Chapter 30 The Choice of Daos
With Teng Qingshan’s keen senses, he could hear the palpitation of the young man, Mu Yunyi, beside him. Teng Qingshan thought to himself, “Mu Yunyi had lost his arms for eleven years. So, now that he is able to get his arms back, it would be weird if he isn’t excited.”
“Yes, Honorable Martial Immortal.”
Mu Yunyi replied respectfully. Simultaneously, an azure glow emerged from the surface of his body, puffing up his clothes. Mu Yunyi’s body was like a loach, shrinking back abruptly and slithering out from his clothes. As Mu Yunyi withdrew his Innate True Origin, his clothes fell onto the ground, and he was now half-naked.
“He strips fast.” Teng Qingshan chuckled.
Mu Yunyi’s upper body was very muscular. His upper body was covered with wound marks and scars, and he was armless.
When the Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal saw the numerous wound marks and scars on Yunyi’s body, he sighed and remarked in admiration, “Because your arms were cut off, you couldn’t perform blade art. Yet, you were able to reach the Innate Realm at the age of 29…… You have been through great suffering. However…… Yunyi, all the wound marks and scars on your body will disappear after you consume this Dreamy Cloud White Fruit.”
Mu Yunyi held his breath as he sat cross-legged.
The Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal carried the jade box before him. Then with a ‘click’ sound, the jade box opened, revealing the white, infant-like fruit which had been placed in the recess of a jade stone. A green ray of light twirled on the surface of the white fist-sized, infant-like fruit.
As the jade box opened up, a strong fragrance permeated the air.
“As expected of the Dreamy Cloud White Fruit, one of the three greatest Spiritual Treasures,” Great Elder Mu Wang praised.
As Teng Qingshan smelled the fragrance, his entire body felt very relaxed.
“I will slice the Dreamy Cloud White Fruit into five pieces now.” The Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal took out a thin jade knife from the box. With the jade knife in his grasp, he sliced the Dreamy Cloud White Fruit into five identical pieces at lightning speed. He then grabbed a piece with his bare hands and gave it to Mu Yunyi.
“Yunyi, eat it,” The Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal said.
“Yes.”
Mu Yunyi shuddered slightly and inhaled deeply before he took the piece of fruit. “Crunch, crunch.” He chewed it a few times and then swallowed it.
“Yes!” Mu Yunyi’s eyes widened and his face flushed.
“Crick, crack, crack~~” The internals of Mu Yunyi’s body emitted some very peculiar noises which sounded like the chewing sounds of a mouse. The scars and wound marks on Mu Yunyi’s body first disappeared rapidly and then his skin became as smooth as an infant’s. “Snap!” A loud snap rang out subsequently. Then suddenly, Mu Yunyi’s armless shoulders convulsed, and bones and flesh began growing out of his shoulders.
The arms grew continuously, making cricketty, cracking, and fizzling sounds.
“Truly incredible.” Mu Wang’s and Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal’s eyes brightened.
“The rumors about it being able to bring back bones and flesh…… are true.” Teng Qingshan widened his eyes as he watched the arms grow out of Yunyi’s shoulders…… Something like this was truly unbelievable. Whether it was in his previous life, or in the Land of Nine Prefectures in this life, Teng Qingshan had never heard of or seen something like this. He hadn’t expected that the Dreamy Cloud White Fruit, one of the three greatest treasures of Duanmu Continent, could actually possess such phenomenal effects.
As the arms continued to grow, Mu Yunyi’s reddened face involuntarily showed an expression of ecstasy.
The arms grew at a constant speed, but as the growth reached the trochlea of the humerus, the speed decreased drastically.
“It’s about to stop!” Mu Yunyi shouted anxiously. He could distinctly feel the magical power within his body about to be completely consumed.
“Eat another piece.” The Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal promptly handed Mu Yunyi another piece.
Seeing this, Teng Qingshan’s eyelids twitched once. He flicked a glance at the remaining pieces of Dreamy Cloud White Fruit in the jade box. The Dreamy Cloud White Fruit had been sliced into five pieces, and Mu Yunyi had just eaten the second piece.
“Crunch, crunch~~” Mu Yunyi chewed and swallowed the second piece.
The growth speed, which had slowed down, suddenly accelerated drastically again!
