Chapter 161: Confucian Cultivator vs. Confucian Cultivator

"That Du Xueyi still lacks combat experience," Qiu Jin'an said, shaking his head. "Let's just take this loss as a lesson." He appeared unconcerned by the initial setback.

Lu Yang mused inwardly, "Sect Master Qiu, there's no need to put on a brave face. You've already crushed a teacup, yet you claim a loss is just a loss."

It was Lu Yang's idea to have Meng Jingzhou participate in the first round; he wanted Meng Jingzhou to give the Five Elements Sect a taste of what was to come.

The Immortal Fairy hesitated, then said, "Sect Master Qiu, I believe Meng Jingzhou's body cultivation extends to his hair, and then using his bangs to ram his opponent's head. This can no longer be described as 'lacking combat experience'."

At least in ancient times, the Immortal Fairy had never seen such an outrageous method of body cultivation.

Could this be what new-age body cultivators are like?

Qiu Jin'an was momentarily speechless, caught off guard by the Immortal Fairy's directness.

"Can't I have someone else sit next to me?"

Qiu Jin'an adopted an unconcerned expression: "I had Du Xueyi go first merely to warm up the crowd. The next one to appear won't be as easy to deal with as Du Xueyi."

On the martial arts square, a refined Confucian cultivator made his entrance. He wore a scholar's cap, held a paper fan, was dressed in a light blue Confucian robe, and moved with a leisurely demeanor.

"This is Fang Hao," he announced, "the most outstanding Confucian cultivator at the Foundation Establishment stage in our sect."

Qiu Jin'an had made his pronouncement for show, but everyone in the Five Elements Sect knew that Fang Hao's skill level was actually similar to Du Xueyi's.

"Coincidentally," a voice came from the other side, "we also have a Confucian cultivator."

On the other side of the martial arts square, Barbarian Bone arrived belatedly, carrying a large hammer. Originally, he had wanted to carry Meng Jingzhou with him, but the referee wouldn't allow it, stating that Meng Jingzhou was not a weapon. Barbarian Bone had no choice but to settle for the next best thing and chose to use the Dark Sand Iron Hammer he had recently acquired.

A talisman was affixed to the hammer's handle, allowing it to recite the full text of 'The Words of the Sage'.

"'The Sage says: Is it not delightful to learn and to practice what one has learned from time to time...'"

Barbarian Bone strode step by step towards Fang Hao, his face grimacing. The sound of 'The Words of the Sage' echoed throughout the martial arts square, sounding like a villain who had just massacred a family of twenty-eight, not even sparing the smallest mouse, and was now reciting sutras for the deceased. The combination was utterly jarring.

As soon as the match began, Barbarian Bone swung the Dark Sand Iron Hammer at Fang Hao. Fang Hao shifted his feet, sidestepping the attack with an elegant posture.

Barbarian Bone put strength into his wrist, forcefully changing the hammer's trajectory and sweeping it horizontally towards Fang Hao.

Fang Hao had not anticipated such ferocity from Barbarian Bone. Seeing that the hammer's attack was unavoidable, he blocked it with his paper fan, which instantly shattered, and he was directly swept away.

The paper fan was a magic artifact, capable of blocking one fatal attack. Thus, Fang Hao was not injured.

He reined in his smile, realizing this was a formidable opponent.

A miniature whirlwind swirled around Fang Hao. After it dissipated, an invisible yet undeniably present force enveloped him.

"Grand Righteousness?" the Immortal Fairy exclaimed in surprise. This was the first time she had seen Grand Righteousness since her revival.

Fang Hao was a legitimate Confucian cultivator, and the invisible force was Grand Righteousness.

"Were there also Confucian cultivators and Grand Righteousness in ancient times?" Lu Yang asked.

"Of course there were," she replied. "The author of 'The Words of the Sage' appeared much earlier than you might imagine."

"Did Confucius become an immortal, then?"

"I don't know."

"You don't know?"

"A 'Sage' is not a cultivation realm," she explained, "but rather a state of 'benevolence' (ren). To embody 'benevolence' throughout one's life is the realm of a Sage."

"'Benevolence' has many meanings; I couldn't finish explaining them to you in three days and three nights. Of course, at my current level, I couldn't explain for three days and three nights either."

Evidently, the Immortal Fairy had a clear understanding of her own knowledge reserves.

