Journey to the East

When he heard Qin Zheng reveal Duan Yu's identity, Jiumozhi flew into a towering rage. "What a fine Heir of Dali! Since you look down on this humble monk's martial arts, your Six Meridians Divine Sword must surely have been cultivated to perfection. Today this humble monk will have a proper taste of it!" With that, he rubbed his hands together, raised one, and sent a Flame Blade strike toward Duan Yu's chest. "Yu'er, be careful!" "Ah!" Duan Yu felt a towering wave of heat surging toward him and panicked at once. Before he could react, his body suddenly moved of its own accord. His torso shifted ever so slightly, and the Flame Blade skimmed past his chest. Jiumozhi swept his palms again and again, and six streams of searing blade qi flew out together. Duan Yu's figure moved like a ghost. He perfectly avoided all six strikes of the Flame Blade, flashed past Jiumozhi, and, in the instant they crossed, provocatively patted Jiumozhi lightly on the shoulder. Feeling the pat land on his shoulder, Jiumozhi was so startled that he retreated to the doorway. He carefully examined his body, and only when he found not the slightest sign of injury did a flush rise unbidden to his face. Had this Heir of Dali actually shown him mercy? He had been thoroughly looked down upon... Emperor Baoding was staring too, dumbstruck, his eyes full of disbelief. Hadn't Yu'er disliked practicing martial arts ever since he was small? When had he learned such skills—and skills this formidable?! Duan Yu was equally blank. He looked at his own hands in disbelief, a terror in his heart beyond all words. What was happening? Why had his body moved by itself? Had he been possessed by a ghost? In the midst of his panic, Jiumozhi pressed his palms together and, to salvage his dignity, said, "Your lightness skill is superb. This humble monk admires it greatly. But I came this time to experience the Six Meridians Divine Sword of the Duan clan of Dali. I beg you not to begrudge me your instruction!" Duan Yu hastily waved him off. "I don't know the Six Meridians Divine Sword. Leave, quickly. If you stay here any longer, I'm afraid you'll come to harm at my hands, and you won't even keep your life!" What he meant was that he was possessed by a ghost now, and he feared Jiumozhi would be dragged into it with him. But to Jiumozhi's ears, it sounded like mockery. Rage surged beyond all control. He drove the profound internal energy of his whole body to its limit and sent a ferocious Flame Blade straight at Duan Yu's face. "This humble monk would like to see just how you'll cost me my life!" Qin Zheng cast Duan Yu a meaningful glance. Invisible internal energy condensed into threads from his ten fingers and joined to Duan Yu's body, and he controlled Duan Yu so that he easily dodged the Flame Blade. Then he increased the internal energy he was sending out, controlling Duan Yu to press in and strike a palm at Jiumozhi's chest. Jiumozhi was just then in the interval when his old force had departed and new force had not yet arisen. Faced with Duan Yu bearing down on him, he hastily summoned his internal energy and took the palm head-on. With a thunderous boom, the impact sent Duan Yu flying backward. At the same time, a scripture fell from his person and landed on the open ground between the two of them. Seeing Duan Yu flung back, Emperor Baoding immediately leapt forward, caught him, and asked with concern, "Yu'er, how do you feel? Are you hurt?" Duan Yu felt over his whole body and said, "Uncle, don't worry. I seem to be fine." Only then did Emperor Baoding breathe a little easier. Duan Yu was the one and only heir of their old Duan family. If something happened to him before his eyes, how could he answer to the ancestors? "Yu'er, step aside. Let me experience the prowess of the State Preceptor of Tubo!" Emperor Baoding was, after all, the emperor of Dali, and his dignity brooked no challenge. Jiumozhi's discourteous attempt to seize by force had already stirred anger in him, and he was about to step forward and match skills with him. Yet he had barely raised his head when he saw Jiumozhi seized by an unaccountable excitement, his eyes bloodshot, staring fixedly at the scripture that had fallen from Duan Yu. Emperor Baoding gave a slight start, lowered his gaze to the scripture on the ground, and saw four large characters written plain upon it— Sunflower Manual! Somewhat curious, Emperor Baoding looked up and asked, "Does the State Preceptor recognize this Sunflower Manual? What is so