One person: Senior brother Zhang Zhiwei, the Celestial Master begged me to descend the mountain.

After that shout, Zhuge Qing felt as if his spine had been removed, and he collapsed onto the muddy ground.

His face was covered in tears and snot, mixed with the blood from his earlier kowtows, making him look even more disheveled than Wang Ye, who had just gone through a chaotic battle.

But he was smiling.

He was panting heavily, and he was making those broken bellows-like, intermittent laughs.

"Hahaha……"

"waste……"

Zhuge Qing raised his hand, gripping the soil on the ground somewhat nervously, his fingernails filled with grime, but he didn't care at all:

"I admit it..."

"Compared to Wang Ye, compared to you..."

"I, Zhuge Qing... am a complete waste."

Saying those words wasn't as humiliating as one might imagine.

On the contrary, it felt like a weight had been lifted off one's shoulders.

Outside the golden cage.

With his hands tucked into his sleeves, Zhang Taichu looked at the mud-like Zhuge Qing, and the sternness deep in his eyes finally faded somewhat.

"Not too stupid."

"Being able to admit you're useless at least means you're not blind."

"What I fear most is not useless people."

Zhang Taichu turned around, looking at the dark night sky in the distance, his voice calm:

"Instead, it's clearly a lump of mud, but it insists on gilding itself and pretending to be a gold brick."

"That's what you call hopeless."

Zhuge Qing, lying on the ground, trembled slightly.

He slowly straightened up and knelt on the ground.

She didn't wipe the dirt off her face, nor did she tidy up her messy blue hair.

He sat there quietly, his eyes slightly closed, his breathing gradually becoming steady and deep, from its initial rapid and disordered state.

He admitted to being jealous.

It acknowledged its weakness.

He admitted that he was inferior to others.

Those thoughts that had once gnawed at his heart like venomous snakes suddenly became less repulsive at this moment.

The Zhuge family's Wuhou Qimen (武侯奇门) emphasizes acting in accordance with the prevailing circumstances.

But what was he doing all this time?

He's going against the grain.

He was struggling with himself, struggling with Wang Ye, struggling with this damned fate.

"So... this is what it means to go with the flow."

Zhuge Qing muttered to himself.

next second.

call--

A wisp of pale blue flame suddenly ignited from between his eyebrows.

The flames were not the usual orange-red, but rather a deep, pure azure.

The surrounding temperature did not rise the moment it appeared.

Not even a single stray hair on Zhuge Qing's forehead was burned.

But as soon as this flame appeared, everyone present felt a strange tremor deep in their souls.

It felt like being targeted by a ferocious beast from ancient times.

That fire is specifically designed to burn away the soul.

Samadhi Fire

The upper dantian is the spirit, the middle dantian is the qi, and the lower dantian is the essence.

The three treasures of essence, energy, and spirit unite to ignite a fire of the heart in dire straits.

"this……"

Wang, who was not far away, stared wide-eyed, not even bothering to wipe the blood from the corner of his mouth.

He stared intently at the ever-growing blue flames burning on Zhuge Qing's body, his eyes practically popping out of their sockets.

"This is... Samadhi Fire?!"

"That bastard... no, Old Qing actually comprehended the Samadhi True Fire at a time like this?!"

Wang Ye felt that his worldview had been shaken.

You should know that this is a unique skill that no one in the Zhuge family has been able to master for hundreds of years; it is a technique that only exists in legends.

As a result, Zhang Taichu's beating and humiliation actually opened up his Ren and Du meridians.

boom!

The blue flames surged instantly.

What started as a wisp between the eyebrows spread throughout the entire body in the blink of an eye.

Zhuge Qing was completely enveloped in the brilliant blue flames, like a god reborn from the ashes.

The golden cages that had been tightly binding him began to show signs of melting in the face of this strange blue flame.

There was no violent collision.

There was no deafening explosion.

The blue flames, like flowing water, silently seeped into the golden light, gradually assimilating and devouring the domineering Qi.

Click.

A soft sound.

The indestructible golden cage transformed into countless golden specks of light, dissipating into the night sky.

Zhang Taichu watched this scene with a hint of admiration in his eyes.

He casually waved his hand, removing the remaining restrictions.

"Alright."

Zhang Taichu sat back down in the armchair, picked up the cup of tea that had long since gone cold, but didn't drink it; he merely toyed with it.

