Under one person: I, Zhang Zhiwei, the arrogant Zhang.

Zhang Jingqing returned to the Shangqing Palace. As soon as he sat down, Zhang Huaiyi came over to pay his respects and then asked to go down the mountain to continue his training.

"Huaiyi, you've gone down the mountain several times in the past few years for training, and each time it took quite a while. Do you feel that you've gained a lot?" Zhang Jingqing asked.

“I have gained a lot from these years of training. My mastery of the Golden Light Mantra and Thunder Technique has improved significantly. I want to take it a step further, so I want to continue training,” Zhang Huaiyi said.

In recent years, in addition to his regular practice, he would go to Wugensheng every now and then to hone his skills. His improvement was much greater than when he was practicing in seclusion on Longhu Mountain.

The reason why I wanted to go down the mountain soon after returning was because I promised to help Wugensheng with his cultivation when he was in the Northeast.

However, since he was the one who provided the plan for General Ma to feign surrender, he naturally had to ensure General Ma's safety and carry out the subsequent series of operations.

These were things that were not suitable for him, a righteous disciple of the Celestial Master's Mansion, to participate in, so he left early on.

Before leaving, they agreed that Wugensheng would come back to assist General Ma's cultivation after he had finished dealing with General Ma's affairs.

Now that General Ma has telegraphed his allegiance to the Japanese and raised the banner of resistance against the Japanese pirates again, Wugensheng has done what he needed to do. As the leader of Quanxing Sect, he cannot stay there to help General Ma forever, and he will definitely leave.

This guy often does strange and unusual things to help his followers find "connections," and sometimes he can't find them for a long time, so he has to go and intercept them.

Upon hearing that Zhang Huaiyi's greatest gains from his training were golden light and thunder magic, a hint of disappointment flashed in Zhang Jingqing's eyes, and she said in a deep voice:

“Cultivation is not just about the strength of one’s methods; the improvement of one’s character is more important than the improvement of one’s methods.”

"I will certainly keep Master's teachings in mind. In the trials to come, I will pay even more attention to tempering my character," Zhang Huaiyi said hurriedly.

Zhang Jingqing nodded and said, "Huaiyi, you must remember, cultivation begins with cultivating the mind. What is the purpose of our cultivation?"

"It's not about becoming the best in the world, but about being worthy of the title 'human being'."

"The so-called travel is to turn the life and death we have witnessed and the grudges we have endured into a carving knife, to gradually shave away the superficial things in our hearts, leaving only the most authentic self."

Zhang Jingqing gave Zhang Huaiyi another pointer.

"This disciple will certainly keep Master's teachings in mind," Zhang Huaiyi said.

But what he was thinking was that the principles his master spoke of and the principles written in the books all helped him to see through everything and let go of everything.

But I've never picked it up before, so how can I put it down?

Since I haven't reached the summit like my senior brother and looked down upon the world, how can I see through it all?

I should first focus on my cultivation and improve my skills, and do my best to catch up with my senior brother. I dare not say that I can surpass my senior brother, but I should at least be at the same level.

Over the past few years, Zhang Huaiyi has not only improved his cultivation methods, but also refined his most proficient skill of "concealment."

Even Zhang Jingqing couldn't clearly discern his inner thoughts.

Zhang Jingqing continued, "The greatest gain from traveling should not be the improvement of one's skills. If one is only concerned with the strength of one's skills, it would be better to stay in seclusion in the mountains, where one can improve much faster."

"When you travel, the important thing is to know that the world is much bigger than you think, and that it needs you more."

"Instead of training on the mountain for a lifetime, it's better to go down and experience it firsthand to find out how much you can shoulder."

“Huaiyi, when you go out to gain experience, don’t limit your focus to methods. Use several years to gain a clear mind and a pair of eyes that can see the world clearly. No matter how you look at it, it’s not a loss.”

"Master, I understand!" Zhang Huaiyi said quickly.

"Alright, I'll allow you to go down the mountain for training. Do you want to tell your junior brothers before you go?" Zhang Jingqing asked.

“My fellow disciples care about me a lot, so naturally I should inform them when I go down the mountain,” Zhang Huaiyi said.

Zhang Jingqing nodded, somewhat satisfied with the result. No matter how much Zhang Huaiyi, this "rat," liked to hide, at least he was integrating into the group, which was much better than before.

Zhang Huaiyi bowed to Zhang Jingqing and then walked out of the main hall.

Zhang Jingqing watched Zhang Huaiyi's retreating figure. Even though she sensed that Zhang Huaiyi was hiding something from his training, she still did not stop him from undergoing it.

Because Zhang Huaiyi's unresolved issue lies in Longhu Mountain, specifically with Zhang Zhiwei.

