Both start in hell: but their talents are multiplied a hundredfold.

Inside the Wudang Sect's secret chamber, Shen Jue sat cross-legged in the void.

Tens of thousands of volumes of ancient books accumulated by Wudang over a century floated around him, like stars surrounding the moon.

Taoist scriptures, Buddhist texts, Confucian classics, boxing manuals, sword techniques, and internal energy cultivation methods—these martial arts manuals, which would cause bloodshed in the outside world, are now nothing more than floating pages.

Shen Jue's eyes were slightly closed, and the silver lines between his brows shimmered.

The gravitational field of the Phantom Breath Technique enveloped the entire storage room, causing tens of thousands of books to open simultaneously.

The pages turned with a rustling sound, and the dense text transformed into a torrent of information, flooding into Shen Jue's mental perception.

After reaching the Grandmaster realm, his mental strength even increased significantly, making it as easy as using a cannon to shoot a mosquito when dealing with the influx of text.

The principles of Tai Chi, the changes of Yin and Yang, the circulation of internal energy, and the transformation of strength—all accumulated over a century by the Wudang School—were like streams flowing into a great river, devoured, dismantled, and reassembled by his spiritual power.

He kept the usable parts, but optimized most of them on the fly.

As for those Taoist classics, he saw something vaguely connected to the Illusionary Breath Technique in them.

The two energies of Yin and Yang circulate, and all things in the universe cycle.

He had already deduced these principles from the simple descriptions of martial arts by martial artists such as Shangguan Haitang, and now he was simply verifying them.

The time it takes for an incense stick to burn.

Shen Jue opened her eyes.

"The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao."

He uttered these words with a sigh, in admiration, in sudden realization, and simply in confirmation.

Shen Jue confirmed that he had seen the end of martial arts in this world.

Tens of thousands of scrolls closed simultaneously, flying back to the bookshelves in unison, categorized and arranged neatly, as if they had never been touched.

Shen Jue landed on the ground, her bare feet stepping onto the bluestone slabs of the storage room.

Zhang Sanfeng stood at the door.

He no longer looks that old.

After switching to the "Breathing Techniques 2.0," this martial arts grandmaster, who had lived for hundreds of years, underwent a complete transformation.

Gray hair turns black, wrinkles disappear, and a withered body regains its vitality.

At this moment, Zhang Sanfeng looked to be no more than twenty years old, with a square face, bright eyes, and a strong physique unique to young martial artists under his blue Taoist robe.

He had thoroughly understood the two characteristics of eternal youth and longevity in the breathing techniques.

With his martial arts foundation accumulated over hundreds of years, Zhang Sanfeng was able to master higher-level techniques the moment he came into contact with them.

This martial arts grandmaster from the world of crossover martial arts comprehended ten internal energy characteristics in the "Breathing Technique 2.0".

It far surpasses martial arts protagonists such as Qiao Feng and Guo Jing.

Of course, this is also related to the fact that the two are still quite young.

Shen Jue glanced at him and nodded.

"The five vital energies within a grandmaster's chest are quite good."

"After the Five Elements have reached their peak, your martial arts will be close to supernatural powers. If you take another step forward, you may truly achieve physical ascension."

Zhang Sanfeng clasped his hands in a fist salute and said in a clear voice, "Thanks to the benefactor's blessing."

"I wonder if you have gained anything?"

Shen Jue smiled and said, "I have now cultivated the five elements within the heart of a Grandmaster to perfection."

"But I'd better not show it to you."

"I'm afraid your faith in Taoism has been shattered, old Taoist."

After saying that, Shen Jue walked past him and left the storage room.

Outside the door, Huang Rong, Qiao Feng, Guo Jing, and Liu Da and Liu Er were already waiting.

In the square in front of Zixiao Palace, Wudang disciples knelt on the ground.

Song Yuanqiao had blood at the corner of his mouth, his face was deathly pale, and he knelt on the rubble.

Behind him were the other members of the Seven Heroes of Wudang, and further back were hundreds of ordinary disciples.

Everyone lowered their heads, not daring to look at Shen Jue.

Shen Jue glanced at it but ignored it.