"Now that you're awake, stop pretending to be a ghost."

The flames gradually subsided.

Zhuge Qing slowly opened his eyes.

In that instant, it seemed as if two blue flames were dancing in his eyes.

That fake, squinty smile that was always on his face was gone.

Instead, there was an extremely calm face.

That calmness wasn't feigned composure, but rather a serene acceptance that comes from having weathered many storms and seen through everything.

He stood up and dusted off his knees.

Her movements were as graceful as if she were admiring flowers in her own backyard.

"Thank you, Daoist Master, for granting my request."

Zhuge Qing bowed deeply to Zhang Taichu.

This bow was made with heartfelt admiration.

If Zhang Taichu hadn't torn open his wounds and forced him to face the pus and blood, he might have been trapped in that dead end called genius for the rest of his life until he died of old age.

"Cough cough..."

Just then, a violent cough shattered the rare moment of tranquility.

Wang Ye clutched his chest, swayed slightly, and his face grew even paler.

"Um... I mean, you two..."

"Although it's not very kind of me to bother you two..."

"But I... I think I'm about to break down!"

Buzz—Buzz—

The air began to vibrate slightly.

That was a sign that the clapper was about to lose its effectiveness.

Wang Ye's attack just now immobilized hundreds of people, which had already exhausted his life force. Now, he was distracted by the thrilling scene just now, and the originally stable spacetime confinement finally showed a crack.

clack clack...

Edge of the square.

The villagers who were still in their charging stance began to tremble slightly.

The middle-aged woman holding the cleaver shifted her eyes slightly, and a crimson madness began to gather in her pupils once more.

"roar……"

A deep roar erupted from the throats of hundreds of people simultaneously, converging into a chilling wave of sound.

"Holy crap! They moved! They moved!"

Startled, Zhang Chulan jumped up from the ground and darted behind Zhang Taichu in a flash.

"Old Wang! Are you sure you can handle this?!"

"If you don't step up your game, we're really going to be done for tonight!"

"What's the point of putting in any more effort!"

Wang Ye rolled his eyes, then simply lay down on the ground, adopting a "dead pig doesn't care about boiling water" attitude:

"This old Taoist priest is exhausted and nearing the end of his life!"

"Whatever!"

"Anyway, with Master Taichu here, even if the sky falls, there's someone tall enough to hold it up."

Zhang Taichu didn't even lift an eyelid as he watched the crowd about to spiral out of control again.

He was still fiddling with the teacup, as if everything around him was irrelevant.

Just as the villagers were about to break free of their restraints and launch another attack.

Hey.

Hey.

Hey.

A series of crisp footsteps sounded.

Zhuge Qing walked step by step to Wang Ye's side, blocking the surging crowd.

He didn't adopt any defensive stance.

They didn't even open the folding fan.

He simply stood there quietly, surrounded by dreamlike blue flames.

"Old Qing... what's wrong with you...?"

Wang Ye looked at the figure from behind with some surprise.

At this moment, Zhuge Qing's feeling had completely changed.

The sharp, assertive edge has disappeared, replaced by a gentle, jade-like depth.

Zhuge Qing turned his head and smiled at Wang Ye on the ground.

That smile lacked the usual comparison and rivalry, and instead held the relaxed ease between old friends.

"Old Wang, take a break."

"If you keep overworking yourself, you might shorten your lifespan."

"What happens next..."

Zhuge Qing turned around and looked at the villagers whose faces were contorted and who looked like demons.

There was no fear or disgust in his eyes.

There is only one kind of compassion.

"Playing with fire will only lead to getting burned?"

Zhuge Qing shook his head, extended his right hand, and a ball of blue flame danced in his palm, like a docile elf.

"The Taoist priest's teachings are correct."

"If this fire is used for competitiveness, it will lead to self-destruction."

"But what if it were used for something else..."

He raised his head, looked at Zhang Taichu sitting high up, and spoke in a clear voice:

"Master Daoist."

"I just broke your cup and spilled your tea."

"I will remember this disrespect."

"As for the consultation fee..."

The blue flames in Zhuge Qing's hand suddenly exploded, turning into countless blue specks of light, like an inverted galaxy, enveloping the entire square.

"These lost sheep."

"Let the younger generation guide them on their journey."