Continuing to remain secluded in the mountains for quiet cultivation is not a good strategy; it would be better to go out and explore the wider world.

The world outside is vast. If he can see more different things and meet more people, his narrow mind may become more open, allowing him to understand himself more clearly and find what he truly wants to pursue.

Stop thinking about competing with Zhang Zhiwei for first place all the time.

It's important to know that Zhang Zhiwei never thought about competing with anyone for first place, nor did he consider anyone as an opponent. He didn't even have the idea of ​​constantly surpassing himself or treating anyone else as an opponent.

"I hope this kid can really learn something!" Zhang Jingqing sighed, then picked up a newspaper from the table and started reading.

On the other side, after leaving the house, Zhang Huaiyi sped towards Tianmen Peak. Along the way, he saw the Tiantong Sect Master's Taoist Temple at the foot of Tianmen Peak.
Speaking of which, this Taoist temple also enshrines his statue, after all, the Big-Eared General was one of the left and right protectors of the Heavenly Tong Sect Master.

However, he was not interested in the statues inside. Although the statues could give him some faith power, he did not specialize in the mask of divinity and did not rely on them.

Compared to the Taoist temple, he was more interested in the huge mirror in front of it.

The mirror was so large, smooth, and hard that it could not be cracked even with swords, and was regarded as a miracle by many believers.

When his senior brother created this scene, he was training at the foot of the mountain and knew nothing about the specifics.

After returning to the mountain, I heard from my fellow disciples that a huge blue sun rose there at that time, and then the mirror was left behind.

That mirror must have been caused by the aftereffects of the technique my senior brother used.

He hadn't witnessed it firsthand and didn't know exactly how powerful the move was, but given its ability to cover such a wide area and leave such resilient residue, its power was unimaginable.

He asked Zhang Zhiwei to demonstrate it, but Zhang Zhiwei refused, saying it would be too taxing.

Even his senior brother felt that this move was extremely taxing, so what kind of move was it? He really wanted to see it... Zhang Huaiyi was filled with curiosity.

Immediately, he walked up to the top of the mountain and glanced at the crooked tree that was shedding countless stardust from its branches.

After learning from his senior fellow disciple that this tree could aid in spiritual practice, he himself came here to practice several times.

However, this tree only creates a cultivation barrier when it's with its senior brother. If they come alone or with other fellow disciples, the tree treats them like an ordinary tree, completely ignoring them. But out of respect for their senior brother, none of them do anything inappropriate to the tree.

Zhang Zhiwei was sitting cross-legged under the tree in meditation, and Zhang Huaiyi's arrival did not elicit any reaction from him.

It wasn't that he intentionally ignored Zhang Huaiyi, but rather that he was currently in a state of extreme meditation, almost completely detached from the outside world.

In addition, Zhang Huaiyi's arrival was uneventful, and he did not show any hostility towards him, so Zhang Zhiwei naturally did not notice him.

Zhang Huaiyi wasn't angry; after all, he was used to it. He coughed lightly.

"uh-huh!"

Zhang Zhiwei still didn't react, but the crooked tree sensed that Zhang Huaiyi had something to discuss with Zhang Zhiwei, so it thoughtfully put away the "stardust" that was hanging down like a curtain.

The extremely quiet space disappeared, and Zhang Zhiwei could hear sounds again. He slowly opened his eyes and looked at Zhang Huaiyi: "Is there something you need, Huaiyi?"

Zhang Huaiyi said, "Senior brother, I've come to say goodbye. I'm preparing to go down the mountain to gain experience."

"Another period of training? Haven't you already had several in the past few years?" Zhang Zhiwei laughed. "You've always wanted to go down the mountain. What's up? Is there someone down there that's attracting you?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Huaiyi's heart skipped a beat. Did his senior brother find out?

But then he realized, impossible. If his senior brother, that big mouth, found out, wouldn't it spread like wildfire?

Although he felt a little flustered inside, he showed no sign of it on his face and said with a smile:

"When you travel, you can always make some friends. Wasn't my trip to Northeast China just to keep an appointment with a few friends?"

“That makes sense.” Zhang Zhiwei nodded, his gaze inquisitive. “But for someone to make you run down the mountain so many times, it’s not something an ordinary person could do. It’s so appealing, is your friend male or female?”

Zhang Huaiyi paused for a moment, scratched his head, and said somewhat embarrassedly, "There are... there are both men and women."

"Oh, there are both men and women." Zhang Zhiwei raised an eyebrow, looking curious. "What do the women look like? What are their names? Where are they from? What do they do for a living?"

He guessed that Zhang Huaiyi and Wugensheng had some connection.

But there's no point in asking Zhang Huaiyi this question directly; he certainly wouldn't give a straight answer, so he didn't mention it at all.

