Chapter Eighteen: Fist Dominates the Three Gates—Earthly Techniques Are Not My Way (Part Two)

This person, so young, is truly a master who has attained the Saintly Physical Body? Or could it be that some ancient beings have mastered the art of preserving youthful appearance, thus maintaining their looks from their younger days?

The three sect leaders were shaken to their core. Although they expected a Saintly Physical Body to be formidable, they had not anticipated such overwhelming strength. Standing still and withstanding the attacks of the three soul-seizing experts with his bare body—was he flesh and blood or forged steel?

Before they could even adjust their breathing, Yi Beidou made his move.

In a flash, he appeared before Mu Huaidong.

Boom!

A palm strike like a mountain being pushed sideways crashed into Mu’s chest.

Mu’s pupils contracted to needle points as a terrifying threat assaulted his spirit, nearly suffocating him. Instinctively, he raised both arms to guard his chest.

Bang!

Mu Huaidong felt as if he had been struck by a speeding train. The tremendous force sent him flying into the air, rolling several times on the ground. His internal organs shook violently, a bitter taste filled his throat, and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.

With one palm, Yi Beidou sent Mu Huaidong flying. Without pause, he flickered like a phantom and immediately appeared in front of Wu Xiangjue, striking out with another palm.

Bang!

Wu Xiangjue was hurled backward just like Mu, rolling across the ground.

Even the last of the three, Tang Zhiyue, could not escape. Though the first two had bought some time by exchanging palm strikes with Yi Beidou, Tang was still blasted twenty meters away in an instant.

One palm each, and all three were struck down.

In barely ten seconds, the leaders of the three major sects in Han Province lay sprawled on the ground, unable to rise.

A heavy silence fell; no one even thought to rush forward to help their fallen masters.

“Who exactly are you? As a master who has attained the Saintly Physical Body, why do you break into the sacred gates of our Qingmu Heart Intent Sect? We bear you no enmity. If we have unknowingly offended you, please enlighten us,” Mu Huaidong struggled to his feet and bowed respectfully toward Yi Beidou.

For a sect, having its gates forcibly breached was an utter disgrace. Yet when the intruder was a Saintly Physical Body master—akin to an immortal invading—things were different.

No one in the martial world would begrudge losing to such a being.

Mu’s greatest concern now was the purpose of this visit. Had the Qingmu Heart Intent Sect or its disciples inadvertently provoked this formidable figure? That would be the real trouble.

Though society was governed by law, who could stop such a being if they sought revenge?

“Saintly Physical Body?” The disciples’ eyes widened in disbelief, jaws dropping.

The Qingmu Heart Intent Sect had once produced a master with the Saintly Physical Body—a cause for pride—but that was history, legend. Who could have imagined that history and legend would now stand before them?

Li Qingdai was stunned, recalling what Yi Beidou had said on the carriage.

Saintly Physical Body? I know of it—I am one.

So all his words were true. She had been blind to his true stature.

“Do not be nervous. We bear no grudge. I am here to learn. In fact, I owe you an apology. It was wrong of me to barge in unannounced, but afterward, I will present you with an opportunity,” Yi Beidou said.

To learn? You just dealt us all injuries and coughed up blood in mere seconds! What could you possibly want to learn from us? This is asking for trouble!

Mu Huaidong felt suffocated by frustration but had no choice but to lower his head under this roof. He dared not offend this man. As long as he was not here for revenge, all was well.

“Master, there is nothing we can teach you. Our secret techniques are the foundation of our sect. We cannot reveal them so easily...” Before he could finish, his words died on his lips. Every face showed astonishment.

Everyone clearly saw Yi Beidou’s hair turn white from the tips upward at a visible speed, finally becoming silver, even his eyebrows whitening.

Boom!

Then came a thunderous roar, followed by the sound of rushing water.

That was the pounding of Yi Beidou’s heart, the rapid flow of blood through his veins.

In the blink of an eye, his black hair regrew, his elixir returned to his body.

Gurgle! Gurgle!

Next, a mechanical rumbling emitted from within him. Instantly, his skin flushed a deep crimson, as if steel heated to a glowing red.

His hair roots stood on end, eyebrows soaring like flames. His already fierce, demonic visage twisted into the likeness of a wrathful oni, radiating savagery.

With each breath, steam rose from his heated body, turning to mist from his nostrils like a divine dragon breathing clouds.

Then, the crimson hue swiftly faded, restoring his original appearance.

The next moment—

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Yi Beidou’s palm muscles suddenly engorged with blood, turning a black-purple hue. The swelling quickly spread.

His wrists, forearms, upper arms—

His entire arm seemed to transform into a demonic limb.

The secret martial arts displayed by the three sect leaders moments earlier now manifested one by one on Yi Beidou.

The three men looked as if they had seen a ghost.

They had never heard of a Saintly Physical Body master possessing such abilities.

In truth, these were not powers of the Saintly Physical Body but the results of the Freedom Mind Technique’s development of brain and body.

Ordinary people who endure countless tribulations and cultivate the Freedom Mind Technique master their bodies, becoming formidable experts with special abilities. Yi Beidou, with his “Demonic Body,” faced ten times the difficulty of ordinary people, so his gains were naturally greater.

It could be said that among all who practiced this technique throughout history, none could match Yi Beidou’s uniqueness at the same realm, not even Hong Datong.

His powerful bodily control and advanced cerebral and spiritual functions created the miracles he now displayed.

Yet to him, these wonders held little significance.

“No need for such trouble. I have already mastered these. Sadly, transporting qi and blood, breath control, and soul-capturing fist intent are mere mundane arts, not what I seek nor the purpose of my visit,” Yi Beidou shook his head.

With his current bodily mastery, these techniques were easy to learn, but worldly methods merely expanded his repertoire slightly and offered no fundamental benefit.

His demonic senses did not lead him here for the three of them.

“What is the Great Way?” Wu Xiangjue asked. To meet a Saintly Physical Body master face to face and not inquire would be a wasted opportunity.

“The Great Way is the wisdom and courage to reshape the heavens and earth and break limits; to seek possibilities amid impossibilities and create miracles in the mortal realm; to endure through eternity—though the body decays, the will echoes in the heavens. The Great Way is the supreme human heart,” Yi Beidou’s voice resonated through the training ground like celestial music, enlightening all present.

Even ancient sages discoursing on the Way could not surpass this.

Mu Huaidong and the others trembled, a surge of heroic blood stirring within.

A warrior defying heaven and changing fate, battling heaven and earth—that was how it should be.

To follow heaven’s will blindly was to live a mediocre life, springing and dying with the seasons.

“Alas, I fear our Qingmu Heart Intent Sect has nothing you seek,” Mu Huaidong sighed. Had the ancient Saintly Physical Body patriarch still lived, perhaps they could have conversed on this matter.

“No, what I seek is here, just not with you,” Yi Beidou said calmly. Following his demonic senses, his gaze shifted and finally settled on the center of the training ground.

There stood a towering, exotic pagoda tree, its leaves fluttering in the breeze, silently watching over the land and recording the changes of a hundred years.