The memories of all humanity are awakening, except for mine.

He imitated Wang Han, focusing his attention on the rhythm of his feet, and actually found the pattern.

"It's now!"

Jiang Chuan seized an opening and suddenly rushed to Dai Yongde's left.

At the same time, Wang Han approached from the right, while Su Wen appeared out of nowhere and headed straight for the middle lane.

Faced with attacks from three sides, Dai Yongde remained calm and composed.

He lightly stomped his left foot, and the tremors in the square suddenly intensified.

Jiang Chuan felt his foot slip, and his forward momentum instantly turned into a lunge.

He watched helplessly as Dai Yongde's figure loomed larger before his eyes, and then...
boom!
A light, gentle palm strike landed on Jiang Chuan's chest, sending him flying once more.

This time, he adjusted his posture in the air and barely managed to stabilize himself. When he landed, he only took three steps back before he stood still.

"better."

Dai Yongde nodded slightly.

Wang Han wasn't so lucky. He was hit in the waist by Dai Yongde's spinning kick, and flew out like a top, crashing heavily to the ground.

Su Wen fared even worse; Dai Yongde grabbed him by the back of his collar, lifted him up, spun him around three times in the air, and then threw him out.

"Oh my God!"

Su Wen was so dizzy from the fall that he lay on the ground for a long time, unable to get up.

Dai Yongde stood in the center of the square, his clothes fluttering, like a god of war.

He looked around at his disciples, who were staggering about, and sneered.

"With such meager skills, you dare to call yourself a disciple of a celestial sect? You can't even defeat a Foundation Establishment cultivator like me. If you encounter demonic cultivators in the future, won't you be at their mercy?"

These words struck everyone like a knife.

Jiang Chuan clenched his fist, his nails digging deep into his palm.

He knew Dai Yongde was right; the cultivation world was indeed cruel, and the weak didn't even have the right to survive.

"I don't agree!"

Su Wen suddenly jumped up and pointed at Dai Yongde, cursing loudly.

"What kind of skill is it to bully others just because you have a higher cultivation level! If you're so capable, try suppressing yourself to the same level as us!"

Dai Yongde squinted and slowly walked towards Su Wen.

Su Wen was intimidated by his imposing manner and involuntarily took two steps back.

"Oh?"

Dai Yongde's voice was frighteningly soft.

"You think I'm bullying you?"

Su Wen swallowed hard, stubbornly refusing to back down.

"That's right!"

"it is good."

Dai Yongde suddenly laughed.

"Then I'll bully you a bit."

Before he finished speaking, his figure had disappeared from the spot.

Su Wen felt a blur before his eyes, followed by a sharp pain in his abdomen.

He flew backward, his body arched, but before he could land, he was caught up and struck in the back with an elbow.

"what!"

"Ow!"

"Help!"

Su Wen's screams echoed across the square, terrifying the other disciples.

Dai Yongde's attacks were lightning fast, each strike precisely avoiding vital points, yet causing Su Wen excruciating pain.

In just a few breaths, Su Wen had been beaten black and blue, looking like a pig's head.

"Who else thinks I'm bullying people?"

Dai Yongde flicked his wrist and asked in a cold voice.

The square was deathly silent; even breathing could be heard clearly.

Jiang Chuan lowered his head, not daring to meet Dai Yongde's gaze.

He caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye that Wang Han was quietly moving to the back of the crowd, seemingly trying to hide.

"Wang Han!"

Dai Yongde suddenly called out names.

"What are you hiding for? Come here!"

Wang Han froze, his face contorted in pain as he stepped forward. Without a word, Dai Yongde swept a whip kick at his lower body.

Wang Han hastily blocked the attack, but was so shaken that he staggered back seven or eight steps and landed hard on his backside.

"Too slow reaction!"

Dai Yongde shouted sternly.

"Come again!"

The next half hour became a nightmare for all the disciples.

Dai Yongde dragged them out one by one like sheep, beating them until they cried for their parents.

Jiang Chuan took three punches and two kicks, and his lip was cut and burning painfully.

But he noticed that Dai Yongde's every strike was perfectly timed, causing them excruciating pain without inflicting real damage.

"That's it for today."

Dai Yongde finally stopped and patted off non-existent dust from his sleeves.

"Continue at the same time tomorrow."

After saying that, he turned and left, leaving his disciples wailing all over the ground.

Jiang Chuan slumped to the ground, panting heavily.

He looked around and found that everyone except Liu Qing, who was hiding at the back and hadn't made a move, was injured.

The next day, it was just as tragic.

Fang Sheng wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and staggered to his feet.

Despite being beaten black and blue, his tall frame still made him half a head taller than Dai Yongde.

He turned to look at Jiang Chuan, who was also struggling to his feet, his voice filled with suppressed anger.

“This can’t go on forever; we can’t keep getting beaten.”

Jiang Chuan spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva; his right eye was so swollen he could barely open it.

He looked around and saw dozens of disciples lying haphazardly in the square, groaning all around.

Dai Yongde, a short man, stood in the center with a half-smile on his face, as if admiring his masterpiece.

