Chapter 4: The Heavenly Demon Creation Art
“Grandpa Cripple’s legwork is so fast he can run through the sky—so who was it that cut off his leg? Grandpa Horse’s fists are so fierce—who severed his right arm? And Grandpa Butcher’s blade—who could break through his defense and cut him in half at the waist?”
After witnessing the true skills of Butcher, Horse, and Cripple, Qin Mu felt both admiration and confusion. He had finished learning legwork from Cripple, finally digesting the power of the Four Spirits Blood, and his physique had improved somewhat. But this time, it had exhausted him half to death—he wished he could just collapse and sleep soundly.
Yet this was only the beginning of his suffering.
Almost every day, the old men and women of the village would catch a few fierce beasts, refine them into Four Spirits Blood, and force it down his throat. After that came frantic training, pushing him until he was utterly drained before they would stop.
Besides Cripple’s legwork, One-Armed Grandpa Horse’s fists, and Butcher’s blade, he also had to learn blacksmithing from Mute, calligraphy and painting from Deaf, and wind-listening and position-discernment from Blind—covering his eyes and sparring with Blind using staff techniques.
When he was too exhausted to go on, the Village Chief would call him over to practice breathing and exhaling together. The Chief said the breathing technique he taught was a special method for training the Overlord Body, called the Overlord Body Three-Dantian Art, and it was extremely powerful.
Although Qin Mu hadn’t noticed how powerful this so-called Overlord Body Three-Dantian Art was, following the Chief’s breathing exercises made his fatigue fade quickly. Before long, he was full of energy again, which made him think the technique was quite miraculous.
“Chief, the technique you’re teaching him is just the most basic guiding exercise, isn’t it?” Medicine Master’s eyes flickered. When Qin Mu had walked far away, he lowered his voice.
“That’s right. It’s the guiding exercise.”
The Chief didn’t deny it. “Each of the four spiritual bodies has its own technique. The Azure Dragon Spiritual Body cultivates Azure Dragon Qi, the White Tiger Spiritual Body cultivates White Tiger Qi, the Vermilion Bird Spiritual Body cultivates Vermilion Bird Qi, and the Black Tortoise Spiritual Body cultivates Black Tortoise Qi. But Mu’er doesn’t have the primal energy of any of these four attributes, so he can’t cultivate the techniques of the four spiritual bodies. None of our techniques work for him. So I can only teach him the simplest technique—the guiding exercise, which even ordinary people can practice. Only the guiding exercise has no attribute.”
Medicine Master looked puzzled. “But the guiding exercise is too simple and too ordinary. Practicing it at most makes you a martial artist, with no great achievements.”
The Chief’s expression turned strange. “I thought so too, originally. But now I’ve discovered we might have underestimated the most basic guiding exercise. Mu’er has been practicing the guiding exercise with me since he was young, and now his primal energy is already very strong. It’s just that this energy has no attribute, so it can’t unleash any power.”
Medicine Master’s expression shifted. “How strong?”
“If his primal energy had your Azure Dragon primal energy attribute, his current cultivation would be at fifty percent of your Spirit Embryo Divine Treasury’s power.”
Medicine Master was startled and blurted out, “I’ve already broken through the Heavenly Man Barrier and opened the Heavenly Man Divine Treasury! Over the years, I’ve developed the Spirit Embryo, Five Luminaries, Six Harmonies, and other divine treasuries to their limits! Fifty percent of my Spirit Embryo Divine Treasury’s cultivation is already at the peak level of a martial artist! He hasn’t even opened his Spirit Embryo Divine Treasury yet, and his cultivation has already reached the martial artist peak? If he opens the Spirit Embryo Divine Treasury, wouldn’t his cultivation be several times that of the four spiritual bodies who have opened theirs? Is this still the guiding exercise?”