He said to Zhang Sanfeng, "I'm going to Lin'an."

"The Imperial City of the Southern Song Dynasty".

Zhang Sanfeng's eyes flickered slightly: "What does the benefactor wish to do?"

"Have the Southern Song emperor convene a grand gathering of heroes from across the land on my behalf."

"And you, who's become more than ten times stronger, will also be included."

"It was convened in the name of the leader of the Wudang righteous sect."

Shen Jue spoke in a calm tone, as if he were talking about a trivial matter.

"And with my own strength once again."

"Let all the emperors and warriors of this world bow down."

"I will then go and crush the foreign tribes outside of the Southern Song Dynasty, and give them a little surprise."

"laugh!"

The square was completely silent.

The Wudang disciples kneeling on the ground trembled, but none of them dared to raise their heads.

Song Yuanqiao's forehead was pressed against the ground, cold sweat soaking the cracks in the stone slabs.

They all heard that sentence.

No one thought this was arrogance.

Because this shirtless man, covered in silver markings, had just shattered the sky with a single punch.

Zhang Sanfeng was silent for a moment before saying, "This old Taoist will accompany you on this journey."

Shen Jue glanced at him and smiled, "Of course."

"Having the founder of the Wudang School in person will save me a lot of time and energy."

He lifted his right foot and lightly tapped the ground with his toes.

Phantom Breath Technique: Gravity Manipulation Activated.

The stone slab, spanning ten zhang in diameter, shattered silently, turning into powder. However, the dust did not rise; instead, it was pressed into a smooth, mirror-like surface by an invisible force field.

Shen Jue traced a few lines on the stone surface with his toes.

A Taiji diagram with a diameter of three zhang was carved on the ground, with the yin and yang fish connected head to tail, and the surrounding area was engraved with structures that Zhang Sanfeng could not understand.

"This is a communication array that uses internal force."

Shen Jue said, and a stream of white internal energy was injected into the array's core from his fingertip.

The Tai Chi symbol lit up, a white light shot into the sky, and then dissipated.

"You Wudang disciples, quickly inform all the sects in the martial arts world."

"The Gathering of Heroes from All Over the World will be held ten days from now outside Lin'an City."

Zhang Sanfeng turned to Yu Songyuanqiao: "Yuanqiao, go and do it."

Song Yuanqiao kowtowed: "Disciple obeys."

Shen Jue stopped looking at the Wudang people and strode towards the mountain gate.

He paused for a moment as he passed the tree where Song Yushan was hanging.

Song Yushu was still unconscious, his body covered in whip marks, and the stains from his incontinence had dried.

Song Yushu and several other disciples whose martial arts had been crippled by Zhang Sanfeng lay paralyzed under the tree. When Shen Jue approached, they trembled violently.

Shen Jue didn't look at them and continued walking.

Zhang Sanfeng followed closely behind him.

Huang Rong, Qiao Feng, Guo Jing, and Liu Da and Liu Er followed closely behind.

The group descended from the summit of Wudang Mountain and headed down the mountain path to the foot of the mountain.

The mountain road was covered with gravel.

Wherever Shen Jue stepped, the gravel rolled away automatically, and no dust rose.

At the foot of the mountain, carriages and horses were already waiting.

Shen Jue boarded the carriage at the front, with Zhang Sanfeng sitting beside him.

The carriage curtain fell.

Shen Jue's voice came from inside the car, calm and normal.

"We've set off for Lin'an City."

"But the carriage was too slow."

Inside the carriage, Shen Jue closed his eyes, then opened them again.

"The horse is too slow."

The force field of the Phantom Breath Technique spread outward from the carriage, causing the air within a radius of ten feet to stop moving.

The horse pawed restlessly, then was lifted off the ground by a gentle force.

The entire carriage rose smoothly.

The gravitational field lifted the carriage and its horses up.

Huang Rong lifted the carriage curtain and looked out, only to see the outline of Wudang Mountain rapidly shrinking.

The mountain path, the forest, and the Sword-Unlocking Pool all become miniature versions of what lies beneath our feet.

Sitting opposite Shen Jue, Zhang Sanfeng strangely felt himself enveloped by an invisible force field.