extraordinary about it that it should make you lose your composure so?" Jiumozhi abruptly returned to himself. Pressing his palms together, he smiled. "I will not conceal it from you masters. This Sunflower Manual is a secret never passed beyond my Great Wheel Temple of the Snow Mountains. It was lost by accident many years ago. I never expected to find it again here today. One might say it has returned to its rightful owner." With that, he snatched with his right hand, tucked the Sunflower Manual from the ground into his robes, pressed his palms together, and looked at Duan Yu. "Few in this world can fight this poor monk to a draw! Let us end it here today. We shall meet again!" With that, without a thought for the attendants he had brought, he put his lightness skill to full use and fled Tianlong Temple in haste. Emperor Baoding's brows drew slightly together, and he asked Duan Yu, "Yu'er, that Sunflower Manual fell from you. Where did you get it?" Duan Yu's expression was complicated. "I picked it up in a Jade Cave. In any case, that book is rather sinister. It isn't anything good. Uncle, you'd best pay it no more mind." Emperor Baoding nodded slightly and asked nothing more. He took his leave of Master Kurong, changed into his dragon robe, and returned to the imperial palace with Qin Zheng and the others to hold a banquet in their honor. Elsewhere, Jiumozhi ran dozens of li in one breath until he reached an empty cave deep in the mountains. Face alight with excitement, he drew out the Sunflower Manual. "The Sunflower Manual—it really is the Sunflower Manual! If this poor monk can master the Sunflower Manual, won't he be invincible under heaven!" As he spoke, he opened the Sunflower Manual impatiently. The first page recorded the origin of the manual. Legend had it that, in the time of the Qin dynasty, the First Emperor of Qin dispatched a man named Sun Wukong to seek the elixir of immortality. Carrying an iron staff, Sun Wukong crossed the sea and journeyed east. All along the way he subdued demons and vanquished monsters, and at last, on the immortal Mount Penglai in the East Sea, he found this Sunflower Manual. Alas, by the time he returned, the First Emperor of Qin was already dead, and Great Qin had long since fallen. Disheartened, Sun Wukong took the Sunflower Manual and withdrew into the mountains and forests. His deeds were even compiled by others into a book, Journey to the East, which was unfortunately lost amid the wars that followed. After reading the manual's origin, he turned to the second page. Written there was the first essential principle of cultivating this secret art: [What use have I for this iron staff?] "??" Jiumozhi stared blankly for a moment. Shortly after, he read on, and before long he was captivated by the art. The martial arts in this Sunflower Manual were profound beyond compare, considerably higher than the Minor Formless Skill he cultivated, and some of its Daoist formulas could even corroborate the Minor Formless Skill. What shocked him most was that, cultivated to the end, this martial art could reach the realm of Unity of Heaven and Man. Not only could one become invincible under heaven, but one's life could be extended to two hundred years... This could even be counted as an art of immortal cultivation! By the time he had finished the Sunflower Manual, the sky had gone completely dark. Jiumozhi gathered some dead wood, lit a campfire in the cave, and sat before the fire, torn. This Sunflower Manual in his hands was excellent in every respect. Its only flaw was that it required self-castration. He, Jiumozhi, was a proper monk, and had long since severed all carnal desire. Still... there were certain things one might never use, yet still could not do without. At the same time, in a guest room at Longmen Inn. Qin Zheng took out a gold cake and handed it to the old man standing before him. Had Jiumozhi been there, he would certainly have recognized him at a glance. This old man was the very one he had seen yesterday, who styled himself "Dugu Qiubai," the man who sought a defeat and could never find one. The old man's eyes lit up as he took the gold cake from Qin Zheng's hand. He bit it with his teeth, leaving two tooth marks on the gold cake, then looked up and said with a beaming smile: "Boss, my acting wasn't bad, was it? If there's more good work like this later, remember to come find me again. Never mind playing a wandering hero—the Supreme Lord Lao, the Tathagata Buddha, whatever you like, this old fellow can play them all!"