Fang Hao used Grand Righteousness as ink, and with a wolf-hair brush, wrote in the air—"A gentleman stops, passage forbidden ahead."

The charging Barbarian Bone saw this phrase and, to his surprise, involuntarily stopped in his tracks, his body completely out of his control.

This was the extremely rare 'Unity of Knowledge and Action' technique, even among Confucian cultivators. This spell would compel the opponent to act according to the written words, achieving the unity of knowledge and action.

Naturally, this spell was not without limitations. Even someone as talented as Fang Hao could only use the Unity of Knowledge and Action technique on those of the same cultivation realm; those in a higher realm would be immune.

Using it against Barbarian Bone now was perfectly suitable.

Fang Hao wrote again—"Do not do unto others what you would not have them do unto you."

What one does not desire for oneself, one should not impose on others. By using this phrase, if Barbarian Bone wanted to strike Fang Hao, he would first have to strike himself.

Unexpectedly, Barbarian Bone, seeing the command to stop disappear, swung his large hammer and charged forward, startling Fang Hao considerably.

"How did you escape my control!"

"'Control?'" Barbarian Bone didn't quite understand Fang Hao's meaning. "'Doesn't that phrase mean that what I don't want for myself, I definitely won't give to you? It didn't restrict my freedom, did it?'"

Fang Hao was so furious he nearly spat blood. The prerequisite for 'Unity of Knowledge and Action' was understanding the meaning of the phrase, but his opponent was a complete barbarian!

Fang Hao accidentally got grazed by Barbarian Bone's hammer and began to bleed profusely. He quickly retreated to avoid Barbarian Bone's hammer, and raising his brush, wrote again—"If you want to attack me, you must first attack yourself."

Although plain language was considerably less effective than classical language, he couldn't afford to care about that now.

Barbarian Bone continued to swing his large hammer at Fang Hao, still without being controlled.

Fang Hao was in disbelief. "Does this barbarian not even recognize words!"

It wasn't until Barbarian Bone performed a jumping overhead chop, swinging his large hammer towards Fang Hao's head, that Fang Hao finally noticed that Barbarian Bone had his eyes closed!

Barbarian Bone had been learning from Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou for a month, and his mind had become quite agile. After two exchanges, he realized that as long as he didn't look at the words Fang Hao wrote, he wouldn't be affected.

Since that was the case, he simply closed his eyes!

As Barbarian Bone's hammer descended, the referee intervened and blocked the blow.

If that blow had landed on Fang Hao, he wouldn't have been able to hold a brush and write for the rest of his life.

"Round two," the referee declared, "Barbarian Bone wins."

Qiu Jin'an's expression turned unsightly, but having been bullied by the Nine Disciples of Dao-Asking Sect since childhood, it wasn't the first or second time his face had shown displeasure. He had long grown accustomed to it.

The Immortal Fairy sighed in admiration: "As expected of the ancient barbarians, a naturally combative race. They can even fight with their eyes closed."

"Do you know much about the ancient barbarians?" Lu Yang asked.

The Immortal Fairy replied confidently: "Of course. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say I was the teacher of the ancient barbarians."

"As you know, those barbarians aren't particularly sharp-witted," she continued. "Coincidentally, they heard I was exceptionally intelligent, possessing outstanding wisdom even among immortals, so they invited me to teach in their tribe."

"The barbarians were difficult to teach," she lamented. "Whatever I taught, they'd forget; what they learned that day, they'd forget by the next morning. Fortunately, I have astonishing perseverance and ample patience, and eventually, in the barbarian lands, I learned what it meant to give up."

"Later, I changed my strategy," she continued. "I performed a direct spiritual infusion, instilling my wisdom into their minds and bloodlines. This way, even if I didn't teach them, their intelligence would be second only to mine!"

Lu Yang gasped. "Fairy, you've been 'afflicting' them with this for millennia!"

Suddenly, Lu Yang realized something. Despite the Immortal Fairy's immense contribution to the ancient barbarians, Barbarian Bone, as an ancient barbarian, had never heard of the Immortal Fairy.

"Is there a missing part in the ancient barbarians' lineage records," he wondered, "or has someone deliberately hidden the Immortal Fairy's existence?"

To make the entire world forget an immortal—what a monumental undertaking that would be!