Mu Yunyi’s arms continued to grow, from the trochleae to the forearms. Then the wrists and palms grew out, but the speed decreased drastically again during the growth of the fingers.
“Just a little bit more.” Mu Yunyi stared at his hands. It was evident that the growth of his fingers had slowed substantially.
“Don’t worry,” The Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal responded very calmly.
Teng Qingshan frowned as he watched on, and Mu Yunyi’s ten fingers grew simultaneously. The proximal phalanges were now fully developed, and the growth of the intermediate phalanges were almost complete. At this moment, the intermediate phalanges were fully developed, but the growth of the distal phalanges was extremely slow and appeared to be stopping.
“Really just need a little bit more.” The Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal brandished the jade knife and sliced a one-inch piece off one of the three remaining pieces of fruit.
“Eat it,” The Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal instructed as he threw the piece over.
Mu Yunyi opened his mouth and gulped it down.
“Chichi~~”
Within the time of one breath, the ten fingers had become fully grown.
When Teng Qingshan saw this, he secretly let out a sigh of relief and thought to himself, “It’s fine. There’s still about sixty percent of the fruit left. That’s over half.”
“My hands…… my arms……” At the side, Mu Yunyi waved his arms about gently. He tightened and loosened his grip repeatedly. Then he formed a knife-hand and waved it around several times. An expression of ecstasy appeared on his face as he said, “My meridians are in perfect condition, and nothing’s wrong with my bones. It’s as if there were never any injuries.”
“Haha, Yunyi. It’s the Dreamy Cloud White Fruit. If the Dreamy Cloud White Fruit couldn’t cure you completely, would it be qualified to be called one of the three greatest treasures?” The Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal laughed and said.
“Thank you, Honorable Martial Immortal,” Mu Yunyi said gratefully.
With a smile, the Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal shook his head and replied, “Don’t thank me. Qingshan was the one who searched the entire Dreamy Cloud Swampland and located Dreamy Cloud White Fruit, which took him 18 days. If you wish to show your gratitude, you must thank Qingshan.” Hearing this, Mu Yunyi turned and stared at Teng Qingshan gratefully as he said, “Yunyi is grateful to Mister Teng.”
Ever since Mu Yunyi lost his arms, he hadn’t dared to imagine that his arms would grow back one day!
“There’s no need to thank me. It was Senior who used precious items to employ me to search for the Dreamy Cloud White Fruit,” Teng Qingshan said with a smile.
“Qingshan, as according to our agreement, the remaining Dreamy Cloud White Fruit belongs to you.” The Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal placed the jade knife back into the jade box and closed the jade box shut. With a ‘click’ sound, the jade box was locked. “There’s a mechanism in the jade box; if you press this area, the box will open.”
As Teng Qingshan took the jade box, he couldn’t help but feel this intense exhilaration surge through his body. “With this Dreamy Cloud White Fruit, I will be able to cure Father’s legs! Father…… Father will stand again!”
As he thought about returning to the Nine Prefectures and giving the Dreamy Cloud White Fruit to his father, Teng Yongfan…… and the joy he would feel the moment his father would be able to stand once again…… a wave of anticipation flooded Teng Qingshan’s heart.
“Qingshan, not a bit of the fruit that Yunyi ate was wasted. It was just enough for the complete growth of his arms.” The Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal then said with a smile, “The remaining 60% of the fruit should be enough to cure your father’s legs.”
“Thank you, senior,” Teng Qingshan said with gratitude.
The gratitude came from the bottom of his heart.
Before letting Mu Yunyi eat the Dreamy Cloud White Fruit, the Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal had waited specially for Teng Qingshan to arrive. Additionally, the Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal had fed the Mu Yunyi the fruit with such caution, obviously putting in the utmost effort to not to waste any of the Dreamy Cloud White Fruit. For instance, Mu Yunyi could also have been cured if he ate the entire Dreamy Cloud White Fruit, but that would result in a great amount being wasted.
“Ah, right. Qingshan, don’t leave now. I already ordered someone to prepare a feast,” The Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal uttered as he stood up.
Teng Qingshan, Mu Wang, and Mu Yunyi stood up as well.
In the spacious garden, the sky was the ceiling and the earth served as their seats.
The Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal, Teng Qingshan, Mu Wang, and Mu Yunyi sat cross-legged in separate locations. A table was placed before each of them, and dishes of delicious food were placed on the table.
