Chapter 248: At Least I Have a Clue Now!

Without hesitation, Wang Ping drew his blade and struck.

Resplendent Crow!

Flames flowed across the Battle-Victorious Demon-Quelling Blade, piercing the clouds and manifesting a sun. Surging brilliance bathed the world in golden fire, completely obscuring the edge of his blade.

To his surprise, the cold woman opposite him made no move to resist. She allowed his blade to cleave right into her. Her graceful body exploded and shattered, yet no flesh or blood appeared. There was only a rippling expanse of watery light that instantly surged back toward him.

"Hm!?"

Seeing this, Wang Ping immediately stepped back. The Profound Nether Pearl emerged between his eyebrows to manifest a turbid current. His body quickly sank into the dark water, concealing him where he stood.

The surge of watery light struck nothing but empty air. Only then did it roll back and coalesce. Within moments, it reformed into the cold woman's slender, completely unharmed figure.

It's the Water of Bing-Xin Combination.

Wang Ping shook his head. The woman cultivated Heavenly Yin Metal, which did not fear heavenly yang fire. Upon contact, not only would she remain unharmed, but she could even transform into water to extinguish the flames.

Even so, he wasn't anxious. After all, he had tangled with Tiangong for an entire month, battling dozens of times before finally seeing through his foundation and defeating him. He had plenty of patience now. He didn't seek to win in a single bout; he only wanted to gather intelligence and lay the groundwork for his ultimate victory...

Boom!

The next second, Wang Ping watched the cold woman raise an elegant hand. In an instant, the wheel-sized battle-axe spun into the air and soared toward the vault of the sky.

A pure white light immediately flared with blinding brilliance.

As Wang Ping stared at that precious light, a freezing chill exploded from his tailbone and shot straight into his skull, spreading through his limbs and bones... And this was no metaphor.

A literal wave of frost had materialized out of thin air!

Wherever it passed, his vitality, magical power, and even his Divine Powers decayed and withered. His cultivation realm suddenly collapsed by an entire tier.

His Divine Powers regressed; the Ten Thousand Gods Terrestrial Chart vanished.

Only the magical power of Latent Concealment remained within his body, yet even that had largely dissipated. It was as if he had instantly reverted back to several months ago—the very day he first successfully cultivated magical power!

Only then did Tiangong's leisurely voice drift over.

"Be careful now."

"That battle-axe in Tianshuang's hand is called the Heavenly Solemnity Token-Bearing Battle-Axe. It possesses the ability to strip away cultivation and slaughter all living things. It is completely unreasonable in a fight."

You couldn't have said that earlier?!

In a flash, Wang Ping's eyes went wide. The battle-axe that had just been suspended in the sky was already crashing down, its edge hurtling straight for his brow!

This qi... it's specifically meant for striking those of lower cultivation.

A sudden realization sparked in Wang Ping's mind. If you weren't a lower-tier cultivator, it would force you into becoming one, and then it would kill you. It truly was completely unreasonable.

Boom!

Back in reality, Wang Ping abruptly opened his eyes. He threw his head back, feeling a burst of icy coldness between his eyebrows. The sensation of being cleaved open by the axe blade still seemed to linger there.

"...Huh?"

Wang Ping blinked. Had he forgotten something?

Reviewing his memories, he didn't find anything amiss. All of his previous insights were still there, yet he couldn't recall how he had obtained them.

"What is it?" the Treasure Cauldron Spirit's voice rang out.

Wang Ping shook his head. "I lost."

"That's normal," the Treasure Cauldron Spirit said with a laugh. "I saw you defeat Tiangong. Isn't that an improvement? You already lasted longer than last time."

"...Again."

Wang Ping took a deep breath and once more split off a strand of divine sense to enter the Cauldron Interior Grotto-Heaven. Immediately after, the memories he had just lost flooded back into his mind.

"Are you alright?"

Not far away, Tiangong's figure materialized once again. "I convinced Tianshuang to head back. Otherwise, if she were still here, she'd definitely come right over to kill you again."