Outside the carriage, the wind howled, but inside, there wasn't even the slightest ripple in the air.

The carriage passed through the clouds.

The white clouds were pushed aside by the force field, leaving two long trails behind the car.

The sunlight shone brightly on the car roof without any obstruction, warm but not glaring.

Huang Rong looked at the sea of ​​clouds passing by outside the window, her breath catching in her throat.

She had flown into the sky on a kite she made herself, but that was gliding with the help of the wind; there was no such thing as soaring into the sky like this.

Qiao Feng and Guo Jing sat in the carriage at the back.

Guo Jing silently gazed out the window, his hands resting on his knees, motionless.

This honest child seems to have a fear of heights.

Qiao Feng stared intently at the blue sky and white clouds outside the window, feeling a surge of pride and even improving his martial arts skills.

The carriage began to pick up speed.

The clouds below transformed into a white streak of light and flew backward.

The shockwave from the flying carriage spread out in a cone shape, cutting the high-altitude clouds in two.

Only the rapidly receding sea of ​​clouds outside the window reminded the passengers that they were flying at a speed never before seen in the world.

Huang Rong silently calculated in her mind. Given the distance from Peach Blossom Island to Lin'an, even a swift horse traveling day and night would take dozens of days.

But the speed at which the clouds were receding was beyond her estimation.

For a short time, Shen Jue closed his eyes to rest, while Zhang Sanfeng closed his eyes to regulate his breathing.

Huang Rong looked to the left, then to the right, bit her lip, and closed her eyes.

The carriage traversed thousands of miles of mountains and rivers, and the clouds began to thin.

Shen Jue opened her eyes and looked down.

"arrive."

The carriage began to descend.

Through the clouds, the earth below appears magnified once more.

Nestled amidst green hills and clear waters, a colossal city lies sprawling on the plains.

Lin'an, the imperial city of the Southern Song Dynasty.

The city walls are triple, the palaces are thousands of rooms, the moat surrounds the city like a silver belt, and the city towers stand tall like a forest.

From a bird's-eye view, the entire city is square, with streets crisscrossing like a chessboard and markets arranged in a grid pattern.

The carriage descended, leaving the clouds behind.

The details of Lin'an are gradually becoming clear.

The city wall was built with large blue bricks, and an arrow tower was set up every hundred steps.

The city gates were wide open, and people swarmed in and out like ants.

The widest street in the city, the Imperial Street, runs from south to north through the entire city, spanning several tens of feet, and is paved with bluestone.

The Imperial Street was lined with densely packed market streets.

West Lake is located in the west of the city, like a bright mirror embedded among the green hills.

Boats dot the lake, painted barges sway gently, and the sounds of string and wind instruments can be faintly heard.

The Su Causeway is lined with weeping willows and teeming with tourists.

The carriage descended to a height of a thousand feet.

The scene in the city became even clearer, with carriages and pedestrians flowing endlessly on the Imperial Street.

Martial arts practitioners carrying swords and knives can be seen everywhere.

Huang Rong said softly, "Did we come too quickly? The news of the Heroes' Gathering should not have reached us yet."

Zhang Sanfeng opened his eyes, glanced through the car window, and then closed them again.

"There are many military men who are permanently stationed in Lin'an down here."

"The Southern Song court recruited retainers, the various sects set up branches in the capital, and the wandering martial arts practitioners."

"And the most numerous hawks and hounds of the Southern Song Dynasty."

Shen Jue looked down at Lin'an City, a slight smile playing on his lips.

The carriage continued to descend.

People in the city began to notice the strange phenomenon in the sky.

First, there were children on the street. A seven or eight-year-old boy looked up at the sky, tugged at his mother's clothes, pointed at the sky, and made a muffled exclamation.

The mother looked up, and the vegetable basket in her hand fell to the ground.

Next came the patrolling officers and soldiers.

A group of patrolling soldiers stopped at the same time, looked up at the sky, and the swords at their waists clanged, but no one noticed.

Pedestrians on the Imperial Street also stopped in their tracks.

A peddler carrying a load on a shoulder pole threw his load on the ground, tilted his head back, and opened his mouth.