The Chief was also very puzzled. “This common guiding exercise does have some mystery. Though simple, its foundation is incredibly solid—solid beyond imagination. Mu’er has actually been practicing for eight years now. Eight years is no short time. The guiding exercise starts slowly, but recently I’ve noticed his cultivation progress getting faster and faster. Especially these days after taking the Four Spirits Blood, the progress is terrifyingly fast! If the guiding exercise weren’t everywhere, I’d almost think it was some incredible divine art…”
The two exchanged strange looks.
Medicine Master exhaled a breath of turbid air and shook his head. “Deep cultivation is useless anyway. It’s still primal energy without attributes, unable to unleash any power. What do you think he can achieve by practicing the guiding exercise?”
The Chief’s expression grew even stranger. “I don’t know either.”
Medicine Master nodded, understanding his meaning.
The guiding exercise was the lowest and most basic technique, often used to lay a foundation for children. By the time they were ten or so, their bone structure had already set, able to withstand the impact of spirit blood. Once their spiritual body type was identified, there was no need to continue the guiding exercise.
After breaking through barriers, there were better techniques—no need at all to work hard on the guiding exercise.
And ordinary people, even if they kept practicing the guiding exercise, could never consume spirit blood daily like Qin Mu.
Those who had such resources were great families and noble clans, but they wouldn’t waste large amounts of resources on disciples with ordinary talent. No great family would be like the villagers of Crippled Old Village, constantly catching Four Spirits beasts to give Qin Mu, an ordinary person, such heavy supplements.
The Chief had never heard of anyone cultivating the guiding exercise to its peak, nor had he ever seen anyone reach Qin Mu’s current level.
So he didn’t know how far Qin Mu could go in the future.
What shocked the Chief and Medicine Master was that as training continued, Qin Mu’s cultivation grew deeper and deeper. The guiding exercise, the lowest-level technique, showed extraordinary qualities in him, making his foundation incredibly solid!
A month later, he could withstand several times more Four Spirits Blood than before, and his primal energy was as deep as if he had already opened the Spirit Embryo Divine Treasury—even deeper!
But although his primal energy was deep, it had no attributes and couldn’t unleash any power, so his cultivation didn’t show.
However, there were benefits: his resistance to blows was very strong, and his recovery speed was extremely fast. After sparring with Butcher, he would immediately practice fists with Horse, then cover his eyes and spar with Blind using staff techniques, then go to the blacksmith and swing a hundred-pound hammer. With such high-intensity training, he only needed to breathe and practice the so-called “Overlord Body Three-Dantian Art” for a moment, and he would be full of energy again!
The effect of the “Overlord Body Three-Dantian Art” even startled the Chief, who had Medicine Master secretly check his body to make sure the excitement wasn’t leaving hidden damage.
After the examination, Medicine Master’s expression was strange. “It’s not excitement, and there’s no hidden damage. It’s just that his primal energy is that strong, and it’s already starting to improve his physical condition.”
The Chief was dumbfounded. Even though he had once dominated the scene and seen much of the world, he had never encountered a case like Qin Mu’s—cultivating the most ordinary guiding exercise to such a level. This had surpassed everyone’s understanding of the guiding exercise.
“Qin Mu, today you’ll learn to make clothes with Granny. No fist practice today.”
Granny Si called Qin Mu over. This hunchbacked old woman carried a small basket filled with needles and thread, walking out on her bound feet. Qin Mu quickly followed, taking the basket from Granny Si’s hands, puzzled. “Granny, shouldn’t we stay in the village to make clothes? Why are we going outside?”
“Today we’re going outside the village to learn to make clothes. Real clothes.”
Granny Si chuckled. “These days, Old Horse, Cripple, and the others have taught you many real skills. Granny can’t be stingy either. Today I’ll teach you something a tailor truly excels at.”
A tailor’s true specialty? Isn’t it still making clothes?
Qin Mu was confused but followed Granny Si out of the village, walking downstream along the river. Though Granny Si was hunchbacked, her steps were very fast. Qin Mu had to use the legwork Cripple taught him, running at full speed, just to keep up. They walked over ten miles into the foothills, where a herd of deer was grazing and playing in the forest, about two hundred paces away.
