The First Sword of the Universe

Chapter 329 Xu Xingchen: Senior Hong, please see the Nine Yin Manual
A single candlelight cast a dim, half-lit atmosphere over the spacious room.

Xu Xingchen changed into a light blue dress and sat down with Guo Jing on the stool next to the octagonal table.

Several plates of vegetarian dishes were on the table, and the only meat dish was the roast chicken that Hong Qigong was enjoying.

Xu Xingchen had eaten dinner in the Peach Blossom Formation, and even after his battle with Huang Yaoshi, he wasn't hungry.

After placing the Dragon-Slaying Sword on the table, Xu Xingchen asked, "Senior and Jing'er have been on Peach Blossom Island for several days. How did your talks with Island Master Huang go?"

Guo Jing lowered his head somewhat discouraged and said dejectedly, "Island Master Huang hasn't agreed yet!"

Hong Qigong complained, "Old Huang is arrogant and looks down on our disciple. He's blind to talent and mistook gold for scrap copper!"

Xu Xingchen had already guessed this outcome, and then asked, "Have you met Ouyang Feng and his nephew, the Western Poison, who have also arrived on Peach Blossom Island?"

Hong Qigong bit off a chicken wing, chewed it a few times, and swallowed it whole, skin and bone: "I've seen it. That old poisoner went too far with his words; we almost got into a fight."

Xu Xingchen pondered for a moment: "So, what is Island Master Huang saying now? Does he really want to marry Rong'er off to that brat Ouyang Ke?"

Hong Qigong sneered: "That Ouyang Ke is handsome and dashing. Although he is a bit older, he is more favored by Huang Yaoshi than Jing'er. I think Huang Yaoshi is really tempted this time!"

Upon hearing this, Guo Jing immediately looked up and said loudly, "I, I will not give up Rong'er. I will marry no one but Rong'er in this life!"

Xu Xingchen comforted her, "Don't be nervous, Rong'er is destined to be with you; in my opinion, Island Master Huang can't control his daughter."

Upon hearing this, Guo Jing's joy immediately showed on his face, but he soon became anxious again: "Island Master Huang has set three tests for me and Ouyang Ke; he said whoever wins will marry Rong'er to him; I'm a little worried about tomorrow's competition."

Xu Xingchen raised an eyebrow slightly: "Oh, which three test questions? Tell your teacher!"

Guo Jing shook his head and said, "Island Master Huang didn't say anything, he only said that we should go to the open space outside tomorrow and listen to his arrangements."

"I see." Xu Xingchen recalled the plot of the book he had read. He remembered that the three competitions were: listening to Huang Yaoshi play the "Azure Sea Tide" to see who had the deeper skill; then Guo Jing and Ouyang Feng sparred, and Ouyang Ke and Hong Qigong sparred, all four of them competing in the trees, and whoever fell first would lose; and the last one was memorizing and reciting the second part of the Nine Yin Manual.
"Now, Jing'er has been taught the Nine Yang Divine Skill by me, laying a solid foundation in martial arts since childhood. Later, she also absorbed the blood of the precious snake belonging to the Ginseng Immortal Old Monster Liang Ziweng in Wanyan Honglie's palace, increasing her power by more than ten years. In terms of martial arts alone, even though Ouyang Ke has already broken through three realms, Jing'er may not be inferior to him."

"The 'Azure Sea Tide Melody' determines victory or defeat based on skill level, and it seems one also has to keep to the beat according to the musical rhythm? I wonder if the world will undergo other changes."

"The third competition."

Thinking of this, Xu Xingchen looked up and asked, "Jing'er, you've been on Peach Blossom Island for a few days now, have you gone out to explore?"

Guo Jing shook his head and said, "No, Master!"

Xu Xingchen then asked, "Have you seen an old man called 'Old Rascal'?"

Guo Jing shook his head again.

Hong Qigong, having swallowed a chicken leg, turned around and asked, "Old Urchin? Zhou Botong? Could he be on Peach Blossom Island too?"

Xu Xingchen nodded and said, "That's right, the Old Urchin is also on this island, and he's been trapped by that Island Master Huang for over ten years."

Hong Qigong laughed and said, "No wonder the Seven Masters of Quanzhen said that Huang Yaoshi killed their martial uncle; it turns out that Zhou Botong's disappearance is indeed related to Huang Yaoshi!"

Xu Xingchen said, "Although he wasn't killed, that old rascal is quite bored staying on Peach Blossom Island; alright, let's not talk about him anymore."

At this point, Xu Xingchen suddenly shut his mouth, hesitated for a moment, then took out the blue-covered Nine Yin Manual from his pocket and placed it on the table.

Guo Jing looked down and asked curiously, "Master, what is this? Oh, the Nine Yin Manual!"

Hong Qigong, who was eating roast chicken, suddenly spat out all the chicken meat in his mouth; not caring about his somewhat disheveled appearance, he quickly turned to look at the table, then exclaimed, "Oh dear, it really is!"

As he finished speaking, he suddenly covered his mouth, looked warily out the window, and listened intently for any sounds outside before whispering his surprise: "Your Nine Yin Manual is real? Where did you get it? Oh, right, you said you met the Old Urchin, you must have gotten it from him."

When Guo Jing saw Hong Qigong's overreaction, he knew that the book on the table was no ordinary book.

After a moment, he finally realized what was happening. He thought of the internal energy cultivation method he practiced: the Nine Yang Divine Skill. It was one yin and one yang, and both of them started with the number "nine". He suddenly had a strange connection in his mind and looked up to ask, "Master, is the Nine Yin Manual also a martial arts manual?"

