Emperor of the Human Way

Chapter 6 – A Hero among Men

Zhong Yue had visualized the Jiao Dragon Body Coiling Secrets on the stage. His spirit hadn’t dissipated and there was a faint green flow of qi circulating around his body, like an evil Jiao Dragon baring its fangs and brandishing its claws.

Being visible to the naked eye, it meant the mind was strong to a certain degree and could hold power!

Qi Refining Warriors of the Great Wilderness had extremely powerful minds. The mind’s power could shape itself and transform into flying birds that could fly, or transform into land beasts that could run, or transform into weapons that could kill. Moreover the mind could fuse with true qi to create unstoppable techniques.

However, that was for Qi Refining Warriors!

Zhong Yue’s mind power could be hazily visible. Athough he was far away from matching Qi Refining Warriors’s mind power, but Zhong Yue’s overwhelming mind power was extremely shocking for outer sect disciples!

“This Fire Era Palace Sovereign Sui Picture that Xin Huo taught me is indeed a tyrannical dao.”

A storm was also stirring within Zhong Yue’s heart. He had cultivated the Fire Era Palace Sovereign Sui Picture twice, and not only did he manage to break the soul out of the body, but even the Jiao Dragon Body Coiling Secrets’ power had been enhanced a great many times. It exceeded the visualization methods of the Sword Sect many times over!

The young men and women under the stage were stupefied and tongue-tied, staring blankly at him. Only Shui Qingyan was endlessly excited and elated. She had clenched her small fists and was cheering nonstop for Zhong Yue as if she had passed the assessment herself.

However, those white-clothed examiners were still debating among themselves in whispers and still hadn’t announced the test’s result.

“Something like this has never happened in the Sword Sect.”

Suddenly a white-haired examiner muttered in an uncertain voice: “The goal’s of my Blue Sky Hall is to test the strength of the outer disciples’ soul and their battle awareness, but Zhong Yue only used body cultivation to kill the demon, it shouldn’t count as passing. In my opinion it should count as failure, what do you apprentice junior brothers think?”

“Apprentice brother Tian is right.”

Another examiner said in agreement: “Messing our Sword Sect’s rules is a small matter, bu it would muddle our Sword Sect’s purpose if even something like this counts as passing the assessment. Our Sword Sect gathers spirit and cultivates sword qi to protect the Great Wilderness.If other outer sect disciples were all like him and cultivated the body while ignoring orthodox Sword Sect methods, then it could damage the Sword Sect’s inheritance. That would be a great loss to us. This assessment should be viewed as a failure.”

Zhong Yue’s heart sank, but right at that moment a young examiner suddenly stood up, his black hair floating. His imposing aura burst out as he berated them: “Enough! Fellow apprentice brothers I’ve endured you for long enough! Poor disciples have to go through thousand difficulties to pass this assessment. From ten thousand maybe only one can go through; the dead, the injured, those are all disciples from poor families! Disciples from great clans can use divine totem poles, poor disciples don’t have anything, where is the fairness? Since there’s no fairness, what does it matter if he passes the test with body training? Does it break any rule? This day, the Zhong Mountain clansman absolutely passed!”

That white-haired examiner frowned lightly: “Apprentice brother Zuo, you are a little presumptuous…”

“I might as well be presumptuous this once!”

That young examiner’s aura became wild and unrestrained. A sword portal appeared on top of his head, and when that portal opened a globe of fire leaped out just like a sun. There was was a foot-high bird-headed deity in the center of that sun. This was precisely his totem spirit. He sneered: “Fellow apprentice brothers, you all come from prestigious houses and monopolize the Sword Sect, when will poor people like me have their say? I also come from a poor family and today I’ll stick my head out for a fellow destitute disciple for once!”

His totem’s spirit had a human body and a bird head, with two wings and bird feet, and as soon as it appeared it seemed like the sun had descended within the Blue Sky Hall. An arid, roasting heat and a raging blaze permeated the air.

“Apprentice brother Tian, you’ve been a Sword Sect Qi Refining Warrior for sixty years, while I’ve entered the sect only ten years ago. Today I challenge you. I want to see if you Qi Refining Warriors from prestigious families are strong, or if Qi Refining Warriors from destitute houses like me are stronger! Does apprentice brother Tian dare to do battle?”

“Zuo Xiangsheng, you far overestimate yourself!”