"And then you wouldn't be able to chat with me."

"Thank you, Senior." Wang Ping breathed a sigh of relief. He had to admit that this Tianshuang was far harder to deal with than Tiangong, and her methods were much more troublesome.

Right at that moment, Tiangong's voice rang out again. "Watching you attack just now, it seemed you've learned the Qi Ingestion Method in addition to your Qi Refining arts?"

Wang Ping shook his head. "It's not the Qi Ingestion Method. It's the Martial Dao."

Having said that, Wang Ping deliberately demonstrated it, explaining the Martial Dao's role in the Eight Trigrams Furnace. Upon hearing this, Tiangong's face instantly darkened.

"Those Qi Refining bastards from Biyang's again... So, after wiping out the orthodox lineage of the Qi Ingestion Method, they pared it down into the Martial Dao to exploit everyone's remaining worth?"

"Senior is perceptive."

Wang Ping sighed. "The trimmed-down Martial Dao has no way to sense the qi of heaven and earth anymore. It has never produced another great cultivator at the Qi Refining Tier..."

"Wrong."

Suddenly, Tiangong shook his head. "Who said it can't sense the qi of heaven and earth? I can tell... the Martial Dao might be connected to human yang fire."

Hm?

Wang Ping paused. Human yang fire?

"Human yang fire is known as Civilization-Manifesting Ultimate-Founding Qi. The imagery of this qi is civilization, creation, and universal salvation... In the past, it was the most difficult qi to cultivate."

Tiangong explained, "To cultivate this qi, one must rely entirely on their own strength. They must first forge a completely new cultivation path that no one has ever walked before. Then, they must spread it, allowing it to become a universal cultivation system. Once it gains the recognition of the masses, it becomes a monumental achievement, and only then will one earn the favor of this qi."

There was such a qi?

Wang Ping was astonished, but Tiangong continued, "You definitely can't do it. You are a practitioner, not a founder, so you've only brushed against its imagery."

"However, the founder of this Martial Dao is a different story."

"If she can completely perfect her Martial Dao, then even without a spirit root, magical power, or Divine Powers, she would still have a chance to successfully enter the Dao through the Qi Ingestion Method!"

Hearing this, Wang Ping shot to his feet. The founder of the Martial Dao—wasn't that the First Seat? So the First Seat still had a chance to enter the Dao through Qi Ingestion?

This was wonderful news!

After all, if the First Seat successfully entered the Dao via Qi Ingestion, he would have a backer capable of rivaling Mingyou. He would no longer be bound by others at every turn!

Very quickly, however, Wang Ping's expression turned solemn.

Is that why that person from Biyang targeted the First Seat?

At that thought, he hurriedly looked at Tiangong and explained how the First Seat's lifespan was nearing its end, and how she had been coerced by Mingyou into accepting canonization by the Immortal Gate.

He also mentioned the Celestial Immortals' Secretly Bestowed Ageless Longevity Scripture that Mingyou had gifted her.

"This..."

After hearing this, Tiangong felt helpless as well. He shook his head. "It won't work. Civilization-Manifesting Ultimate-Founding Qi requires a completely pristine cultivation method. It cannot tolerate even the slightest impurity."

"If that Martial Dao founder actually cultivates this Celestial Immortals' Secretly Bestowed Ageless Longevity Scripture to extend her lifespan, or if she referenced its techniques while forging her Martial Dao, it would permanently taint her path. Her chances of sensing Civilization-Manifesting Ultimate-Founding Qi would plummet."

So that was it!

This was Mingyou's objective. The point wasn't to actually do anything to the First Seat directly, but rather—just as he had targeted Wang Ping—to exploit her weakness and ruin her Dao path!

Fortunately, the First Seat's intuition is sharp enough.

Wang Ping's brows relaxed. No wonder the First Seat hadn't cared at all about the Celestial Immortals' Secretly Bestowed Ageless Longevity Scripture. She must have sensed the danger purely on instinct.

