I searched for corpses in the Wuding River to extract entries

Xie Que floated in the river of time, but his adoptive father's words still echoed in his mind:

"The way of fist is the way of killing, the way of martial arts is the way of life."

He closed his eyes, his thoughts surging like a tide.

He recalled that after he reshaped the Martial Sect Grotto-Heaven with the will of martial arts, all the plants, trees, mountains and rocks came to life with wisdom.

His martial arts are never about simple destruction, but about using willpower as a spark to ignite the "possibility" in the hearts of all beings.

When all beings encounter bottlenecks, and then break through them through martial arts...

That will to survive, which comes from the bottom of one's heart, is a reflection of Xie Que's martial arts philosophy of "the way of life".

Having grasped the essence of the "Way of Life," Xie Que decided to take the first step in putting it into practice.
That is to strip away the "Taoist essence" contained in all one's moves.

He sat cross-legged in the center of the river of time, letting the cosmic light wash over him like a torrent.

In this endless flow of time, his consciousness gradually became clearer, and images of various moves began to emerge in his mind.

From the "Lost Track Fist" of the Great Zhou Secret Sect to the "Emperor's Heart".
From the spatial-temporal supernatural powers to the deductive trajectory of the Hunyuan Heluo Grand Array, each move contains a different Daoist essence.

Xie Que ruthlessly stripped these "Daoist charms" from the moves, like peeling off an outer layer of clothing.

This process is undoubtedly an extremely painful torment for any cultivator, like having one's bones and flesh slowly cut away with a knife.

At this moment, Xie Que resolutely dispersed all the established imprints of his cultivation techniques, leaving only the most primitive and fundamental breathing and blood circulation.

"What I pursue is not how many moves I learn, but how to use my own will to drive the pure way of martial arts."

He first completely erased those supernatural powers that incorporated the Great Dao from his mind, such as "Emperor's Heart" and "Eye of Heavenly Punishment".

Although these supernatural abilities are incredibly powerful, Xie Que believes they are not pure martial arts.

Then, without hesitation, he forgot the "Taoist rhyme" in his mind.

These "Taoist insights" were the profound understandings he gained during his cultivation, but now he has decided to peel them away from his consciousness as easily as tearing paper.

This process was extremely difficult. Every bit of "Taoist charm" that was peeled away would trigger a severe headache and cause him to have illusions of time flowing backwards.

Time passed second by second, and Xie Que was completely immersed in this painful process, unaware of how much time had passed.

When he opened his eyes again, he found his palms facing upwards.

There once flowed the faint light of the Dao of Time and Space, and there once condensed the fist imprint of an emperor's heart.

Now, only the rough palm lines remain, gleaming faintly with gold under the light of the universe.

He has forgotten how to manipulate the chaotic energy, and he has also forgotten how to use causal lines to deduce the future.

At this moment, all that remained in his mind was the most basic "Mizongquan" (a martial arts technique).

This state of emptiness made him feel uneasy, as if the whole world had left him in an instant, leaving only nothingness and silence.

However, thanks to this, the true essence of martial arts gradually became apparent before Xie Que's eyes.

He slowly closed his eyes, letting his consciousness sink into the depths of his mind.

There, there should have been a galaxy where supernatural powers and Daoist principles intertwined.
But what he saw before him was only a silent martial arts world, like a sleeping giant, lifeless.

At the center of his consciousness, a spark of martial will burned fiercely; it was the only remaining ember after he had stripped himself of all paths.

Although it was weak, it burned tenaciously.

Xie Que sighed, a sudden realization dawning on him.

He finally understood that when techniques and Daoist principles become shackles binding him...

Only by returning to the origin of martial arts can we find the key to "controlling force with intention".

This second test, the "Test of the True Self," is the true test for the founder of the Way!

“Forget all the ‘how’s’ and look at the ‘why’s’,” Xie Que whispered.

His fingertips gently touched the river of time, and then he stepped into the endless cosmic light.
Xie Que's figure was instantly pulled back to the banks of the Wuding River outside Tianjin.

The setting sun shone through the branches and leaves, illuminating the silhouette of young Xie Que as he threw a punch.
Sweat soaked through his coarse cloth clothes, and each punch landed on the tree trunk with a dull "thud".

At that time, he didn't understand the great principles or cause and effect; only the thought of "becoming stronger" sustained his repetitive actions.

Xie Que reached out, wanting to touch the boy's fist, but found that his fingertips passed right through the boy's body.

