that he had been injured, so how could their martial uncle possibly be happy?

Had he been hit in the head and gone mad?

Guang Haoyou tentatively asked, "Martial Uncle, are you alright?"

Li Hongjiu smiled, "I'm fine, excellent."

The disciples exchanged glances, taking in the bloodstain at his mouth and his bare, sleeve-torn arm. Considering the masked man’s formidable strength, they couldn't fathom what he meant by "excellent."

Guang Haoyou probed with a mixture of surprise and doubt, "Excellent?"

Li Hongjiu glanced at them, aware that some things were beyond their current comprehension. Should he explain? And how would he even begin to explain?

He could explain it clearly, yet the adage "knowledge should not be lightly bestowed" held profound truth. There was a vast difference between simply hearing and understanding, and truly comprehending something deep within one's heart.

Ultimately, how much they comprehended depended on themselves. Whether what they witnessed today would aid their future understanding was also entirely up to them.

His gaze fell upon a protruding section of the stone. He reached out, gripped it, and with a mystical snap, broke off a piece, then motioned for Guang Haoyou to turn and face him.

Guang Haoyou looked suspicious but complied nonetheless.

To everyone’s bewilderment, Li Hongjiu then took the stone and struck Guang Haoyou squarely on the chest.

A dull thud echoed, clearly indicating impact against bone.

Still gripping the stone, Li Hongjiu asked with a smile, "How does that feel?"

Guang Haoyou grimaced in pain, rubbing his chest. "It hurts a bit," he said with a wry smile, "nothing else."

Li Hongjiu then opened his palm, displaying the stone within it to the bewildered onlookers. Suddenly, he clenched his hand, and with a display of his art, crushed the entire stone into a fine powder. He then slapped the powdery mass onto Guang Haoyou’s chest.

This time, Guang Haoyou merely swayed, without the sharp pain he had experienced earlier.

The wind swiftly carried away the scattered stone powder. Li Hongjiu, releasing his hand, smiled silently. He then extinguished the Danjin light, retrieved a pill, and swallowed it. Under the curious and bewildered gazes of the disciples, he walked out of the crowd, hands clasped behind his back, his eyes once more fixed on the direction where the masked man had fled.

He hadn't anticipated that the cultivation bottleneck, which had confounded him for years in the rear mountains of the Yanbao Sect, would suddenly be overcome with enlightenment after today’s perilous encounter.

His self-devised "Borrowed Realm" method had always harbored a significant flaw that he had been unable to fully comprehend.

This flaw had been clearly exposed earlier during his skirmish with the masked man in the whirlwind: his flying sword repeatedly attempted to strike the opponent directly. If the attacking power became too immense, even a successful killing blow would generate a backlash too severe for his cultivation level to withstand.

In other words, his force-redirection technique was adequate against opponents whose cultivation wasn't significantly higher than his. However, faced with the overwhelming attack power of a truly formidable master, his "Borrowed Realm" method couldn’t contain it; the sheer force was simply too great.

This problem had plagued him for a long time; he constantly sought a solution.

He persevered because he believed a solution had to exist; there was no principle in the universe that couldn't be overcome, he simply hadn't found the key.

To discover the equilibrium between strength and weakness, he had even halted his cultivation progress, preventing himself from entering the Human Immortal realm—a state universally desired by cultivators. His aim was to keep his physical body in a weaker state to better comprehend this balance, understanding that mind and body are intrinsically linked and that the strong often overlook the sensations of the weak.

Today, he finally discovered that method.

Just as the hard stone striking Guang Haoyou caused him pain, that stone represented a powerful cultivation attack from an opponent.

However, when he crushed the stone into powder and struck Guang Haoyou with it, Guang Haoyou felt no pain. Even with increased force, Guang Haoyou could easily endure it.

The attacking force remained the same, and the object was still the stone, yet the resulting effect was dramatically different. The sole distinction lay in the change of the stone’s form.

He had considered this concept before, but had never found a way to transform "stone" into "stone powder," dismissing it as an impractical fantasy, a path leading nowhere.

Today, after enduring two palm strikes from the masked man, the profound operational principle of "one generating two, two generating three, and three generating all things" coursed through his body. The sensation was extraordinary, bringing him sudden enlightenment: there truly was a way to transform "stone" into "stone powder."

Of course, he had only grasped the concept; transforming it into a practical method would still require a process of study and integration.

But for him, it was true enlightenment; he had found the path. A few weeds, thorns, and stumbles along the way were insignificant.

His mood was so exultant at that moment, he almost wanted to let out a long cry to the heavens.

The disciples, however, could not comprehend his mood and remained perplexed by his actions.

To them, these were trivial matters; their concern was the immediate situation.

The group drew closer once more. Guang Haoyou then asked, "Martial Uncle, who could that masked man have been?"

At this, a touch of surprise entered Li Hongjiu’s voice. He mused, "It should be Shi Chun."

"What?" many exclaimed in disbelief.

Guang Haoyou asked, astonished and doubtful, "How could Shi Chun possibly possess such strength?"

Li Hongjiu turned to him and asked, "Then, what do you think of my strength?"

"Martial Uncle's strength is naturally unparalleled."

"Martial Uncle possesses divine abilities; finding an equal at your level should be difficult."

The group offered a flurry of flattering remarks, though much of it stemmed from genuine admiration. To possess their junior martial uncle’s combat prowess was a dream that would make them wake up laughing.

Li Hongjiu then turned to face them, jesting, "Why is it that my strength can be superior, but Shi Chun's cannot, or anyone else's? Do you find your logic sound? How can cultivators remain complacent and static?"

The disciples exchanged glances. Someone offered a wry smile, "Martial Uncle, if you phrase it like that, what else can we say? It's just... I still find it difficult to imagine Shi Chun's strength being so terrifying."

Li Hongjiu looked up at the dim, faintly visible starry sky, muttering to himself, "His abilities are truly extraordinary; they shouldn't stem from an obscure lineage. That fellow acts so high-profile, how could no one recognize him? The Land of Exile… I wonder if there’s a chance to go in and see."

This statement startled everyone. Was he serious? The Land of Exile wasn't a place one could simply enter at will; those sent there were heinous criminals whose cultivation was inevitably crippled.

Logically, no one would willingly subject themselves to such torment by entering. Yet, their martial uncle was truly unpredictable; who knew what he might do? He had, after all, single-mindedly ventured into the dangerous Unfathomable Forbidden Zone.

Guang Haoyou quickly interjected to steer his thoughts elsewhere, "Martial Uncle, if it truly is Shi Chun, how can we make him surrender the secret method for finding the divine fire?"

"Kind words will certainly be useless. Naturally, we'll beat him until he hands it over. With so many helpers, what's there to worry about?"

As Li Hongjiu spoke, he glanced back in the direction they had come from, observing a group of indistinct figures hurrying towards them.

Beyond members of various sects, there weren't many other people to be found in this area.

A group of stealthy, cautious newcomers, upon spotting the Yanbao Sect contingent, quickly drew closer. They were, predictably, the various sect members, still visibly shaken.

Wu Shanshan was also among them. Though appearing miserable with a missing arm, her look rather suited the style of Forgetfulness Valley. However, the resentment on her face seemed too dense to dissipate.

Zuo Zisheng was the first to approach, asking, "Mr. Li, that flash of lightning just now was so bright it seemed like dawn. What happened?"

Li Hongjiu blinked. "I don't know," he replied, "we also came because of the lightning flash."

Everyone then focused on his bare, sleeveless arm and the bloodstains on his mouth. So disheveled, and he claimed to have seen nothing?