Chapter 170: 功法大一统

The three men activated the teleportation artifact again. With three dull thuds, their vision went dark, and their bodies felt tightly bound. Realizing something was wrong, they immediately unleashed their vital qi, shattering whatever was around them. Only then did they discover that by following Qin Mu, they had accidentally teleported themselves into the trunks of several large trees.

"Where's the Holy Cult Master?" asked King Shi.

As soon as he spoke, they spotted Qin Mu. His head protruded from the trunk of a tree so large it would take two people to embrace it, his body still stuck inside and struggling to get free. The tree was an ironwood, harder than steel.

King Lu, known for his fiery temper, yelled, "Cult Master, why aren't you running anymore?"

"Three Heavenly Kings, you haven't left yet?" Qin Mu said, embarrassed. "My vital qi is depleted, and I'm trapped by this ironwood tree. I can't even lift my clothes. Three Heavenly Kings, please give me a hand."

The three Heavenly Kings didn't know whether to laugh or cry. King Shi cut down the ironwood tree and rescued Qin Mu. "Cult Master," he said, "you are, after all, the Holy Cult Master of our Sacred Cult, holding a position of high authority. You cannot cause trouble on Sacred Mountain. All the buildings on the Sacred Mountain are ancient relics and hold deep meaning."

King Lu said, "Cult Master, you're not a child..." At that point, he realized his mistake. Wasn't their Holy Cult Master indeed a child? Qin Mu was not yet fifteen, barely a fraction of their age.

King Lu stammered, "When I was the Holy Cult Master's age, I was still playing in the mud... no, by then I was already harvesting rice. But Cult Master, the method of teleportation is very dangerous. If you're not careful and teleport into a forbidden area, even immortals won't be able to save you! There are many forbidden areas on our Sacred Mountain!"

Qin Mu was terrified. If he were to teleport into a forbidden area, he would meet a fate worse than death.

"Cult Master, all teleportation artifacts require positioning. How to determine the precise location for teleportation is key." The three Heavenly Kings exchanged glances, suppressing their shock. King Shi said, "Cult Master, you've refined the teleportation robe, but you haven't mastered how to teleport accurately yet, which is very dangerous. For teleportation, first you must determine your current location, then where you want to go. As you're about to reach your destination, you must immediately withdraw your vital qi, otherwise you'll collide with something. For your first attempt, don't go too far; stay close. Being close makes it easier to stop at any time."

Qin Mu's eyes lit up. "I'll try again!"

The three Heavenly Kings immediately looked distressed. King Yu quickly said, "Cult Master, your vital qi is depleted now, there's no need to rush. Furthermore, the Grandmaster left you here not for you to learn teleportation divine abilities, but for you to calm your mind and comprehend the Grand Unification art. Sacred Mountain is very peaceful, free from the worldly clamor outside. If you leave here, you might not be able to thoroughly understand the Grand Unification art even in one or two years."

Qin Mu's heart suddenly tightened. The Young Grandmaster's decision to leave him here indeed had profound meaning. For the past two days, he had been focused on refining the teleportation robe quickly to leave this place, without considering the Young Grandmaster's true intention.

"I was too eager for quick results," Qin Mu admitted candidly, bowing in thanks. "Thank you, Heavenly Kings, for guiding me."

"You're too kind!" The three Heavenly Kings replied respectfully, quickly returning the bow. King Shi said, "Cult Master, your intelligence is extraordinary. Staying here for a few more days will surely yield great rewards."

Qin Mu calmed his mind, walked towards the pine and cypress tree, and sat on a stone, diligently contemplating the scriptures inscribed on the woodcutter's stone.

The three Heavenly Kings breathed a sigh of relief. King Shi murmured, "The Grandmaster left the Cult Master on Sacred Mountain to temper his character. The Holy Cult Master's disposition is indeed quite mischievous, but I'm afraid even the Grandmaster didn't anticipate that he would refine the teleportation method to this extent so quickly, did he?"

The other two Heavenly Kings also wore strange expressions. Although the Young Grandmaster's idea was good, no one expected that as soon as he left, Qin Mu would realize that the teleportation divine ability couldn't be mastered right away and would require proficiency in arithmetic. What was even more extraordinary was that Qin Mu immediately understood he could first refine a teleportation artifact. It was only the second day, and he had already cobbled together a teleportation robe, teleporting himself back and forth, giving the three Heavenly Kings quite a hard time.

King Lu shook his head and said, "How intelligent is the Grandmaster? How could he not have thought of this? He must have anticipated this long ago, which is why he assigned the three of us to guard this place."

After a moment, the three Heavenly Kings sighed in unison, "The Grandmaster absolutely did not think of that."

The three Heavenly Kings felt troubled and apprehensive. This Holy Cult Master was incredibly mischievous, yet so intelligent. It seemed impossible to temper his character. At Qin Mu's current pace, he would likely master the use of the teleportation robe after just a few more practice sessions. How then could they keep him there to refine his mischievous nature?

After a moment, King Yu chuckled, "We're overthinking things a bit." The other two Heavenly Kings looked at him inquiringly. King Yu laughed, "The Holy Cult Master is so intelligent; if he likes to cause trouble, let him cause trouble. If his nature is mischievous, let it be mischievous. After all, he is the Cult Master. We shouldn't worry about anything else; our duty is simply to clean up after him. If we do a good job cleaning up, that's truly our part."

King Shi said, "That's probably all we can do. Having said that, if the Cult Master continues to cause trouble, I think it's better to let him leave Sacred Mountain earlier and go cause trouble back at the Imperial College."

The three old men went to Fenglin Pavilion and, acting as masons, repaired it. Then they proceeded to the Three Kings Hall and patched up its roof.