The pure "obsession" in my eyes when I threw a punch back then was the original form of martial arts.

Going upstream again, Xie Que eventually arrived at the early stage of the birth of the Maha Realm.

At that time, the world of Maha Realm had just been created, and its laws were in chaos.
Martial artists have not yet created complex moves; they can only fight against ferocious beasts using the most basic martial arts techniques.

After all, Xie Que left in a hurry and didn't leave behind many techniques or skills.
Moreover, its upper limit is only the Martial God realm.

Then, the martial arts realm up to the Heavenly Lord of the Other Shore was all deduced by the martial artists within the Maha Realm themselves.

Xie Que looked into the Maha Realm and witnessed a martial artist wielding an axe, driven solely by the obsession to "split a boulder."

Without using any special techniques, he actually killed a powerful demon at the sixth realm; that was the original form of "controlling force with intention."
There are no special skills, only the will to "do it" that permeates one's blood and energy.

Going upstream, he witnessed the peak of martial arts civilization in the Maha Realm.
Children on the street throw punches that create a powerful wind, resonating with the spiritual energy of heaven and earth.
An elderly man with white hair sat quietly in the courtyard, his vital energy transforming into illusory dragon and tiger images that coiled around his body.

Within the martial arts sects, millions of martial artists simultaneously unleashed their punches, their blood and qi converging into a golden torrent that shot straight into the sky.
That is not the power of one person, but the resonance of the will of all living beings!
Like an ever-burning heart, it beats with the belief that "everyone can be a dragon".

Xie Que stood quietly in the ethereal space, as if he had merged with the void.

He closed his eyes tightly, focusing his entire being on feeling the surging primal will within the martial artists around him.

It was a powerful force that defied description, stronger than any Daoist principle, and even surpassing all laws and techniques in the world.

This power does not come from external sources, but rather from the martial artist's deep-seated obsession and desire to "live".

In that instant, Xie Que suddenly realized...
It turns out that the so-called moves are just an external form, while the true essence lies in the martial artist's will.

Willpower is the soul of martial arts, the fundamental force that drives blood and qi and can shatter the heavens and earth.

He realized that what he had previously stripped away was not the power of martial arts, but a kind of inertia towards "dependence on the physical body".

He has always focused too much on external moves and techniques, while neglecting the cultivation of his inner martial will.

Just as Xie Que was immersed in this realization, the scene before him suddenly shattered like a mirror.

His gaze pierced through the shattered void and landed on Yuan Shun, dressed in green, fishing. Yuan Shun had his back to Xie Que, seemingly unconcerned about his arrival.

Just as Xie Que's gaze fell on the fishing rod in Yuan Shun's hand, he discovered that what was hanging on the fishing rod was actually a fragment of spacetime.

Yuan Shun slowly removed the fragment of time and space from the fishing rod and then casually tossed it away.

The fragment streaked across the void like a shooting star and fell straight into Xie Que's palm.

Xie Que stared at the fragment of time and space in his hand, feeling the cold fist intent contained within it.

It was a resolute determination to "break through all techniques with one punch," a pure will to destroy.

The force of the punch was like a cold current, instantly penetrating his body and making his soul tremble.

A sudden flash of inspiration struck Xie Que, and he seemed to instantly understand Yuan Shun's boxing style!
That's a "path of slaughter," a path to prove oneself through destruction!

In contrast, Xie Que realized that his martial arts path should be the "path of life," using his will to nurture infinite possibilities.

He began to think that forgetting the myriad paths was not a loss, but rather a way to prevent the will to "live" from being obscured by the techniques of "killing".

At this moment, Xie Que decided to stop passively observing the various scenes in the river of time and instead actively guide and accelerate this torrent of time.

The river of time flows back to the moment he was bestowed the title of "Martial Ancestor".

When that divine blessing descended upon him, Xie Que closed his eyes.
He simply used his heart to feel the "wishes of all living beings" surging in his blood when the fortune of humanity was bestowed upon him.

Xie Que then opened his eyes, as if releasing all the distracting thoughts in his mind.

He waved his hand casually, without deliberately memorizing any specific moves or Daoist principles.

But in that very instant, a blank space appeared in the river of time before him.

He gazed into the depths of the long river, where the phantoms of countless laws still flowed, but he could only see his own reflection.

A martial artist who no longer relies on any external force and can manipulate his qi and blood solely through willpower.