In contrast, he was more curious about the female friends Zhang Huaiyi had met down the mountain.

After all, in the story, Zhang Huaiyi later got married, had a son and a grandson, and both his son and grandson looked quite handsome.

Even though he was Zhang Huaiyi's senior and they had a good relationship, to be honest, Zhang Huaiyi's appearance was really not good; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he was ugly and deformed.

But the fact that he was able to have such good-looking sons and grandsons is likely due to the low probability of genetic mutation, except that he married a very good-looking wife and improved the appearance of his offspring through her genes.

There has been much speculation about Zhang Huaiyi's wife, with some even suspecting it was Duanmu Ying, since Zhang Huaiyi fled with Duanmu Ying during the Jia Shen Rebellion.

But that was clearly impossible, and Zhang Zhiwei had no clue as to who it was.

Zhang Huaiyi, on the other hand, was also a bit bewildered by Zhang Zhiwei's barrage of questions.

Where does he have any close female friends?
In recent years, he has devoted himself to spiritual practice, and has few companions, let alone female friends.

Those words I just said were deliberately made to avoid bringing up Wugensheng; they were completely fabricated.

But since my senior brother has said that, it seems I'll have to make some female friends in the future, otherwise I won't be able to explain myself.

Zhang Huaiyi thought to himself, then quickly brushed it off with a few words, ending the topic.

Seeing that Zhang Huaiyi didn't want to say more, Zhang Zhiwei didn't ask any further questions, but instead instructed him:
"Since you want to go and gain experience, then go ahead. If you encounter any problems during your training, you can come to me."

"Don't worry, senior brother, if necessary, I certainly won't hold back," Zhang Huaiyi said with a smile.

Afterwards, Zhang Huaiyi leaped down Tianmen Peak, first went to the training ground of the Celestial Master's Mansion, greeted his fellow disciples who were cultivating, exchanged a few pleasantries, and then officially set off down the mountain.

Zhang Zhiwei continued his spiritual practice on the mountain. Meanwhile, the turmoil outside intensified. After General Ma's defection, he formed an anti-Japanese coalition, which at one point had a strength of 120,000 men, vowing to fight the Japanese pirates to the bitter end.

Meanwhile, in Shanghai, negotiations are in full swing with the intervention of international powers.

However, just as Zhang Zhiwei and Zhang Jingqing had anticipated, the negotiations did not go smoothly.

China hopes other countries will intervene, since there are many concessions there that involve their interests.

But other countries aren't stupid either. The Japanese pirates are now showing great momentum, and without sufficient benefits, who would want to provoke them?
So, these guys and the Japanese pirates discussed it and decided that, while keeping their own share of the pie, they would cut off another piece from China and give it to the Japanese pirates.

At this time, the person in charge of the negotiations was very weak and an extreme believer in quick defeat. He didn't dare to make any reasonable demands, so the Japanese pirates naturally took advantage of the situation.

It is worth mentioning that during the negotiations, members of the Axe Gang infiltrated the consulate, stole the draft negotiation document, and published it in the newspaper, revealing various infuriating details that sparked national outrage and led to large-scale protests.

At this critical juncture, Zhang Zhiwei showed signs of a breakthrough in his cultivation.

His cultivation has improved significantly over the past few years, but he no longer makes leaps and bounds like before. Instead, he progresses steadily and slowly.

The path of cultivation is fraught with tribulations and hardships. He had already overcome the lightning calamity, one of the three calamities, and now only the fire and wind calamities remained. He vaguely sensed that the fire was quietly approaching.

Because each time I enter a deep state of cultivation, I can faintly feel a cold, burning sensation under my feet.

The cold and the burning sensation are two contradictory feelings, but they perfectly match the characteristics of fire, one of the three calamities.

This fire is neither heavenly fire nor ordinary fire, but yin fire. It rises from the Yongquan acupoint on the sole of the foot and burns straight through to the Niyuan Palace, turning the five internal organs to ash and the four limbs to decay, rendering all cultivation illusory.

Having survived the lightning disaster last time, his cultivation level improved considerably. If he can survive the fire disaster this time, he will likely make significant progress as well.

However, Zhang Zhiwei was not overjoyed by the expected improvement; he thought to himself:
"When I faced the lightning calamity, it was relatively easy to deal with because I practiced lightning magic myself."

“This fire is different. Although we are not afraid, even a lion will use all its strength to hunt a rabbit, so we still need to make some preparations.”

Immediately, he descended Tianmen Peak and arrived at the Daoist Canon Hall of the Celestial Master's Mansion. He began carefully searching through ancient texts related to the fire-transcending ritual, intending to seek the wisdom and methods of his predecessors. (End of Chapter)