Just as the First Seat had said, with her intuition, it wasn't his place to worry about her.

With this in mind, Wang Ping relaxed. He changed the subject.

"...What about me?"

He brought up the task Mingyou had given him earlier. "Blanketing the entire Eight Trigrams Furnace with the Ten Thousand Gods Terrestrial Chart—what sort of scheme do you think is hidden behind this?"

Tiangong was instantly struck dumb.

"I say... little friend, do I look like an immortal to you? I simply have slightly higher cultivation; how could I possibly pluck the intentions of that Qi Refining master of yours out of thin air!"

"Just take a wild guess."

Wang Ping smiled apologetically. "Senior, your cultivation pierces the heavens. There is nothing about the Twenty-Four Qi you do not know. How could a trivial matter like this possibly stump you?"

"Hmph..."

The corners of Tiangong's mouth twitched. "Flattery won't work on me. This is the crushing weight of absolute superiority. The other party explicitly demanded it, so you have to do it no matter what."

"I can't guess his scheme, but one thing is certain: once the Ten Thousand Gods Terrestrial Chart blankets the Eight Trigrams Furnace, the yang earth within your body will inevitably be condensed to its absolute limit. At that time, when combining with Xin to transform into water, using ordinary Heavenly Yin Metal probably won't work. When Uniting Earth to Behold Fire, the fire catalyst required will also need to be of the highest grade."

After a moment of silence, Tiangong suggested, "For the fire catalyst needed in Uniting Earth to Behold Fire, upgrading that blade of yours in the direction of heavenly yang fire—the Radiant Universal Illumination Six Harmonies Qi—a few more times should be enough."

"The real issue is the Heavenly Yin Metal. It went extinct in this world a long time ago."

"Difficult, difficult, difficult!"

Tiangong sighed repeatedly, yet Wang Ping was entirely unbothered. So what if it was difficult? There was always a solution. He was never afraid of hardship; what he feared was having no path left to walk.

The current situation was already vastly better than before.

At least he had a clue now.

"Thank you for the guidance, Senior."

Wang Ping cupped his hands in thanks. Then he raised his head, looking once again at the five-colored glow suspended high above. "I'm ready. Let Senior Tianshuang come down."

............

Boom!

Wang Ping lifted his head. The destruction of another strand of divine sense caused a slight pain between his brows, but it didn't diminish the look of excitement on his face in the slightest. Countless insights surfaced in his mind.

He couldn't remember his previous conversation with Tiangong, but the results of that exchange hadn't disappeared. Every single word was genuine, tangible cultivation insight.

The source... never mind, it doesn't matter.

At this thought, Wang Ping couldn't help but rub his brow, then turn his gaze toward the Treasure Cauldron.

It's likely a secret that can't be brought out to the external world... but it's fine. As long as the insights are real, that's enough. Heavenly Yin Metal, Heavenly Yin Metal... I need Heavenly Yin Metal!

Where should he start?

The Ancient Qi of the Six Heavens had been eradicated, completely vanishing from the world. Yet it wasn't without exception—hadn't the Heavenly Craft Supreme Yang Nine Smeltings Qi partially recovered?

For his purposes, he didn't need the Heavenly Yin Metal to fully return. As long as it leaked out just a tiny trace, just like the Heavenly Craft Supreme Yang Nine Smeltings Qi, that would be enough.

Perhaps I can try looking into it first.

Wang Ping pondered inwardly.

What exactly happened back then that allowed the Heavenly Craft Supreme Yang Nine Smeltings Qi to return? And how was all that effort ruined because of the Heaven-Stealing Thief?

As he considered this, a person's name leapt to the forefront of his mind.

The Immortal Gate True Transmission disciple, Kunlun.

According to what I eavesdropped on earlier, Kunlun was a crucial pawn in the Heaven-Stealing Thief and Tianxing's plan to wipe out the Heavenly Craft Supreme Yang Nine Smeltings Qi.

Therefore, he must definitely know the causes and consequences, as well as the details!