"I'll demonstrate it again."

Dai Yongde's wide sleeves fluttered even without wind, and he slowly drew a perfect circle with his hands in front of his chest.

In an instant, the spiritual energy between heaven and earth seemed to be stirred by an invisible hand, and the yin and yang energies converged.

"Taiji Xuanqing Diagram, open!"

With a soft shout from Dai Yongde, the entire square suddenly lit up with black and white light, and a huge Tai Chi pattern with a diameter of ten zhang slowly rotated under everyone's feet.

The eyes of the yin-yang fish emitted a dense, almost tangible, spiritual energy that enveloped the entire plaza.

"This is this"

Jiang Chuan's pupils suddenly contracted. He felt his spiritual energy suddenly become sluggish, as if it were bound by some invisible force.

The dozens of disciples from the surrounding immortal sects all changed color, and some of them exclaimed in surprise.

"Why is my spiritual energy flowing backward?"

"Yin and Yang reversed, the Five Elements in disarray—is this the power of the Taiji Xuanqing Diagram?"

Jiang Chuan suppressed the surging spiritual energy within his body and stared intently at the Tai Chi pattern flowing on the ground.

Those distinct black and white lines seem to contain the most fundamental mysteries of the universe.

Dai Yongde stood in the center of the Tai Chi diagram, his robes fluttering, like an immortal.

He looked around at everyone, his voice booming like a great bell.

"Today I will perform this technique. How much you can comprehend depends entirely on your own destiny."

Jiang Chuan sat cross-legged.

He closed his eyes, but saw an even stranger sight—the originally solid and stable basalt plaza had become as soft as water in his perception, with yin and yang energies flowing endlessly within it.

Jiang Chuan recalled the process of being beaten. Dai Yongde's seemingly casual three moves—the first move was like a spring breeze but it made his internal organs tremble; the second move was thunderous but contained hidden softness; the third move was even more of a combination of hardness and softness, leaving him with no way to defend himself.

"I understand!" Jiang Chuan suddenly looked up, his eyes gleaming.

"This wasn't just a simple beating; Elder Dai was present."

"Brother Jiang!"

A weak voice interrupted him. Not far away, a female disciple struggled to prop herself up.

"Have you discovered anything? We're almost at our limit."

The other disciples who were still able to stand also cast hopeful glances their way.

Dai Yongde crossed his arms, showing no intention of stopping everyone from asking Jiang Chuan for help; instead, his eyes were filled with expectation.

Jiang Chuan said loudly.

"Everyone! Elder Dai's three moves represent overcoming strength with softness, controlling softness with strength, and combining strength and softness! This is not a trial, but the teaching of our immortal sect's technique—the Taiji Xuanqing Diagram!"

There was an uproar in the square.

"what?"

"No wonder those moves seemed familiar."

"I see!"

murmurs arose, and many disciples showed expressions of sudden realization. However, a few had gloomy expressions, with Liu Qing being the most so.

He stood at the edge of the crowd, his eyes filled with jealousy and resentment.

"Pretending."

Liu Qing gave a low, cold laugh.

"It's just good luck."

The sound was neither too loud nor too soft, just enough for Jiang Chuan to hear.

Their eyes met in mid-air, as if sparks were flying.

Jiang Chuan felt a chill run down his spine, recalling the previous rumors about Liu Qing's connection with the Crown Prince of Haojing.

The Crown Prince's intentions... Jiang Wei and Tang Zhizhi... These clues connected in his mind.

"quiet!"

Dai Yongde suddenly spoke, his voice booming like a bell, making everyone's eardrums ache.

He gave Jiang Chuan a satisfied look.

"Indeed, you were able to see through my intentions, which proves that you do have some understanding."

He lightly stepped on the ground with his right foot, and the entire square suddenly lit up with black and white light. A huge tai chi pattern emerged from the ground and slowly rotated.

At the same time, golden characters appeared in the air, which were the key secrets of the Taiji Xuanqing Diagram.

"My God!"

"This is the real trial!"

The standing disciples gasped in surprise, while those still lying on the ground looked ashen-faced—they couldn't see the mental cultivation text in the air.

"The Kunlun Secret Realm is fraught with danger."

Dai Yongde looked around at everyone, his voice serious.

"Without sufficient comprehension and strength, going in is just suicide. Now, the disciples who can stand up will begin to comprehend the mental cultivation method; the rest will be eliminated."

The last sentence struck like a hammer blow, turning the faces of the fallen disciples deathly pale. Some tried to struggle to their feet, but were suppressed by an invisible force, unable to move.

Jiang Chuan stood in the center of the Tai Chi diagram, his expression calm.

He discovered that these mental techniques and key principles were similar to the Tai Chi energy he had previously practiced, and they were not difficult to understand.

The spiritual problems that had once troubled him were now easily solved.

"From the Wuji (the primordial chaos) arises the Taiji (the supreme ultimate), and from the Taiji arises Yin and Yang."

The thought suddenly flashed through Jiang Chuan's mind. He opened his eyes abruptly and found that every stone slab in the square was vibrating at a mysterious frequency.

