Holy Fist!

Chapter 459 Reaching the Pinnacle of Mastery, Becoming a Grandmaster!
The headquarters of the Martial Arts Association is located in a spacious courtyard.

A gentle breeze rustled the leaves, causing the two people's robes to sway slightly.

A moment of silence followed, then a moment of stillness.

"please!"

Ouyang Ming suddenly turned to the side, raised his right hand diagonally, and pointed in the direction leading to the Western Hills. He didn't say anything extra, only uttering one sentence in total.

"I'm here to protect you."

ten minutes later.

West Mountain, waterfalls and pools, tea trees that inspire enlightenment.

"Master Bai, as someone who's been there, I must remind you. A peak-level sect master, in order to break through to the Grandmaster realm, needs to ignite all their cultivation, transforming it into a raging fire. This includes their essence, energy, spirit, and all the secret martial arts they've mastered, fusing them into the purest life-giving fire in the world. With this fire, a peak-level sect master can forcefully break through the suppression of this world, venturing into the extremely dangerous void, instantly devouring endless void energy, and elevating all their power to its ultimate level!"

President Ouyang looked at Bai Xiao and spoke slowly.

"The more profound the foundation of a peak sect master before reaching the Grandmaster level, the longer they can persist in the void, and the greater the benefits they gain. Therefore, some peak sect masters deliberately suppress themselves, even when they are already capable of igniting the flame of life, they still delay, simply to ensure absolute success and to obtain more benefits. Of course, peak beings who dare to do this are all quite confident in breaking through to the Grandmaster level. If they don't even have the qualifications to touch the threshold of the half-step Grandmaster, then naturally they won't consider so much..."

"It's important to note that void energy is a double-edged sword. It can allow masters of peak cultivation levels to reach unimaginable new heights. However, it is also the most deadly poison in the world, capable of annihilating almost everything. If your will and body cannot withstand it, you will be instantly obliterated, your life and cultivation vanishing in an instant..."

Ouyang Ming warned Bai Xiao of the risks, but offered no advice. He had already sensed that Bai Xiao's desire to break through to the Grandmaster level was incredibly strong.

There's no one who can dissuade them.

Moreover, he inexplicably sensed an extremely strong sense of confidence emanating from Bai Xiao. It was as if the probability of success in this breakthrough was over 99%.

"By the way, Master Bai."

"If you feel you still have the strength to break through to the Grandmaster level, you might as well fully activate the Enlightenment Tea Tree Seed within you during your ultimate sublimation..."

"When the flame of life melts through the world and the void descends, a vast amount of void energy overflows, which the human body cannot absorb entirely. Ordinary objects are instantly annihilated. However, the Enlightenment Tea Tree seed originates from the depths of the void, and that energy is highly beneficial to it. If enough void energy overflows and the Enlightenment Tea Tree seed absorbs enough, it might be able to grow at an unimaginable speed, passing through several stages of rooting and sprouting..."

After Ouyang Ming finished speaking, he fell silent.

"Thank you for the reminder, Chairman Ouyang."

"Then I'll go."

Bai Xiao slowly clasped his hands together in a fist salute.

"Go ahead. I'll protect you for the next few days. The Western Hills of the Martial Arts Association will be a forbidden area, so no one will disturb you. Focus on your breakthrough..."

Ouyang Ming nodded.

With a light touch of his toes, he floated gracefully into the ancient-style pavilion.

Bai Xiao turned slightly and headed directly towards the Enlightenment Tea Tree.

……

September 29th, the weather was sunny with blue skies and white clouds.

West Mountain, a magnificent waterfall, emerald green pools, and white birds soaring in the air.

Beneath a tall, ancient, yellowed tea tree, on a smooth, black, round stone about the size of a person protruding beside the tree roots, a figure in black and gold sat cross-legged.

He seemed to have entered a meditative state, his eyes tightly closed, like a rigid, strong, and cold statue. If it weren't for the slight rise and fall of his chest, he might have been mistaken for a corpse. Bai Xiao's shoulders were broad, his spine straight like a dragon, and his arms hung down like an ape's, his ten fingers together, cupped, and overlapping. It was a hand seal that could quickly calm the mind, and his breathing gradually became even.

Time flows by like water, and countless distracting thoughts are shaken off like dust.

"Crash..."

A gentle breeze blows, and the leaves of the Wudao tea tree sway, like a light drizzle.

Instantly, a vast rhythm of enlightenment spread out, like layers of ripples, instantly engulfing the entire West Mountain. But in the next second, all the ripples contracted violently, forming a vortex three meters in diameter at the location of the Enlightenment Tea Tree itself, inch by inch gathering around Bai Xiao, transforming into an unprecedentedly rich environment for enlightenment.

