Chapter 309: The Gentleman Should Hide His Implements at the Right Time

The Ever-Suppressing Six Harmonies Cauldron.

Wang Ping took the Grand White Traversing the Heavens Tome. After bidding farewell to Kunlun, he immediately invoked the profundity of Land-Walking, returning to the Treasure Cauldron's side with a long exhale.

"Returned?"

The Treasure Cauldron vibrated slightly, transmitting a familiar, intimate voice.

"Yes. Thank you for guiding me, Lord Treasure Cauldron." Wang Ping patted the cauldron's surface, feeling his connection to it, but he did not mention Tianqu and the others.

'I can't bring them up. After all, no one currently knows I dragged that memory-obscuring profundity out of my sea of consciousness. If I take the initiative to ask the Treasure Cauldron Spirit, the True Persons will definitely find out. Once they adjust their layouts, I'll be completely in the dark again, and I'd only be throwing away the excellent situation I have right now.'

Yes, an excellent situation.

Although his chances of survival were still slim, Wang Ping remained quite optimistic. A slim chance wasn't a dead end. For him, this was already as good as it could get.

He sat down beside the Treasure Cauldron.

The Void Joy Non-Dual Guardian Consort Talisman burst with radiant light. Wang Ping transmitted his voice directly: "Xuexin, come to the Eight Trigrams Furnace as quickly as you can!"

Soon, You Xuexin's pleasantly surprised voice echoed from the talisman:

"Xuexin is coming right now! What does Master want to do?"

Having done this, Wang Ping once again took out the Grand White Traversing the Heavens Tome that Kunlun had given him. As he browsed its contents, he fell deep into thought.

'Who is guiding me?'

His magical power had yet to undergo its third qualitative change. If Kunlun hadn't awakened him from his dream with a single sentence, he feared he never would have thought of such a steep, hidden path.

With Kunlun's abilities, he never could have said something like that on his own. An expert had to be guiding him from the shadows. Considering the consciousness fragments on the Grand White Traversing the Heavens Tome, was it Tianxing? No, that didn't make sense. Tianxing had zero interaction with him; why would he suddenly offer such guidance?

'Could it be... Mingyou?'

The moment this thought crossed Wang Ping's mind, the interior of the grand hall flickered. It was as if a lamp had been lit and then extinguished, seemingly responding to his thoughts.

It really was him?

'But why would he guide me?'

'He couldn't possibly be doing it because he actually cares about our master-disciple relationship. He's definitely doing it because it benefits him somehow... Forget it. At least it doesn't bring any harm to me in the end.'

Wang Ping's thoughts churned rapidly, yet he couldn't help but feel suspicious:

'But a third qualitative change of magical power to connect with the Hidden Dragon Meridian-Circulating Nether-Penetrating Qi... If Mingyou could think of this method, wouldn't those three True Persons think of it as well?'

Wang Ping didn't buy it.

He even suspected this might be another deliberate trap—that Daoist Master Hanguang Danyang was using Mingyou's mouth to turn him into bait.

'Forget it, it's not my place to worry about trivial matters like this. The key still relies on that Water Qi True Person. All I can do is try every feasible method.'

Wang Ping quickly moved past it, no longer dwelling on the issue. Instead, he shifted his attention to the Grand White Traversing the Heavens Tome in his hand. This Qi Ingestion Method corresponded to earthly yang metal—the Grand White Sharp-Wielding Divine Malefic Qi. The cultivation method, however, was incredibly unique: it required devouring various metal qi spiritual items from heaven and earth.

The higher the grade of the devoured spiritual items, the better the effect.

"However, when your cultivation base is insufficient in the early stages, devouring spiritual items is very likely to perforate your stomach and cause sudden death... The difficulty of the Qi Ingestion Method mostly lies here."

Of course, for Wang Ping, this wasn't an issue.

What interested him was that the Grand White Traversing the Heavens Tome completely detailed the cultivation process of the Qi Ingestion Method. Among its contents, there was one key point he valued most.

"The Qi Ingestion Method, as the name implies, means to ingest the qi of heaven and earth to reconstruct the physical body. Therefore, for all its cultivators, the symbol of reaching minor completion is the condensation of an Immortal Physique corresponding to that heaven and earth qi... That's right, cultivators of the Qi Ingestion Method can mass-produce various Immortal Physiques post-natally!"

For example, the Grand White Traversing the Heavens Tome.