An officer on horseback pulled on the reins, and the horse neighed, but he was completely unaware.

The martial artists on the second floor of the restaurant rushed out onto the balcony.

The swordsman in blue robes standing in front of the temple gate suddenly stood up.

The street performers stopped wielding their swords.

The entire Imperial Street, the entire city of Lin'an, seemed to be looking up at the sky.

The carriage stopped dozens of feet in the air.

The cone-shaped shockwave barrier outside the carriage gradually dissipated, revealing the carriage itself.

An ordinary blue cloth carriage, and two ordinary yellow horses.

It just hung there in the sky above Lin'an City.

The yellow horse trembled violently, almost collapsing to the ground.

Zhang Sanfeng sighed softly, "Benefactor, we have arrived."

Shen Jue did not answer. He lifted the carriage curtain and stood up.

His bare upper body was exposed to the sunlight in Lin'an.

Silver patterns flowed across his skin, as fine as runes and as mysterious as a star map.

He looked down at Lin'an City below.

Shen Jue took a deep breath. Then he let out a long howl.

The long howl could be heard throughout the entire city of Lin'an.

The howling sound evenly covered the entire city, as if it were rain falling from the sky, penetrating everywhere.

With a whistling sound, Shen Jue's internal energy surged wildly.

The white internal energy surged from his body as if it were a tangible substance.

The internal force surged upwards, gathering a hundred feet above Shen Jue's head, and then expanded.

Like a drop of thick ink falling into clear water, the white inner force spreads rapidly in the high sky, outlining lines and filling in contours in the void.

A giant human face formed from pure white internal energy floated above Lin'an City.

That face was incredibly handsome.

Every line on his face was so perfect that it seemed otherworldly, like a divine statue born from heaven and earth, or a celestial being descended from the heavens.

But the expression on that face carried a lazy smile.

With a slight upturn at the corners of his mouth and half-closed eyes, he looked like an extremely bored child who had found a new toy.

That face covered the entire city of Lin'an.

Stretching for tens of miles east to west and tens of miles north to south, the light of the inner force blotted out the sun, blocking out the afternoon sunlight.

Lin'an City was shrouded in a pure white light. All shadows disappeared, and all colors were swallowed up by the white light, leaving only white.

Pure, extreme, overwhelming white.

The city of Lin'an was completely silent.

On Imperial Street, a street vendor carrying a load of food suddenly collapsed to the ground, his legs giving way.

Beside him, a patrolling soldier loosened his grip on his sword, and the long sword fell to the ground, crashing onto the bluestone slab with a resounding clang.

On West Lake, a young man who looks like a scholar stands at the bow of a boat, his folding fan falling to the ground and the fan surface floating on the water.

He didn't look, he just looked up at the sky.

The entire city of Lin'an seemed to have been frozen in place.

Then, some martial artists in the crowd recognized what was in the sky.

"Internal force...internal force materializing?!"

A middle-aged martial artist screamed these words, his voice distorted with fear. He himself was a master of the Innate Realm, and he naturally knew about the manifestation of internal energy at the Grandmaster Realm.

But the face in the sky covered the entire city of Lin'an!

How much internal energy would that require? How strong would that require mental fortitude? How high a level of cultivation would that require?

The middle-aged martial artist's legs went weak; fear pinned him to the spot.

"It's not just about internal energy manifesting..."

An aged voice rang out, coming from an old man carrying a sword on the street corner.

The old man had a white beard and his eyes shone with a sharp light; his cultivation level was so high that even the innate martial artist couldn't see through it.

But at this moment, the voice of this mysterious old man carrying a sword was trembling.

"I can't see through it."

He swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down.

"This is no longer just about martial arts."

The old man carrying the sword slowly drew the long sword from his back. The long sword was actually just a wooden sword carved by an ordinary child!

"This is almost like the work of gods and Buddhas."

"My sword, can you surpass the martial arts of that celestial warrior?"

Tell me.

This person is none other than the Sword Demon, who has cultivated the sword path for hundreds of years in this world of martial arts and has reached the level of a Grandmaster!

Dugu Qiubai, who once again drew his sword after reaching a state of swordsmanship where he had no sword in his hand!