"Pattering..."

It seemed as if invisible rain was falling from the sky.

The rain fell from the sky, soaking into Bai Xiao's entire body and bringing an incredibly refreshing and cool sensation. It was as if he were immersed in clear spring water, freely wandering and roaming between heaven and earth.

The sound is loud, but the elephant is invisible!
Bai Xiao felt a vast spiritual force engulfing him like a tidal wave. In that instant, Bai Xiao felt as if he were swept away and merged into the world. His gaze swept across the heavens and earth, seeing all living beings, mountains and seas, everything flashing by like scenes from a movie.

Traveling to the North Sea in the morning, Cangwu in the evening.

"Boom!!!"

Bai Xiao's will soared to unprecedented heights, while everything around him began to fade away frantically. All sorts of sounds, as if separated by a layer of glass, gradually dissipated into nothingness. The entire world turned into black and white outlines, like a watercolor landscape painting. Gradually, everything in the world disappeared.

Everything.

In the end, only one person and one tree remained, where he sat down to meditate.

In that instant, the wills of several other grandmasters who had attained enlightenment under the tea tree manifested, just as when Bai Xiao first comprehended enlightenment under the tea tree.

Several overlapping voices echoed in my ears.

A sudden realization dawned on me.

"Martial arts are for survival, violence, stopping war, and fearlessness..."

"The way for birds and beasts to survive is through martial arts."

"Throughout history, the way of martial arts is to understand the past and present."

"The way of nature, which can swallow mountains and rivers, is martial arts."

"The way of the movement of heaven, earth, sun, and moon is martial arts."

"All things under heaven are martial arts!"

Bai Xiao slowly opened his eyes. There was no platinum light or amazing aura in his pupils, only the most normal black pupils, pure and clear.

"To survey the grandeur of the past and present, and to comprehend the great principles of heaven and earth."

"This is the title of Grandmaster!"

Thinking of this, I was inexplicably moved.

His entire body trembled violently, and the aura within him and the will in his mind surged to unprecedented heights, trembling slightly like molten lava, extremely violent. The six forbidden secret martial arts, spontaneously propelled to their fullest potential, instantly reached their peak state, with endless forbidden aura surging like a tidal wave.

"Empty, empty, empty..."

"Ignite the flame of life, and devour all the myriad paths of the void!"

Without hesitation, Bai Xiao seemingly self-destructed, igniting his entire cultivation level inch by inch. With a deafening roar, endless, scorching flames erupted, transforming into an extremely bright white-gold sphere of light. Its brightness at that moment surpassed that of the sun, like a supernova explosion.

"Om..."

At the same time, the Enlightenment Tea Tree trembled violently, and large leaves fell, rapidly aging and withering in mid-air, turning into ashes and vanishing completely.

However, this also gave Bai Xiao a push, helping his flames to burn even brighter!

At this moment.

His heart pounded wildly, his brain trembled, and his entire being was in an unprecedented state of heightened excitement, as if he had suddenly condensed into a single white dot.

Strength, speed, physique, and will—all attributes reaching their 270-point limit—were poured into the Flame of Life. The Kunpeng Devouring Dragon Diagram, the Water and Fire Immortal Robe, the Dragon Elephant True Scripture, the Yellow Spring Demon Scroll, the Flying Immortal Scripture, the Yellow Court Scripture, and all other vital energies evaporated, falling into the Flame of Life. The martial will, strengthened by these five ultimate techniques, plunged into the flames.

"Boom boom boom boom..."

In an instant, it seemed as if the heavens and earth were ignited and the void was torn apart.

"Oh!"

It was like the Big Bang, shaking the entire universe.

In the distance, Ouyang Ming frequently glanced over, utterly astonished by the terrifying commotion. He had never witnessed such an exaggerated breakthrough to the Grandmaster level.

"Shhhhhh!"

Bai Xiao could no longer sense anything around him, only his own existence. After his life force ignited, his aura surged like a rocket, rapidly increasing and engulfing the world.

"Crack!"

Suddenly, the sound of something breaking rang out.

The white owl's burning will crashed head-on, yet it felt almost no resistance, breaking through directly and instantly shattering the thick barrier.

"Hoo ho ho ho ho!"

Ahead lay a vast, empty void, an endless expanse of darkness, like a boundless ocean of vacuum energy. Each enormous world was but a tiny island within this ocean, faintly emitting light. The tides of void energy gently lapping against the surface, causing the islands' light to flicker.