Once this Qi Ingestion Method reached minor completion, it could reconstruct the body into a Taibai Immortal Body. It contained a profundity called Nine Breaths Qi Ingestion, which granted the ability to scatter form into qi and re-coagulate it.

'This might be useful to me.'

Wang Ping thought of his own Martial Dao. It was different from the First Seat's. The First Seat's Martial Dao was the transcendence of Divine Intent—a realm so profoundly mysterious that he honestly knew he couldn't reach it.

Compared to the First Seat, he preferred Chenlong's Invincible Divine Intent.

This path of the Martial Dao focused entirely inward. It was the complete opposite of the First Seat's path, placing all its focus on one's own physical shell and requiring a constant elevation of combat power.

'Compared to the transcendence of Divine Intent, the transcendence of the physical body is far simpler.'

After all, Divine Intent was illusory and ethereal. Even now, Wang Ping still hadn't figured out how the First Seat's bizarre intuition actually worked. The physical body, relatively speaking, was much more tangible.

'I already have an earth qi Heaven-Bearing Immortal Physique. If I successfully cultivate the metal qi Taibai Immortal Body, I will have gathered two of the five elements.'

What if he kept going?

If he could successfully cultivate five Immortal Physiques in a row to cover all five elements, would it trigger some sort of qualitative change in his physical body? Wang Ping was highly anticipating it.

Of course, his Martial Dao was still in its exploratory phase; this was merely a rough idea. However, even if he failed, it wouldn't matter. At worst, he would just swap out for a new physical body. With the Taiping Sutra in hand, as long as he survived his current crisis, it was nothing more than an issue of reviving a few extra times. There was no need to worry at all.

And if he didn't survive, there would be no need to fuss over any Martial Dao anyway.

"Metal qi spiritual items..."

Thinking of this, Wang Ping brought out the Frost-Sunk Golden Battle-Axe Saber. Without a doubt, this spiritual item perfectly met the requirements of the Grand White Traversing the Heavens Tome.

'Eating it can elevate my Martial Dao.'

'Not eating it means it can be used to shatter the lockdown of the Ten Thousand Gods Terrestrial Chart and push for the Tribulation Transcending Third Layer... At the very least, it would leave a measure of initiative in my hands.'

Having considered this, Wang Ping put the spiritual item away.

There was no rush; he would wait and see for now.

Just at this moment, the Treasure Cauldron vibrated slightly. Immediately after, through the profound circulation of Land-Walking, a graceful, beautiful figure was guided into the grand hall.

It was You Xuexin.

"Master~"

The moment she appeared, You Xuexin's beautiful eyes locked onto Wang Ping. Then, like a baby swallow returning to its nest, she gave a light leap and landed squarely in his embrace.

Seeing this, Wang Ping wasted no words.

He currently had only two methods for the qualitative change of his magical power. The first was Dao Proving Mountain, which was definitely off the table given the current situation. The second was the Bliss Immortal Physique.

"Time is tight, and the task is heavy. I need you to aid my cultivation!"

"Ahhh~"

Confronting You Xuexin, Wang Ping first seized the two troublemakers leading the charge, delivered a stern oral reprimand, and finally, without the slightest mercy, investigated the matter deeply until he hit rock bottom.

...

In the past, Wang Ping actually wouldn't have been able to withstand this kind of operation.

The power of You Xuexin's Bliss Immortal Physique was simply too strong. Usually, after just a few rounds, he would be completely out of ammunition and supplies, yet she would remain entirely untired, taking in gold by the bucketload every day without a hint of fatigue.

Back then, Wang Ping hadn't understood why. He only realized it after the fact: this was the difference between a mortal shell and an Immortal Physique. The former's consumption was inevitably greater than the latter's. However, things were different now. He had cultivated the Heaven-Bearing Immortal Physique and possessed the divine strength of Clasping Mountains and Leaping Seas. When it came to combat, his valor and endurance were truly something else.

A long time passed just like this.

Only when You Xuexin had completely passed out did Wang Ping withdraw his technique. He pushed her aside and immersed himself in the dramatic changes within his own magical power without the slightest distraction.

'The third qualitative change!'

Reaching this moment, the magical power inside Wang Ping's body actually calmed down. There wasn't a single hint of abnormality, as if all the dramatic mutations had been hidden in the deepest abyss.

His consciousness did not rise; instead, it sank.

This was because the Hidden Dragon Meridian-Circulating Nether-Penetrating Qi was not in the sky, but underground, in the nether regions. It was the absolute weakest gui-water, the proper position of greater yin, the water that nourished all things silently.

