The First Sage of Military Strategists

He scanned the text with his mind and quickly went through its contents.
"1086 acupoints, and a secret technique called the Righteous Qi Technique!"

On the panel, the Righteous Qi Technique and the Martial Arts Chapter of the Great Harmony Scripture have been recorded.

At that very moment, the wondrous landscape suddenly twisted and dissipated. Han Qing did not fall directly from the sky to the earth, but returned to the valley with Yan Qiuling. The white mist also vanished, and the stone tablet in front of them collapsed and turned into dust.

"Let's go, my wife. With this Martial Scripture, I'm confident I can become a mid-level Martial Saint before heading to the Panlong Immortal Realm. In that case, my combat power will definitely increase significantly, and I'll have a much better chance of facing peerless masters like Han Yi and the Mo Clan's leader," Han Qing said with a smile.

"Husband, I believe you, but where are we going now, back to the Qi Prince's mansion or to the borderlands?" Yan Qiuling asked.

"Go back to the border town. The great battle isn't over yet, and I still have a lot to do," Han Qing pondered.

Since he promised to guard Linchuan, he will definitely fulfill his duties. Secondly, he also promised to help the young monks from the north and south rescue their master, which he must also do.

He is a man of his word; if he promises something, he will definitely do it.

Rescuing Master Kuchan would be very risky and not an easy task. Even though he is quite powerful now, he is still no match for the Peacock King Buddha. Therefore, this matter can only be put on hold for now, waiting for the situation to change.

"Alright, let's go back to Linchuan!"

The two immediately took flight and, half a day later, returned to Linchuan City.

Back in the courtyard, after drinking a cup of tea, someone came to deliver a message from Guiqiu City; it was a messenger from Meng Chong.

"Lord Han, I have been waiting for you for a long time. This is a secret letter that Commander Meng asked me to deliver to you!"

Han Qing took the letter, opened it, and glanced at it. He could see all the contents in the letter. It only mentioned one thing: the layman had changed. The royal army was no longer acting separately, but was gathering in Chaoguiqiu City, trying to concentrate its forces to break through the city.

Therefore, Linchuan City no longer needs too many strong warriors to guard it, but should return to Guiqiu as soon as possible to resist powerful enemies.

A flame rose from Han Qing's palm, instantly burning the letter to ashes.

"Understood, I'll head back to the city right away!" Han Qing replied.

"I take my leave!" The messenger bowed and left the room.

"Husband, if a great war breaks out, should we still go to Panlong Immortal Realm?" Yan Qiuling had just seen the contents of the letter and suddenly asked.

"We must go to Panlong Immortal Realm. Although Guiqiu has a royal army assembled, I don't think a major battle will necessarily break out. I don't believe that King Buddha Peacock would be willing to abandon the treasures in the Immortal Realm. It's very likely just a bluff. However, all of this is just speculation. Let's go to Guiqiu City first and meet with Meng Chong. We'll find out the specifics once we investigate," Han Qing pondered.

"As my husband says," Yan Qiuling nodded.

On the day.

The two then set off for Guiqiu.

In less than half a day, Guiqiu was in sight. Han Qing entered the city and soon met Meng Chong.

The two stood atop the city wall. Without Meng Chong needing to explain, Han Qing glanced around and saw countless lights flickering on a vast grassland ahead. The camps stretched for thousands of miles, housing hundreds of thousands of soldiers. Furthermore, powerful auras soared into the sky, weaving together into a vast net.

"As expected, a large army has been assembled. The number of soldiers and experts has increased several times compared to a few months ago," Han Qing said in a deep voice.

“That’s right, that’s why I summoned experts from all sides back to Guiqiu. In fact, this army had launched a battle attack on Guiqiu City before, but something unexpected happened. The Great Brahma suddenly malfunctioned, leaving the royal soldiers without protection, greatly reducing their fighting strength, and resulting in heavy casualties. I heard that it was your doing, Young Master Han.” Meng Chong turned his head and asked.

"It was indeed because of me. I originally intended to enter the inner world of the Great Brahma Heaven, seize this treasure, and sever the foundation of the Holy Desert Empire. Unexpectedly, I encountered the experts from the Western Mang and the Royal Court discussing important matters, and this plan ultimately failed," Han Qing said calmly.

Upon hearing this, Meng Chong remained outwardly calm, but inwardly he was secretly astonished.

He had actually learned about Han Qing's actions through various channels, but he still couldn't quite believe it. It was incredibly audacious for someone to single-handedly venture into the royal court's most important territory and even manage to break through. Such courage was beyond the reach of ordinary people; at least he wouldn't dare to do it.

"Young Master Han is truly a man of great courage. Although your plan did not succeed, it still helped me achieve a great victory in Guiqiu City, which is a great achievement!"

"General Meng, there's no need to be so polite. It was just an unexpected turn of events. You don't need to call me Young Master Han. I come from a poor background and am not a young master. Just call me Han Qing," Han Qing said calmly.