"All things are but a guesthouse, heaven and earth are but a cage."

Bai Xiao slowly turned around, and behind him lay an incredibly vast and expansive world. In one place, there was a tiny breach, from which a faint white-gold flame trailed—the very path he had just taken.

"Once you enter the void, you will be free from all constraints!"

The next second, endless void energy surged forth from all directions, like a tsunami capable of destroying the world in an instant, accompanied by incredibly violent waves. The will of the White Owl burning with flames formed a small boat of life force, violently rocking and bobbing wildly in the storm. Like a small boat in a tempest, it could capsize at any moment.

The boundless void energy possesses terrifying properties, seemingly capable of annihilating objects into nothingness and assimilating everything. Each time Bai Xiao's life force collides with it, it weakens slightly, much like a small boat at sea inevitably being damaged after being battered by waves.

"Boom boom boom!"

Wave after wave, each wave higher than the last.

Even Bai Xiao's incredibly refined life force was rapidly diminishing, its light dimming as he gritted his teeth and struggled to hold on. He felt constantly in danger, knowing that the slightest carelessness could lead to his instant death.

The small boat, formed from the flame of life, stumbled and lurched towards the depths of the void. For every five steps it took forward, it was slammed back three steps by the tide of void energy.

This cycle repeats itself endlessly, trembling and precarious.

Moreover, as Bai Xiao moved further away from this world, the void energy deep within became even more powerful, the annihilation force even stronger, and the resistance continued to rise.

After persisting for an unknown amount of time, he finally could no longer move forward and could only remain frozen in place. A strange sense of melancholy washed over Bai Xiao.

There is a sense of frustration.

"Just as President Ouyang said, the void is extremely dangerous!"

"I can only go this far, sigh."

However, if Ouyang Ming were to hear Bai Xiao's thoughts at this moment, he would probably curse him out. Ordinary peak-level sect leaders, when breaking through to Grandmaster, are hardly capable of advancing through the void. Barely managing to break free of the shackles of heaven and earth and enter the void using their life force is already incredibly difficult. To even manage to stay in the void for a fleeting moment, using every means at their disposal, is already a stroke of incredible luck. Once their will returns, they can become Grandmasters on the spot!
Note that it is a moment, even shorter than a breath.

Instead of waiting in place, Bai Xiao stumbled and staggered deeper into the void, forcefully covering a considerable distance. The time he spent there was impossible to quantify, likely more than a hundred times that of an ordinary grandmaster.

If Ouyang Ming found out, he would probably utter the word "pervert."

……

"Rumble, rumble, rumble..."

The life-giving flame that Bai Xiao had transformed into was surrounded by violent, thunderous void energy that pounded and crashed against each other, creating an extremely terrifying commotion. A thought flashed through his mind; he knew he couldn't stay any longer. Therefore, Bai Xiao activated his life-giving flame and prepared to return the way he came.

at this time.

His thoughts shifted, and he looked in a certain direction as if sensing something.

“Empty, empty, empty!”

There, beyond this world, stood a colossal, indescribable metallic giant, suspended in the void, one hand slowly pressing down. The sensation was akin to the moon crashing into Earth, an immense, terrifying shadow rapidly magnifying across the heavens.

"That's... the Mech Master!?"

The thought flashed through Bai Xiao's mind for a fleeting moment.

"Buzz!"

In the far distance, the metal giant seemed to sense something.

It slowly turned its massive head and looked over.

"call out!"

With a thought, Bai Xiao returned at top speed, his life force returning to the world barrier. Only a faint trace of white-gold flame remained, quickly annihilated by the void energy.

……

"Boom, boom, boom!"

In the real world, the headquarters of the Martial Arts Association in the Tianxia Federation, Xishan.

An incomparably terrifying aura suddenly erupted, transforming into a white-gold streak of light that shot straight into the sky. The heavens and earth trembled violently, as if resonating with some kind of force, and clouds within a radius of hundreds of kilometers converged towards it like a vortex.

Beneath the Enlightenment Tea Tree.

A black-gold figure, its body engulfed in raging flames, trembled violently as its incredibly refined spiritual will returned from the void. Bai Xiao abruptly opened its eyes, two beams of intense white light blazing forth.

"Hua la la la la..."

Above our heads, it was as if the world had been torn open.

Endless pure void energy descended with a roar, like a super storm on the sea, directly engulfing the surrounding area.

The white owl's body was like an abyss, frantically devouring the power of the void.

Without hesitation, he took the final step towards the bottleneck!
"Purely refine your skills to become a master!"

(End of this chapter)