In that split second, the Five Elements Sword Intent within Jiang Chuan's body suddenly began to vibrate violently.

Sword energies of the five elements—metal, wood, water, fire, and earth—flowed wildly within the Purple Mansion, colliding with each other, yet gradually forming a new balance under the guidance of some invisible force.

"This is."

Jiang Chuan's forehead was covered in fine beads of sweat, and he felt a tearing pain coming from his dantian.

The five elements of sword energy, which were originally independent, now seemed to be forcibly mixed together by a pair of invisible hands.

Dai Yongde's gaze suddenly turned to Jiang Chuan, his eyes filled with surprise.

"This child was able to touch the threshold of Yin-Yang transformation in such a short time?"

At the other end of the square, Liu Qing looked at Jiang Chuan, who was enveloped in five-colored light, with a gloomy expression, her nails digging deeply into her palms.

"Why? Why him again?!"

Wang Han's expression was complex, a mixture of envy and resentment.

"Senior Brother Jiang's comprehension is truly terrifying."

At this moment, Jiang Chuan was oblivious to everything around him.

He was completely absorbed in comprehending the Taiji Xuanqing Diagram.

The black and white pattern magnified and decomposed in his mind, eventually transforming into the most fundamental yin and yang energies.

"Yang transforms into Yin and combines, giving rise to water, fire, wood, metal, and earth."

Jiang Chuan muttered to himself, the vibrations of the Five Elements Purple Mansion within his body becoming increasingly intense.

Suddenly, a dazzling sword intent shot up from the top of his head, transforming into a five-colored rainbow that pierced the sky!
"boom!"

Everyone in the square was startled by the sudden sword intent and quickly exited their state of comprehension.

Su Wen's eyes widened.

"Has Senior Brother Jiang had an epiphany?"

Dai Yongde's eyes flashed with a sharp light, and with a wave of his sleeve, an invisible barrier enveloped Jiang Chuan.

"Don't disturb him!"

Inside the barrier, Jiang Chuan's body trembled slightly.

He felt that he was standing at an unprecedented threshold—the fusion of the Five Elements Sword Intent Purple Mansion had always been the biggest obstacle on his cultivation path, because he was naturally close to the water and wood attributes and always found it difficult to perfectly control the other three attributes.

The Five Elements are governed by Yin and Yang.

A sudden inspiration struck Jiang Chuan.

"If we take Yin and Yang as the pivot, wouldn't the principles of mutual generation and mutual restraint of the Five Elements be readily understood?"

The moment this thought arose, a tremendous change occurred within the Five Elements Purple Mansion of the body. The originally chaotic Five Elements sword energy began to arrange itself according to a mysterious law—the water and fire attributes respectively belonged to Yin and Yang; the wood and metal attributes also belonged to Yin and Yang respectively; while the earth attribute served as the mediator, harmonizing the Yin and Yang.

"I see!"

Jiang Chuan suddenly felt enlightened.

"The Five Elements are inherently one, but Yin and Yang are the fundamental elements!"

As his understanding deepened, the soaring sword intent became more and more solid, and the five-colored light gradually merged, eventually transforming into a pure white light, yet within the white depths, black could be faintly seen flowing, just like the yin and yang fish eyes in the Tai Chi diagram.

Upon seeing this, Dai Yongde couldn't help but clap his hands in admiration.

"What a perfect balance of yin and yang! This child's future is limitless!"

However, just as Jiang Chuan was about to fully comprehend its mysteries, he suddenly felt a sense of emptiness—his understanding of the changes of Yin and Yang seemed to be missing the most crucial link.

"When the two energies interact, all things are born."

Jiangchuan frowned.

"But what exactly is the principle behind this communion?"

He recalled the Tai Chi energy taught by Lin Xiao, which was only the most rudimentary method of deflecting force. Compared with the profound and unpredictable Tai Chi Xuanqing Diagram before him, it was simply child's play.

"No, it's still a little short."

Jiang Chuan's forehead veins bulged, and his internal spiritual energy was almost at its limit, yet he still couldn't break through that last layer of paper.

Seeing Jiang Chuan's predicament, Dai Yongde suddenly spoke up.

"Yin and Yang are the way of Heaven and Earth. All things carry Yin and embrace Yang, and achieve harmony through the interaction of these two forces."

The voice was like a wake-up call, and Jiang Chuan was shaken. His eyes flashed with a divine light, which then quickly subsided.

He slowly exhaled a breath of stale air, and the soaring sword intent also withdrew into his body.

The barrier was removed, and Dai Yongde stood with his hands behind his back.

"Did you gain anything?"

Jiang Chuan bowed respectfully.

"Thank you for your guidance, senior. I have gained some understanding, but I am still far from fully comprehending it."

Dai Yongde smiled meaningfully.

"Being able to recognize one's own shortcomings is itself a form of progress. The Tai Chi Xuanqing Diagram is profound and extensive; even after a hundred years of study, I only have a superficial understanding of it."

Liu Qing, listening from the side, gritted her teeth and couldn't help but interject. (End of Chapter)