Xu Xingchen smiled and said, "That's right, this book is indeed a martial arts manual, and one of the most powerful martial arts manuals in the world!" "Then what about the one I cultivate..." Guo Jing said, noticing Xu Xingchen subtly winking at him. He suddenly remembered his master's repeated instructions when teaching him the internal energy cultivation method: "Before you have cultivated the Nine Yang Divine Skill to the Great Ascension stage, do not reveal the name of this internal energy cultivation method I taught you to anyone; if others ask, just say it is the Pure Yang Method."

Thinking of this, he immediately shut his mouth.

On the other side of the Eight Immortals table, Hong Qigong was still staring blankly at the Nine Yin Manual on the table, his lips moving slightly as if he were muttering something to himself.

After a while, he finally came to his senses, looked up at Xu Xingchen who was smiling, then looked down at the Nine Yin Manual on the table, then looked up again, then looked down again, then looked up again, then looked down again.
After doing this three or five times, he became somewhat anxious.

The half-eaten roast chicken on the table no longer tasted delicious. He suddenly stood up from the stool and began pacing around the room, frowning in deep thought.

Half a day later, he took the red gourd hanging from his waist, uncorked it, and gulped down several mouthfuls of wine; he didn't care that the wine stains were running down his neck and collar.

After putting down the gourd and letting out a burp, he walked back to the table and plopped down.

He stared at the Nine Yin Manual on the table for a moment, then looked up at Xu Xingchen and asked in a deep voice, "Why did you take this manual out? Aren't you afraid that the old beggar will try to snatch it?"

Xu Xingchen said with a smile, "Don't be afraid! Senior isn't that kind of person!"

Hong Qigong sneered: "As the saying goes, you can know a person's face but not their heart; in the face of this number one martial arts manual, brothers may turn against each other and spouses may betray each other; do you think Old Beggar wouldn't act against his conscience?"

Xu Xingchen magnanimously pushed the scriptures on the table in front of Hong Qigong and gestured for him to proceed: "How could this junior dare to ask senior to act against his conscience?! Just because senior is willing to take Jing'er as his disciple and teach him his famous skill, the Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms, it is only right that this junior allows senior to see it!"

Hong Qigong looked at the books on the table, then looked up at the smiling young man in front of him, his brows furrowing deeply.

After a moment, he gave a slightly annoyed hum: "Fine! Fine! We'll just do this deal!"

Having said that, he reached out and grabbed the Nine Yin Manual from the table.

Guo Jing watched the conversation between the two from the side, somewhat puzzled.

Seeing that the misunderstanding between the two seemed to have been resolved, he finally asked in confusion, "Masters, what's going on?"

Hong Qigong was engrossed in studying the Nine Yin Manual and had no time to pay attention to Guo Jing.
He frowned as he flipped through the first few pages of Sanskrit, but when he saw the chapters written in regular script, he relaxed his brow and began to read with great interest.

Xu Xingchen smiled and said to Guo Jing, "It's nothing! You don't need to think about it. Let's not disturb Senior Hong's reading. Come on, let's go to the side and let your teacher see how your martial arts are now?"

As he spoke, he pulled Guo Jing to another corner of the room and began to check his progress in martial arts.

Inside this room, the two could not engage in a large-scale sparring match, nor could they make too much noise and disturb Hong Qigong.

The two men confined the area to between their arms, within a foot or so.

The four arms pushed against each other in a Tai Chi-style cloud hand motion, feeling each other's strength.

This was a little game that Xu Xingchen often played in his spare time when he was teaching Guo Jing martial arts.

The two people's strength gradually increased, from light to heavy, from weak to strong, and continuously accumulating.
Later, Guo Jing's expression became increasingly serious, his eyes gleamed brighter, and the strength in his arms grew stronger.

Xu Xingchen maintained a calm and composed smile throughout, appearing confident and composed.

With a push and pull of his arms, he completely neutralized Guo Jing's strength, even the gusts of wind generated by their duel were contained within a few feet.

The two figures' sleeves fluttered, and invisible currents surged between their four arms, yet they remained within a foot's radius.
Xu Xingchen sensed that the Nine Yang Internal Force within Guo Jing's body was surging wave after wave, gradually becoming more and more turbulent, but his aura was slowly settling down and becoming more and more stable; he knew that Guo Jing had taken another solid step on the path of martial arts that combines strength and gentleness.

The Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms, which Hong Qigong taught Guo Jing, played a significant role in this!
The master and disciple were sparring and practicing in a corner; Hong Qigong was at the table, leaning against the candlelight, flipping through the contents of the Nine Yin Manual.
Whether it's the "Forging Bones" chapter of the I Ching, the later "Acupoint Pressing and Unlocking" chapter, or other chapters...
Each martial arts technique made Hong Qigong's eyes gleam with excitement, and his inner strength stirred within him; he felt that this book truly deserved to be called the number one martial arts manual in the world, it was indeed exquisite and profound beyond measure.

It took Hong Qigong a full hour to finish reading the Nine Yin Manual. He closed his eyes and immersed himself in it for a while before putting the book back on the table.

He slowly raised his head, his eyes regaining their focus, and looked at Xu Xingchen and the other person who were playing a small game. He said calmly, "Boy, I have finished reading this book."

"Next, it's my turn to teach you the Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms."

(End of this chapter)