That white-haired old man coldly humphed and over his head also appeared a sword portal as he called for his own totem spirit. It was also a foot high, and looked like a treeman without feet. Its lower body was made out of dense tree roots and its hair was made out of the luxuriant treetop!

The two Qi Refining Warriors’ grand aura exploded out. Suddenly that old white-haired man’s treeman totem spirit lightly shook, its countless roots dancing as they filled the air. The roots were like Jiao dragons and great pythons, growing thicker and thicker, rolling back and forth in the air as the swept in Zuo Xiangsheng direction!

The totem spirit had become in an instant a giant tree reaching the sky. Vibrant vitality broke out from the totem spirit, and the treetop covered the whole of the Blue Sky Hall!

Zuo Xiangsheng’s totem also swelled in the wind. The bird headed divinity’s body grew bigger and it spread its two wings. It opened its beak and breathed out a great fire filling the entire sky, setting countless tree roots on fire!

Seddenly the treeman totem spirit lifted its arms; giant wooden beams appeared in mid-air, each weighting several ten thousands pounds, and pummeled toward Zuo Xiangsheng like a wooden rain!

Wood as sword, transforming a wooden rain into a sword array!

That bird-headed totem spirit violently shot from its eyes rays after rays of sword qi. That was fire as sword, incisively sharp and scorching!

As the two Qi Refining Warriors waged their great war, the pressure it produced made the Blue Sky Hall’s disciples groans and snort. The other examiners hurriedly acted to protect the many disciples, all shouting: “Apprentice brother Tian, Apprentic brother Zuo, stop, quickly stop!”

With their protection Zhong Yue, Shui Qingyan, and the other outer disciples could finally breathe in relief. Many outer sect disciple raised their head and saw that the fighting between the two Qi Refining Warriors had become even fiercer, shaking the audience’s mind and dazzling their eyes.

The examiners left didn’t know whether to cry or laugh and repeatedly tried to persuade the two of them. One saying quietly: “Dignified Qi Refining Warriors unexpectedly started a fight for an outer sect disciple. If this were to spread around our Blue Sky Hall will lose all of its face inside the Sword Sect!”

It was the first time someone killed a demon with a bare-handed punch in the Blue Sky Hall assessment, it was also the first time a disciple barely did anything while the examiners were intensely fighting.

“Do we help or not?”

“Help which?”

“Of course it’s apprentice brother Tian! Apprentice brother Tian comes from an elite family, and the Tian Feng’s clan’s influence in the Sword Sect isn’t small…”

Just as the examiners were done deliberating, that white-haired old man suddenly fell down from mid-air with a stuffy groan. He dropped on the floor with a “putong”, blood leaking from the corner of his mouth. He tried to struggle but couldn’t get up.

The several examiners jumped in shock. They lifted their head and saw Zuo Xiangsheng standing in the air with fiery flames surrounding his body. His totem spirit couldn’t be seen anymore, while he had transformed into a human body with a bird head, bird feet and two wings, emitting and awe-inspiring presence, resembling a god within the fire!

“You already cultivated to the stage of man and spirit becoming one?”

The white-haired old man’s face looked ashen. He looked up at Zuo Xiangsheng standing in midair, with eyes filled with both fear and envy, and coughed blood: “Man and totem spirit both combining into one, I can only be convinced by my loss. I don’t have anything to say if you become the one in charge in the Blue Sky Hall. But rules are rules, the Zhong Mountain clansman not using soul to win is a violation of our Sword Sect’s rules, I will report it to the higher ups and argue your decision!

Zuo Xiangsheng strode down from the air in big steps and laughed out loud in high spirit: “Apprentice brother Tian doesn’t need to alert the higher ups. If Zhong Mountain clan’s Zhong Yue can fight a demon with his bare then, then fighting a demon with his soul will also be a breeze. Since you have objections then let him try again! Zhong Yue!”

Zhong Yue bowed on the stage: “Disciple is here.”

“You take the test again, this don’t use your body strength to kill the demon, only use your soul!”

Zuo Xiansheng pointed his finger and the sword gate inside the stage once again opened as a demon rushed out from within. Zuo Xiangsheng said in a heavy voice: “I want you to find the road to pass through the assessment without relying on divine totem poles, for the sake of all poor disciples from destitute houses like us!”

“Jiao Dragon Body Coil!”