King Lu made a long trip and, two days later, returned with the head of the Scripture Hall, asking him to create a fake inscription by writing "Fen Qiwu Ji" on the walls of Fenglin Pavilion.

After everything was properly arranged, the three Heavenly Kings all breathed a sigh of relief, exchanging glances. "With the Holy Cult Master's current comprehension, can we expect half a year of peace now?" "Given the Cult Master's extraordinary talent, that's unlikely."

Under the pine and cypress tree, on the sage's stone, Qin Mu sat in quiet contemplation for several days. Whenever he grew hungry or thirsty, the fox would appear, bringing a pile of fruits from who knew where, and Qin Mu would eat them with Fox Ling'er.

Qin Mu contemplated for over ten days, reviewing the woodcutter's teachings more than a dozen times, but still found it difficult to comprehend the Grand Unification art. He gradually began to feel anxious.

"No more fruits today," Qin Mu declared, rising from the sage's stone and speaking to Fox Ling'er. "Eating fruits every day is getting bland. Today we eat meat. Ling'er, is there anything edible in the mountains?"

Fox Ling'er cheered. "There are deer in the mountains! I saw a herd of musk deer; I've been wanting to hunt them for a while, but since this is Sacred Mountain, I didn't dare to act rashly."

Qin Mu exclaimed excitedly, "Let's go catch one!"

Soon after, the man and the fox were roasting venison. Fox Ling'er took some salt and cumin from her satchel and sprinkled it on, making it fragrant and incredibly appetizing. They were truly ravenous and ate the entire deer clean. Fox Ling'er lay on her back, rubbing her bulging belly with great satisfaction. Qin Mu also felt stuffed and got up to walk a few steps, activating the Three Elixirs of Hegemon Body Art to accelerate digestion.

His steps quickened, and unconsciously, he began to practice according to his methods from Crippled Elder Village, moving as fast as flying. Suddenly, he unleashed the Eight Styles of Thunder Sound, punching and striking, exploding the air with roaring thunder. He then used his hands as hammers, performing the Mute's hammer techniques. Each strike vibrated the air like a huge drum, and he resembled a giant, his deep blows causing the leaves in the mountain forest to rustle loudly. Qin Mu's movements changed again, performing leg techniques, then spear techniques, then sword techniques, and then blade techniques.

His rapid movement became even faster, and he even gathered his vital qi as a brush, painting in the air, completely uninhibited and unrestrained. Suddenly, he performed the Rain-Summoning Spell, sending out streaks of rain like swords and strings, with the sound of a zither mixed into the falling rain. He then switched to the Rushing Thunder and Fiery Blaze Spell, flicking his fingers repeatedly, causing thunder to roar and bursts of flame to explode all around. A fiery orb rose slowly in Qin Mu's hand, growing redder and redder, like a setting sun. Streams of fiery sword qi shot out in all directions as he executed the Sunset Sword Art.

Then his vital qi transformed, his body like a galloping white tiger, its claws and fangs capable of crushing mountains and splitting stones. He then performed the Seven Chapters of Creation Profound Art: Creation Spirit Art transforming into physical forms, Creation Heavenly God Art transforming into energy, Creation Heavenly Devil Art transforming into appearances, Creation Human King Art transforming into dragons, Creation Ghost God Art transforming into souls, Creation Earth Essence Art transforming into spirits, and Creation Innate Art transforming into infants.

He further demonstrated various spells, fist arts, sword arts, and blade arts from the Grand Education Demonic Scripture.

Unconsciously, he entered a peculiar state. In his mind, the woodcutter's voice was intermittent, sometimes sounding, sometimes muffled, sometimes loud, sometimes low. All sorts of profound mysteries flooded his mind, then flowed out from his hands, transforming into wondrous techniques.

He felt only joy in his heart, unleashing everything without restraint. He no longer questioned what kind of spell or divine ability it was, or what kind of move or sword art; he simply displayed them all, regardless of precedence or order.

He felt his heart becoming wild. If the Grand Education Demonic Scripture's art didn't flow smoothly, he would modify it. If the Three Elixirs of Hegemon Body Art was sluggish, he would let it run naturally and adjust the direction of his vital qi.

To act spontaneously and purely by nature is the true Dao. At this moment, he finally gained a profound understanding of this phrase. There was no need to adhere to what predecessors had left behind, whether it was the Grand Education Demonic Scripture or the Three Elixirs of Hegemon Body Art. He let his vital qi flow in whatever way felt most natural, performing various techniques and divine abilities, allowing his vital qi to circulate with as much power as it desired, regardless of whether it was standard or not. The more he did this, the more profound insights he gained from the woodcutter's stone, comprehending even more mysteries.

The three Heavenly Kings were also startled and quickly came out to look. They saw flashes of lightning and heard thunder rumbling occasionally in the forests of Sacred Mountain. The ground churned, the air fluctuated, and swords and blades flashed. Trees toppled, and entire sections of the forest fell.

The three Heavenly Kings' expressions changed dramatically. King Shi cried out, "Oh no, the Holy Cult Master is heading for the Sacred Tree!"

The three old men quickly rose into the air and landed beneath the pine and cypress tree. They saw Qin Mu, wild with ecstasy and unrestrained, casually unleashing various techniques and divine abilities. His vital qi even manifested various divine and demonic phenomena, whether righteous, demonic, or Buddhist, all were displayed. Whether it was the unique divine abilities of the White Tiger Spirit Physique, the special defensive means of the Black Tortoise Spirit Physique, the wind and thunder of the Azure Dragon Spirit Physique, or the true fire of the Vermilion Bird Spirit Physique, all were demonstrated and wielded freely in his hands, leaving the three Heavenly Kings who guarded the cult utterly dumbfounded.

"The Grand Unification art..." King Shi murmured, "He's comprehended it, he's comprehended it..."