If he were to throw a punch at this moment, he wouldn't need to think about techniques or invoke any laws; the force of his punch would simply follow.
Ripples will spread across the surface of the river of time, and what emerges in the ripples are not the moves of the past, but the silhouettes of countless creatures striving for self-improvement.

“I have forgotten the myriad paths, but I have seen the source of the ‘Tao’.”

Xie Que whispered, looking ahead.

It is a martial arts path without moves or rules, yet it leads to the true nature of all beings.

He recalled the torrent of energy and blood from the martial arts competition in the Maha Realm, and attempted to connect his own energy and blood with the "power of the vows of all beings."
Immediately, Xie Que deliberately dispersed his physical body, allowing the river of time to dissolve his soul.

But as his consciousness was about to vanish, he sensed a spark of fire igniting in the hearts of all beings cultivating martial arts within the Blessed Land of Reincarnation and the Immortal Realm.
That was the "seed of self-improvement" he had planted!
His will, like a seed, is re-condensed in the fire of the will of all beings. His physical body is annihilated, but he can be reborn in the fire of his heart, truly achieving "the will is existence".

"I... understand!"

Xie Que took a step forward, and his physical body instantly solidified.

When he threw a punch, his blood and qi were no longer a single shade of red, but rather a mixture of countless streams of different colors.

Like a long river carrying the hopes of all living beings, wherever it passes, the void and its constraints shatter like paper.

The next instant, Xie Que felt a blur before his eyes, and he found himself standing in front of his true self once again!

The id remains in that perfect form, with its vertical brow and eyes, controlling time and space.
Before Xie Que could react, I made the first move!

With a wave of his hands, chains representing the laws of the universe instantly struck.
In the blink of an eye, they were in front of Xie Que, attempting to imprison him there.

However, this time Xie Que did not dodge as he had before.
He didn't dodge or evade; he just stood there, letting the two chains of light pierce through his body!

The moment the light chain touched Xie Que's body, his martial will surged instantly.

Xie Que's figure also turned into nothingness, ignoring the causal lock of the self, and appeared directly behind the self!

I was clearly caught off guard by Xie Que's response; his brow furrowed sharply.
"The Emperor's Heart - To Subdue the World!"
This force, carrying boundless imperial dragon energy, crushed towards Xie Que like Mount Tai pressing down on an egg.

In an instant, Xie Que felt his bones cracking, as if they might break at any moment.

But Xie Que was not crushed by this force; instead, he roared to the sky at this moment!

With this roar, Xie Que poured his "wishes for the liberation of all living beings" into his blood and qi without reservation.

In an instant, his blood and qi surged and roared like a raging golden river, with immense power!
Within this golden river of blood and qi, countless blurry figures emerged!

These figures were either tall and imposing or graceful and elegant. Although their figures were blurry, one could still feel their strong will to survive.

These figures were none other than the original martial artists from the Maha Realm, the prodigies from the Blessed Land of Reincarnation, and the human martial artists from the Earthly Immortal Realm...

They are all people Xie Que has met along his journey. Their wish is to transcend life and death and pursue the ultimate in martial arts!
Now, Xie Que has gathered the wishes of these people together and transformed them into his own strength.

His punch was no longer just a personal act of strength, but a resonance of the will of "all beings wanting to become stronger"!

Seeing this, I knew that this punch was ineffective, and his third eye suddenly unleashed a final killing move!
"The Palm of No Future Life!"
Suddenly, a palm from the future, carrying the power to suppress the entire river of time, pressed down on Xie Que.

At different points in time, countless creators who were locked in a state of self-realization all had their forms frozen in time.

They looked up and saw a giant golden hand!

Even time and space were frozen by this palm strike!
"The future?" But Xie Que remained unmoved, a faint smile playing on his lips.

"I... am the true future!"

Just as his "Future Unborn Palm" was about to strike, Xie Que suddenly opened his arms.

His body acts like a bridge, connecting all the "future human warrior phantoms" in the river of time.

These illusory figures range from children just learning to clench their fists to Heavenly Monarch warriors standing at the pinnacle of their cultivation.

Their fist intent converged at Xie Que's fist, forming a fist imprint that was neither gold nor jade.

This fist imprint exuded boundless pressure, as if it could suppress everything.

"That punch wasn't delivered by me alone!"

Wherever the fist imprint passed, the "perfect body" of the ego instantly cracked like glass.

These cracks spread rapidly, and eventually the entire body shattered like broken porcelain, exploding with a loud crash.

In an instant, my original body transformed into countless specks of light, scattering into the void and vanishing without a trace. (End of Chapter)