By the time Teng Qingshan had eaten and drunk to his fullest, the Great Elder Mu Wang and Mu Yunyi had already left. Teng Qingshan had originally planned to return to Crescent Moon Lake with the Whole Gale Eagle, but…… the Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal urged Teng Qingshan to stay.
“Qingshan, don’t leave now. I still need to discuss a matter with you,” The Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal said with a smile.
Teng Qingshan was already standing. However, hearing this, he immediately sat back down, cross-legged. Smiled puzzledly, he inquired, “Senior, what is the matter?”
“A year has passed since we sparred. Previously, I thought that you had reached the Emptiness Realm. However, you said that…… you hadn’t attained the Emptiness Realm. Qingshan, a year has elapsed. Have you reached the Emptiness Realm?” The Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal asked. Clearly, the Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal valued this matter greatly.
The entire Duanmu Continent only had two Martial Immortals!
If a third Martial Immortal appeared, the entire situation of the continent might change. Thus, the Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal naturally cared about this matter greatly.
“Almost,” Teng Qingshan said with a smile.
“Qingshan.” The Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal grinned and said, “It has been over 200 yeras since I stepped into the Emptiness Realm. Although the Dao is indescribable, I can give you some advice so that you won’t have to take detours.”
Hearing this, Teng Qingshan felt inwardly happy as he thought, “The Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal’s advice?”
“Senior, please tell me,” Teng Qingshan replied hastily.
“I can’t teach you the method to attain the Emptiness Realm. Moreover, I conjectured that even the Godly Axe Deity and the Thunder Blade Deity wouldn’t be able to teach you it either as it’s something that you must comprehend by yourself. However, I can tell you……” The Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal continued saying with a grin, “The requirement to progress from the Golden Dan Innate Realm to the Emptiness Realm is…… that you have to fully comprehend one of the many Daos!”
“What Senior means is……?” A thought struck Teng Qingshan as he listened.
“For example, a person who strives to comprehend the sea will cultivate the ‘Dao of the Sea’. When he has fathomed this Dao fully, he will step into the Emptiness Realm!” The Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal then said solemnly, “When you sparred with me, you used the Dao of Water. However, Mu Wang told me that you used the Dao of Earth when you sparred with him.”
Teng Qingshan nodded.
It wasn’t strange that the Great Elder could perceive the Earth Elemental Supreme Force contained by the Transmutation Unity Qi which Teng Qingshan had used during the spar.
“The intelligence and lifespan of humans are limited. Therefore, one shouldn’t be greedy,” The Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal said solemnly. “For example, if you decide to cultivate the Dao of Water and you obtain a complete comprehension of it, it means that you have reached the Emptiness Realm. However, if you cultivate both the Dao of Water and the Dao of Earth, you will be distracted and the achievement in both Daos will be restrained. Both Daos won’t be able to reach a complete comprehension, and you won’t be able to reach the Emptiness Realm.”
Teng Qingshan was astounded.
In actuality……
During the process of comprehending the six stone inscriptions, Teng Qingshan had sensed something weird whenever he practiced the eighth move of the 《Earth Element Fist》. He had sensed it very distinctly that if he could create the ninth move, then he would be able to control the Power of the Earth Element!
“My senses were right. Once that cultivation succeeds, I will reach the Emptiness Realm.
“The day when I manage to perform the ninth move of the 《Earth Element Fist》will be the day when I comprehend the Dao of Earth fully,” Teng Qingshan pondered.
The Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal advised, “Therefore, I decided to advise you to focus on one Dao! It is difficult to comprehend the Dao of Heavens. Even though you possess excessive talent, you must focus on cultivating just one. When you have comprehended this one Dao fully and reached the Emptiness Realm, there will still be time to comprehend other Daos.”
Yet, the Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal didn’t know……
Currently, Teng Qingshan had already attained great achievements in his cultivation of the 《Earth Element Fist》, the 《Water Element Fist》, the 《Metal Element Fist》, and the 《Fire Element Fist》. The cultivation of the《Earth Element Fist》had the highest achievement. If the Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal knew about this, he would shocked to death. Indeed, Teng Qingshan’s progress in cultivation was astonishingly fast.
Up to this day, the Dreamy Cloud Martial Immortal still didn’t know just how beneficial the stone inscriptions were to Teng Qingshan.