Zhong Yue shouted loudly, picturing the Jiao Dragon totem, his mind power transforming into a faint green flow circulating around his body that resembled a Jiao dragon. He raised his hands and held the demon’s arms charging in his direction, sealing their movements!

Man and demon clashed, muscles colliding with a bang!

“Break out!”

The demon’s arms were sealed and its speed was greatly lowered. Zhong Yue’s soul leaped out from between his eyebrows in a flash and drilled inside the demon’s head like a strike of lightning. A sword gate appeared inside demon’s sea of consciousness, and astrike of sword qi shot out and slashed dead the demon’s soul!

Zuo Xi angsheng revealed the color of praise, and asked the old white-haired man with a smile: “Zhong Yu has a powerful body and the demon couldn’t resist him in the least. When his soul can breaks out he can easily kill demons with it. Apprentice brother Tian, you won’t have any objection now if I say he passed this test, right?”

That white-haired old man coldly snorted and stayed silent. Zuo Xiangsheng took out an upper yard token and told Zhong Yue: “Starting from today, you are an Out of Body disciple. Every month you can receive ten Feather Spirit Dan from the upper yard’s medicine valley. You did well. It’s hard for destitute disciples like us to become Qi Refining Warriors, and if after today there are more disciples from poor family who can become Qi Refining Warrior then a great part of merit lies with you!”

He wasn’t exaggerating in any way. The Sword Sect didn’t regard body training as important, while poor disciples from the Great Wilderness usually couldn’t pass through the obstacle of the soul assessment. Now Zhong Yue passed the test with a body cultivation method and it was bound to create a body cultivation fad among poor disciples. Probably there will be more of them going through this examination in such a way from now on!

The number of Qi Refining Warriors born from poor familes in the Sword Sect will also inevitably increase!

“You must be fifteen years old?”

Zuo Xiangsheng muttered to himself for a moment and said: “It’ll be a bit risky to manage spirit completeion before sixteen years old with your present age. If you meet difficulties later on, don’t hesitate and come find me.”

Zhong Yue expressed his thanks, thinking in is heart: “This master uncle Zuo is a hero.”

He didn’t leave immediately, but stayed under the stage to observe Shui Qingyan’s battle. On the stage, Shui Qingyan’s clothes floated as she moved. Her steps seemed as if carried by ocean sprays, her feet moving like the wind, and she was deeply intoxicated by her fight with the demon.

She didn’t use her totem pole, but she appeared to be practicing an elite level visualization method, and unexpectedly didn’t lose in speed compared to the demon, with only her strength inferior comparatively.

Zhong Yue’s means of defeating the demon were simple and crude; he had only let the strength in his muscles explode without restraint, while she moved beautifully with the grace of a dancing fairy.

Very quickly, Shui Qingyan found the demon’s weakness. Her soul flew out, she visualized a sword gate and slashed the demon!

“The little girl from the River Mud clan, she’s only entered the sect for a year?”

The examiners looked at each other and one of them said quietly: “Although she has the help of Qi Refining Warriors from the River Mud Clan, this cultivation speed is still astonishing. She even passed the assessment without using her totem pole, she’s an outstanding disciple of the kind rarely seen in the past few years.”

Zhong Yue didn’t use a totem pole either but they chose to ignore that fact.

In their eye, Shui Qingyan was walking the Sword Sect’s orthodox road, while Zhong Yue winning with a body cultivation method seemed a bit dishonest and irregular.

Shui Qingyan obtained the upper yard’s token, and left the Blue Sky Hall animatedly together with Zhong Yue. They went towards the Sword Sect upper yard.

In the upper yard men’s residences and women’s residences were separated, as to avoid them interacting day and night. Or else the outer sect disciples male and female disciples doing some illicit matters. After all, the outer sect disciples in the upper yard were the focus of the Sword Sect’s nurturing, and if the atmosphere was too chaotic it would disturb cultivation and breakthroughs.

Shui Qingyan reluctantly separated from Zhong Yue and said: “Elder brother Yue, remember to often come look for me in the female yard.”

Zhong Yue nodded and walked up to the upper yard carrying his medicine basket on his back. He had no idea how many times he attracted the curious gaze of a disciple on the way. He thought in his heart: “I don’t know if they let male disciples enter the female residences… best to first go to the medicine valley and obtain ten Feather Spirit Dan to replenish my body, otherwise with my body so thin I can’t continue to cultivate the Fire Era Palace Sovereign Sui Picture anymore!”