Granny Si pulled an embroidery needle from the thread ball in her basket, flicked her finger, and the silver needle flashed and vanished. Then Qin Mu saw a deer two hundred paces away collapse to the ground with a thud. The other deer were startled and scattered in all directions.
Granny Si walked over on her bound feet, and Qin Mu followed. He saw the deer lying on the ground, still alive, but Granny Si’s silver needle had pierced its brow, immobilizing it.
“Mu’er, watch closely. This needle pins its Heavenly Soul.”
Granny Si made Qin Mu memorize the position of the needle on the brow, then took another embroidery needle from the thread ball and stabbed it into the deer’s tailbone. “This needle pins its Earthly Soul.”
She took another needle and stabbed it into the deer’s navel. “This needle pins its Living Soul. With the three souls pinned, there are still seven spirits. The first spirit is called Corpse Dog, located at the crown of the head—the Heavenly Spirit.”
She took another silver needle and stabbed it into the deer’s navel. “The second spirit is called Ambush Arrow, located at the brow wheel. Note that Ambush Arrow is easily confused with the Heavenly Soul. Though these two needles are in the same position, one is shallow and one is deep—don’t get them wrong.”
“The third spirit, Sparrow Yin, is at the Adam’s apple. Feel your own Adam’s apple—there’s a triangular notch. That’s where Sparrow Yin hides. This needle pins Sparrow Yin.”
“The fourth spirit, Swallow Thief, is at the heart pit, where the heart’s apertures gather. Right here.”
“The fifth spirit, Non-Poison, is at the navel. Be careful not to confuse the Living Soul with Non-Poison.”
“The sixth spirit, Remove Filth, is at the perineum, where waste is expelled.”
“The seventh spirit, Stinky Lung, is in the lung chamber, where old air is exhaled and new air inhaled.”
Granny Si pinned the deer’s three souls and seven spirits, then said, “This is the most crucial step before making clothes: soul-locking. Locking the three souls and seven spirits. Mu’er, did you understand? If you did, we’ll start making the clothes.”
Qin Mu didn’t understand how this related to making clothes, but he carefully memorized the positions. “I’ve got it.”
Granny Si took a pair of scissors from the basket and cut from the deer’s lips. Before long, she had peeled off the entire deerskin. Strangely, though the skin was removed, not a drop of blood flowed.
“I just locked its soul, sealing all its blood, essence, spirit, and soul into this deerskin. The deer is dead, but the skin is still alive. But to truly refine it into clothes, some techniques are needed. Mu’er, watch closely and memorize the positions where my fingers point!”
Granny Si tossed the deerskin into the air. As it fell, this hunchbacked old woman moved her bound feet rapidly, using her fingers as needles, continuously pointing at the deerskin.
Qin Mu concentrated on memorizing. He saw Granny Si make three hundred and sixteen strikes before the deerskin hit the ground, each strike at a different position, each with primal energy penetrating the skin.
When the deerskin landed, it stood there like a living deer, shaking its head and wagging its tail, completely indistinguishable from just a skin!
Qin Mu was stunned. Suddenly, Granny Si chuckled, spread the deerskin, and wrapped it around Qin Mu, laughing, “This is the kind of clothes a tailor should make.”
Qin Mu felt the deerskin tighten, as if it had grown onto his body, squeezing him until he had to put his hands on the ground.
He actually felt like he had turned into a deer! He even felt he had a short deer tail!
Granny Si took a mirror from the basket and placed it in front of him. Qin Mu saw himself in the mirror—he really had turned into a deer!
He tried to speak, but only a deer’s bleat came out.
“Heavenly Demon Creation Art! What a spell! I didn’t expect to find remnants of the Heavenly Demon and their little demon spawn teaching such harmful tricks in this desolate, savage Great Wasteland!”