「The next day, at ten in the morning.」
In the North Suburb of Wen City, a conspicuous, oversized SUV was parked in an open area not far from Yi Beidou's villa. Several figures stepped out of the vehicle.
One was Sun Hanlin, who had come looking for Yi Beidou before. The other was Meng Qianyuan, a man so tall and powerfully built that he had practically taken up half the vehicle's interior.
The moment Meng Qianyuan stepped out, the compressed tires visibly rose.
"Mr. Meng, please follow me. That person's residence is..."
Sun Hanlin was about to lead the way, but Meng Qianyuan stopped him with a raised hand.
"There's no need. The man isn't hiding his aura. The vital energy and spirit of someone who has achieved Body Ascension are like a beacon in the night. If the mortal world is Purgatory, then his home is a pure land. How could I fail to recognize someone of such stature?"
"You wait here. I will go alone. As Martial Artists, we have our own ways of communicating. What would you know of them?"
Meng Qianyuan said, his gaze as calm and still as an old monk in meditation, yet a sharp light seemed to flicker deep within his eyes.
Body Ascension was his pursuit as well. He had been extraordinarily gifted since childhood. At birth, he weighed three times that of a normal newborn. Both his bone and muscle density were greater than an average person's—he possessed Innate Divine Strength.
Some called him the reincarnation of a hegemon king, Lu Bu reborn.
Later, he was noticed by an old master who took him in as a disciple. He devoted himself to the Martial Arts Dao, advancing with courageous diligence. At only twenty-eight, he had already reached the peak of the Soul Stealing realm, unable to advance further. He was just half a step away from Body Ascension. Thanks to his natural physical gifts, an ordinary Soul Stealing expert couldn't even last three moves against him.
A person like him could be called a "Semi-Saint."
But the closer he got to that realm, the more he understood how difficult the breakthrough was, especially for someone as exceptionally gifted as himself.
As the saying goes, the stronger the Divine Power, the deeper the inner demon. The greater the talent, the more difficult it is to break through that barrier and trigger the body's fundamental transformation.
He was quite interested in someone of a similar age who had already managed to achieve Body Ascension.
'If I weren't trapped by the barrier of my own talent, I would be a Saint by now, too.'
'Body Ascension has its own levels. If he just broke through, he wouldn't have had time to explore the deeper mysteries of the human body or perform the miracle of "Mediating the Seven Souls and Re-Creating Yin and Yang." If this person ascended from a mortal body, I might just be able to contend with him.'
"But..."
Sun Hanlin hesitated, but before he could speak, he saw that Meng Qianyuan had already walked some distance away.
'Forget it. He's that person's disciple. If anything happens, the big shots will handle it.'
Sun Hanlin shook his head.
Meanwhile, inside the villa, Yi Beidou fed Zhou Baiwei two slices of bread for breakfast. Ignoring her streams of shouted curses, he sat cross-legged in the living room, quickly focusing his mind to once again comprehend the mysteries of the "Lotus Born in Fire" he had previously acquired.
After "hunting," he needed time to "digest" his prey to fully assimilate what he had gained.
Suddenly, he seemed to sense something. He opened his eyes, stood up, walked out the door, and stood in the courtyard.
A shadow materialized at the courtyard gate. A tall figure appeared at the entrance, strode into the courtyard, and bowed to Yi Beidou with clasped hands.
"My master heard that a Saint who has achieved Body Ascension has appeared in Wen City. He has specially dispatched me to deliver an invitation, requesting your presence for a meeting."
Meng Qianyuan's voice was like thunder, shaking the courtyard.
In a corner of the living room, Zhou Baiwei's body shuddered when she heard the commotion outside. She hurriedly struggled to squirm forward to see what was happening.
"Who is your master? And where is the invitation?"
Yi Beidou asked, his expression calm.
"The invitation is on me. But first, I must test whether you are worthy of receiving it."
The moment Meng Qianyuan's words fell, his figure shot toward Yi Beidou.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!
With every step he took, the solid flagstones of the courtyard shattered, and the entire ground seemed to tremble.
Despite his large frame, propelled by terrifying strength, he was still as swift as a cannonball.
He crouched, lunged, expanded his body, and built up momentum...
A downward chop!!
Every inch of muscle in his body swelled with blood as he channeled his power, just like an old farmer raising a hoe and bringing it down hard on the earth.
The Hoeing Stance of the Heart Intent Fist!
The seemingly crude and rustic movement contained the most exquisite natural principles, embodying the Unity of Heaven and Man, and the fusion of Zen and Fist.