Wang Ping's consciousness thus sank deep into the earth. It passed through layer after layer of hazy mist and observed profound scene after profound scene. His comprehension of the Hidden Dragon Meridian-Circulating Nether-Penetrating Qi climbed higher and higher, until finally, with a booming crash, it shattered the void and escaped into an empty expanse. Only then did he open a pair of dark, profound eyes.

'So that's how it is!'

An intense enlightenment surged into his heart.

'It's not bait. Those three True Persons genuinely didn't discover it... or rather, they couldn't discover it, because what I sensed was the Hidden Dragon Meridian-Circulating Nether-Penetrating Qi!'

The magical power corresponding to this qi was named Latent Concealment. In ancient times, it was called Immortal-Burying Land, and it was also known as Concealed Heavenly Mechanism. The latter was its external designation, while the former was its true internal name.

'It's called Concealed Heavenly Mechanism because externally, its magical power can obscure karma and conceal one's aura, making it incredibly difficult to detect the caster's movements... However, its true profundity lies in its ancient name: Immortal-Burying Land. What it buries is the Immortal Dao, the immortal methods. The higher the tier, the less of a trace it reveals.'

In short:

'The qualitative change of this magical power can be buried away. In the eyes of those three True Persons, my magical power right now likely hasn't even reached its third qualitative change yet!'

Of course, this wasn't something a lower-realm cultivator could accomplish relying solely on himself. After the fact, there was undoubtedly a Water Qi True Person supporting him, which was the only reason it managed to deceive the sight of the True Persons.

In the next second, Wang Ping looked at the void before him.

A line of small text surfaced in tandem: [When wind follows, all things proceed smoothly; minor success; it is advantageous to move forward; it is advantageous to see the great man.]

In an instant, like a correct key inserted into a keyhole to unlock dust-sealed memories, all the ignorance and obscurity in Wang Ping's mind were swept away.

"I remember now!"

Kunyun's diary, the guidance of the Xun Trigram—it really was a Water Qi True Person making a move! In fact, even Kunyun himself might have been rescued by that True Person!

'Originally, Kunyun absolutely had to die at my hands to fulfill the karmic feat of damaging the wood qi. And the result was indeed so. But at the very last moment, if a Water Qi True Person truly made a move and further leveraged the karmic feat of escaping via water qi, they could probably rescue Kunyun completely unnoticed!'

Wang Ping immediately realized just how terrifying this trump card was.

'The identity of the Great Rebellion on my body was brought about precisely by damaging the wood qi. If Kunyun didn't die and re-emerges in the world, there's an eighty percent chance this identity will be shaken!'

Without the identity of the Great Rebellion, the foundations of all the True Persons' layouts would collapse in an instant!

'No, they wouldn't necessarily collapse, because the wood qi was ultimately still damaged. They would be shaken at most... otherwise, why wouldn't the Water Qi True Person use this move immediately?'

The fact that they were still hiding it proved that it couldn't finalize the board with a single strike.

'And letting me see it, letting me understand it, means they want my cooperation... they want me to find a way to turn this trump card into an absolute, decisive killing blow that finalizes the board!'

Then came the question: where was the benefit?

Wang Ping raised his eyes, watching as the line of small text floating before him gradually faded away, replaced by the circulation of the Hidden Dragon Meridian-Circulating Nether-Penetrating Qi.

The qi of heaven and earth illuminated an even deeper layer of profundity for him.

He didn't need to comprehend it himself. Under the pressure of a mighty force from a higher dimension, knowledge took the initiative to chase after him. It surged into his sea of consciousness, transforming into a streak of brilliant light:

[the gentleman should hide his implements at the right time]

Major Divine Ability!

'My second Major Divine Ability... a Major Divine Ability governed by the Hidden Dragon Meridian-Circulating Nether-Penetrating Qi!'

Wang Ping's heart and mind were violently shaken:

'I don't need to break open the Ten Thousand Gods Terrestrial Chart. Instead, I can cultivate a second divine ability! The Hidden Dragon Meridian-Circulating Nether-Penetrating Qi is inherently a subterranean spring vein; it is water beneath the earth.'

'Therefore, it can coexist with the Human Yang Earth divine ability, the Ten Thousand Gods Terrestrial Chart!'

'And the authority of water qi is the absolute best opportunity to successfully cultivate this Major Divine Ability... Before that happens, a gentleman hides his implements. The act of concealment itself is the cultivation of the divine ability!'

The second path abruptly opened up before him!

...