“Alright, Han Qing, I recently received some important news from the imperial court that is quite relevant to you, and I was just about to share it with you,” Meng Chong said.

"Oh? It's related to me? Could it be from the Chu region?" Han Qing pondered for a moment and guessed.

“Indeed, after you killed Xiang Ying, the Chu region was in disarray. The imperial court immediately assembled a large army to wipe out the rebels in Chu and destroy the Sword Palace. Unexpectedly, a change occurred midway. A group of mysterious experts suddenly appeared, united the rebels, and actually defeated the imperial army. Now the court and the public are in an uproar. I heard that those experts are very powerful, including some who have reached the Golden Body Realm. You must be careful,” Meng Chong said.

"Is that so? Did these experts just appear out of thin air?" Han Qing asked.

Many guesses arose in his mind. From Xiang Ying's memory, he knew that although the Chu rebels were powerful, they did not have any top experts. The Chu family and the Sword Palace's higher-ups could only be considered first-rate. And there were no other hidden forces in Chu. So where did these experts come from?
"This is also a question that puzzles me. Some people in the imperial court speculate that this group of people may have come from the Tianwai Panyuan Great World," Meng Chong said.

"Oh? I do know about the Pan Yuan Great World. It is said that in ancient times, there was a person with a strong enough body to cross the Nine Heavens Gale Layer and pass through the Heavenly Gate to the Pan Yuan Realm, which is also known as the Upper Realm or the Heavenly Realm. However, since the Middle Ages, the Heavenly Pillar has collapsed and the Heavenly Gate has been closed, so the road to the Upper Realm has been cut off. It is very strange that a powerful person from the outer world has suddenly descended. If it is true, then the world's structure will undergo a major change and will develop in an unpredictable direction." Han Qing frowned.

Ancient books reveal that the Pan Yuan World is teeming with powerful beings. If they could descend upon this world, the existing forces would likely be unable to contend with them.

“There must be something fishy about this. The imperial court is also stepping up its investigation. What I just said was just one of my guesses.” Meng Chong nodded.

"Yes, once this matter is settled, if things go well, I will definitely go to Chu to see what's really going on. I'm also very curious about the Pan Yuan World, to see if it's really as the rumors say, a paradise on earth." Han Qing gazed into the distance.

"We must be careful in this matter. The Chu region is now a den of dragons and tigers, and not an ordinary person can enter it," Meng Chong advised.

The unknown is the most terrifying thing. Even the powerful beings beyond the heavens cannot fathom it. Therefore, the land of Chu is now shrouded in a thick fog. No one can see through it, and no one dares to venture in.

"General Meng is right. I will not go deep into the area, but will just travel around the perimeter and gather intelligence using my own methods. By the way, when do you think this great battle will break out?" Han Qing asked again.

"It won't break out for at least two months," Meng Chong said after a moment's thought. "If the royal court decides to fight us to the death at Guiqiu, it will inevitably have to gather a million-strong army, which can't be prepared in a day or two."

“That would be best. I will need to travel next month, but I will be able to return before this major battle breaks out,” Han Qing said.

He was initially worried that going to Panlong Immortal Realm would conflict with participating in this great battle, but now he is relieved.

Meng Chong nodded slightly and said nothing. Han Qing's current strength was beyond anyone's control. Even if he changed his mind and stopped participating in this great battle, there would be no problem.

At the third level of the Golden Body realm, one can roam freely throughout the world, beyond the control of even the imperial court. At worst, Han Qing can simply pack up and go to Western Mang or the royal court; either side would welcome him. Therefore, Han Qing's current relationship with the imperial court is very delicate. His conflict with the Han family is almost out in the open, but Emperor Yu is both wary of him and wants to balance the various parties, ease tensions, and utilize him. Thus, despite Han Qing's numerous killings of court officials, he has not truly broken ties.

The two chatted for a while longer, discussing the war, which gave Han Qing a clearer and deeper understanding of Wang Ting's lay Buddhist practices.

into the night.

In a courtyard in Guiqiu City.

Han Qing sat cross-legged in a quiet room, his eyes slightly closed. The Seven Killings Stele appeared, with many soul points of light appearing and disappearing in front of it.

Outside the room, in the courtyard, Yan Qiuling was refining the Impermanence Sword. The sword's edge soared into the sky, like a fish swimming in the air.

Zhou Xiaoru stood to the side, fanning himself, drinking tea and admiring the night view. The bright moon hung in the sky, and the stars were vast and mysterious.

In the courtyards surrounding the central courtyard, Liu Xiaofeng and Han Qing's entourage were also practicing martial arts.

On that day, Han Qing went to Linchuan, but for security reasons, he did not take these people with him. Instead, they stayed in Guiqiu and were led by Zhou Xiaoru, where they remain to this day.

Under Zhou Xiaoru's guidance, these people's strength has also greatly improved.

At this moment, Han Qing had a thought and first absorbed the soul light points from Luo Yueying. A large number of memory fragments flowed rapidly past him like a long river, followed by a large number of martial arts techniques.