However, Meng Qianyuan had received his master's true teachings. How could it be as simple as an ordinary Heart Intent Fist or Zen Fist?
The moment he struck, a surging killing intent erupted from his body.
'How does one attain tranquility?! How does one attain tranquility?!'
'By meditating and observing a vegetarian diet?! By sitting and chanting sutras?! By purifying the six roots?! By realizing the four elements are empty?!'
'Wrong! Wrong! Wrong! All of it, wrong!'
'Only through killing!'
'If you meet the Buddha, kill the Buddha. If you meet the patriarchs, kill the patriarchs. If you meet a thought, kill the thought. Kill until the sky is clear and the earth is white! Kill until the universe is bright and orderly! Kill until your mind is unobstructed! Only then will the heart naturally become tranquil, and Zen intent will arise on its own!!'
Ordinary disciples learned the forms of Heart Intent Fist from the master, but what he learned was the secret teaching of "Killing Mind Zen"!
BOOM!!
Meng Qianyuan was a head taller than Yi Beidou. Attacking from above, his palm descended, causing the air to cave in. It was as if the sky were falling and the earth collapsing, his killing intent soaring to the heavens.
However, Yi Beidou didn't even try to dodge. His expression unchanging, he stood his ground.
When it came to killing intent, how could Meng Qianyuan possibly compare to a Free Celestial Demon that brought chaos to the world?
His Demon Nature, killing intent, and a vicious aura instantly burst forth, causing Meng Qianyuan's pupils to shrink to pinpoints.
At the same time, Yi Beidou thrust a single palm upward. His body became like the mythical Jianmu tree, propping up the heavens and rooting itself in the Underworld.
If the heavens fell, he would hold them up. If the earth sank, he would hold it firm.
This was a technique born from his comprehension of Lotus Born in Fire and Cyan Wood Heart Intent.
BOOM!!
Spiderweb-like cracks spread across the ground, centered on Yi Beidou's legs, but he himself was unharmed.
SNAP.
Then, his upward-thrusting palm smoothly gripped Meng Qianyuan's wrist and yanked him backward.
Meng Qianyuan prided himself on his Innate Divine Strength, but at that moment, he felt as if Yi Beidou's hand was an iron hoop, impossible to shake.
He was extraordinarily gifted, but he didn't know that Yi Beidou's Celestial Demon Body was even superior to his own.
In an instant, he lost his balance and was slammed heavily to the ground, landing in a posture of full prostration.
"Your master's name is Wei Cheng?"
Before he could even process his shock and struggle to his feet, he heard Yi Beidou's voice.
He saw that the other man was now holding an opened, red, gold-gilded invitation card and reading it.
Meng Qianyuan's expression changed. He fumbled in his pocket, only to find the invitation was gone.
In that moment, any thought of fighting again instantly vanished without a trace.
'If he could take my invitation just now, he could also take my life.'
He had no choice but to admit defeat.
"You are also exceptionally gifted, with a Celestial Demon Body, different from ordinary people. Your inner demon is even deeper than mine. How on earth did you break through your barriers to achieve Ascension?"
Meng Qianyuan's breathing was rapid, his eyes shining with a bright light.
He had originally thought that Yi Beidou had an ordinary constitution, that his inner demon was shallow, and that he had only achieved Ascension before the age of thirty through some stroke of luck.
But he never expected the man to be a Celestial Demon descended to the mortal world, with a profound Demon Nature and an inner demon deeper than the sea compared to his own.
'For an ordinary Martial Artist, Ascension is like breaking through a stone gate.'
'For me, Ascension is like breaking through an iron gate.'
'But for this man to achieve Ascension... it's like he chiseled his way straight through a massive mountain.'
"For twenty years, I cultivated bitterly, severed the six roots, and endured ten thousand calamities. Every second was like treading on thin ice. Every breath was a life-and-death crisis. How could an outsider possibly know the hardships I've faced?"
Yi Beidou said, his tone calm.
Meng Qianyuan's breath hitched. He didn't doubt the words of such a being in the slightest. He couldn't begin to imagine what this man had been through.
"Alright, I've accepted the invitation. Let's not talk about this for now. You came to visit me, yet you made a complete mess of my courtyard. Seeing as you have a heart that seeks the Dao, I can forgive your disrespect. But you will have to fix this courtyard for me. No one else can do it for you. You must repair it yourself."
Yi Beidou said to Meng Qianyuan, gesturing at the ruined ground.
Hearing this, Meng Qianyuan's face twitched slightly.