He immediately spotted the most valuable martial art among them, called the Law of Heavenly Punishment, which was created by Han Yi himself and is now the most powerful and top-tier legal code of the Legalist school.

Although Han Qing could not learn the cultivation techniques, he could learn the spells, so he was the first to inherit this codex.

He closed his eyes slightly, and a large amount of information appeared in his mind. In about ten breaths, he had finished digesting this codex.

"seal up!"

Han Qing opened his eyes, reached out and grabbed, his magical power surged, and countless illusory chains spread out, completely sealing off this area of ​​void.

This is a secret technique within the Heavenly Punishment Manual, possessing the power to seal the heavens and lock the earth. Unlike the Yin-Yang True Realm, this technique can capture the soul, directly extracting and strangling it from the human body, making it an extremely powerful secret technique.

Besides this one, there are thirty-three other spells of varying sizes, but a significant portion of them require the basic abilities of a Legalist cultivator to cast. Han Qing can learn them, but he cannot cast them.

Subsequently, Han Qing chose another secret technique called the Six Punishments Codex, which is also one of the Legalist secret texts.

However, this secret manual did not contain the secret techniques that Han Qing wanted. He figured he could use it as resources to improve his future Great Harmony Scripture realm.

Afterwards, Han Qing absorbed the soul light of the Secret King and saw a large number of fragmented images. Some of these images revealed some of the secrets of the imperial court, giving Han Qing a clearer and deeper understanding of the court's strength.

Subsequently, Han Qing chose two secret techniques from the Secret King: one was the Azure Netherworld Guide, and the other was the Ten Thousand Ghosts Paying Homage.

These two secret techniques are among the most powerful spells of the Secret King. The Azure Netherworld Guide is an escape method. Although he stopped it in time that day, it does not mean that this spell is not powerful.

This method can quickly construct a passage in a very short time, reaching thousands of miles away, allowing not only the escaper to escape but also to help others escape.

The "Ten Thousand Ghosts Paying Homage" is an illusion technique. The sound waves fill the ears and can cause the enemy to fall into an illusion, where they will be devoured by ten thousand corpses. If the illusion cannot be broken at the beginning, it will become more and more difficult to break through as time goes on, and eventually the soul will be completely devoured.

In this way, Han Qing learned many more spells, greatly improving his combat abilities.

"Next, I need to improve my martial arts level as soon as possible, and try to perfect the martial arts chapter of the Great Harmony Scripture within a month, opening up all the acupoints," Han Qingxin said.

The Great Harmony Sutra of the Future has a total of 1086 apertures, which can lead directly to the intermediate Martial Saint level.

Han Qing has now opened a total of 616 acupoints. Among these, there must be acupoints that have been opened repeatedly. As long as the repetition rate does not exceed 400 acupoints, he will definitely be able to open a thousand acupoints and become a mid-level Martial Saint.

"It would be too difficult for me to open 400 apertures within a month on my own, but with the help of the Seven Killings Stele, it's not entirely impossible."

Han Qing pondered for a moment, then immediately transferred his proficiency in the Six Punishments Secret Technique to the future Great Harmony Scripture Martial Arts Chapter.

In an instant, Han Qing's blood and qi surged throughout his body, his acupoints were opened, and the power of the celestial stars rushed through his body, initiating a new round of transformation and growth in his physique.

Time flies, and a month has passed quietly.

On this day, Han Qing opened his eyes and slowly exhaled a breath of fresh air.

He stretched out his palm, clenched his fist slightly, and felt a powerful force surging within him, more than ten times stronger than before.

He had the illusion that his arms could lift the sky upwards and tear the earth apart downwards.

"This is the power of the Thousand-Aperture Martial Saint!"

Han Qing murmured to himself, feeling that he was now incredibly powerful, a hundred times stronger than before.

Suddenly, a thought struck him, and his flesh and blood began to writhe and transform, changing into one person after another, sometimes Han Yi, sometimes Xuan Chan, and sometimes the Red Lotus Demoness, and so on.

Each person became so lifelike that it was hard to tell the difference between the real and the fake; even their aura and demeanor were extremely similar.

This is the first great ability of the Thousand Aperture Martial Saint: flesh and blood regeneration, capable of countless transformations.

After opening the Thousand Apertures, a martial artist's ability to survive will be greatly enhanced. In addition to being able to transform into all things, they also possess amazing self-healing power. Even if their body is blown apart, they can quickly heal. Although they cannot regenerate from a drop of blood, their self-healing power is much stronger than that of a beginner martial saint.

As he pondered, his flesh and blood continued to change, and his whole being became like a ball of water, freely reshaped without any discomfort.

Sometimes a pair of wings would extend from his back, sometimes his entire body would be covered with a layer of fine, jet-black scales, and sometimes his arms would transform into a pair of blood-red, sharp battle blades…

These changes will make him more versatile and unpredictable in battle.

If his previous combat primarily relied on ranged magical attacks, now his close-quarters combat abilities will also become a viable fighting style, with every move possessing astonishing destructive power. (End of Chapter)