Da Xuan Martial Saint

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"Brother..."

Chen Yue pursed her lips, her little face still somewhat pale.

She knew that to many people, Chen Mu seemed to have risen effortlessly to success. But in fact, the hardships he endured behind the scenes far exceeded those of ordinary people. He was practising cultivation every day without end.

And the tasks like serving as Prefecture Chief, hunting demons, and clashing with the He Family, she knew these were not easy matters and were surely fraught with many crises and hardships. Until now, those had all felt somewhat distant to her, but this time she had a very real sense of the danger that accompanied Chen Mu.

Look at that shattered wall.

One could almost imagine how perilous the scene had been, with assassins from Blood Hidden Pavilion sneaking in under the cover of night and launching a swift strike. They were from the legendary Blood Hidden Pavilion, known for rarely failing in their assassinations. It was said that hardly one in a hundred lived to tell the tale after an encounter with their assassins.

The danger Chen Mu faced in the courtyard next to hers could only be imagined; he had just experienced a brush with death.

If only she could be of help to him.

Yet, although she was among the top contenders in the Yu Family Martial Arts Institute among her peers, she was still too far from Chen Mu's level and lacked any status or power to utilize, unless she could enter the Seven Profound Sect.

But the Seven Profound Sect currently only accepted boys and girls under the age of sixteen, and she had just passed that age.

"Go to sleep, it's all right now."

Chen Mu saw how Chen Yue still appeared unsettled, her little face pale, so he reached out and touched her head, comforting her with a word.

Chen Yue looked at the room with one wall destroyed and bit her lip corner, asking, "Then how will you rest tonight, brother?"

Chen Mu said calmly, "I won't sleep tonight, I'm used to practising through the night anyway. Go on, you go."

"...Okay."

Chen Yue wanted to say more, but when she heard Chen Mu's words, in the end, she just nodded, her head lowered, and took small steps to walk out.

Chen Mu watched Chen Yue leave and then looked at the mess in the room, shook his head, and without tidying up much, walked directly through the front hall to the room opposite the bedroom. This room was furnished with many soft chairs and tea sets, typically used for reading and receiving guests.

The lanterns had been damaged during the fight, so Chen Mu called Wang Ni, who had not yet gone to bed, and asked her to bring a new oil lamp, which she lit at the table. He then spread out the Thunderclap Diagram again and continued to ponder over it.

Artistic Conception is a powerful force.

But how to use it is also a kind of knowledge, and there is much depth in it.

In fact, when Chen Mu was contemplating the Artistic Conception Map, he was more focused on seeking to display the power of the Artistic Conception rather than enhancing his understanding of the Artistic Conception itself. After all, the system could directly improve his Realm, but it would not create Techniques out of thin air.

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Previously, when he merged the Wind Thunder Artistic Conception to create 'Startling Wind-Thunder,' it was the only Artistic Conception Technique that Chen Mu had. However, after many battles and long periods of contemplation, he had more room for manoeuvre.

Like the move he used to block the assassin from Blood Hidden Pavilion.

It seemed simple.

But actually, it involved amplifying the Thunderclap Artistic Conception along his entire arm, forcibly increasing his speed by a great deal, to the point where he could, in the blink of an eye, strike the sword with two fingers, breaking its Artistic Conception power and causing it to disperse.

Similarly, Chen Mu had been unaware of the Blood Garment Tower assassin's presence until the moment of the attack. The sword blade had not fully penetrated the windowsill, but he had already sensed it, having a premonition beforehand.

And this sensation came from the Xun Wind Artistic Conception.

Between heaven and earth, almost any action stirs up a breeze. Under the Artistic Conception of a thousand winds, even the slightest breeze is captured clearly by him. This is a perceptive ability from the Xun Wind Artistic Conception, truly 'Autumn Wind Sentience'!

Xun Wind, Thunderbolt.

These two Artistic Conceptions are not just simple enhancements of wind and thunder on the blade to increase power; they possess almost infinite mysteries within themselves. Otherwise, how could the Qiankun Eight Phases Map be considered the foremost among all Artistic Conceptions in the world?!

When Chen Mu first grasped the Xun Wind Artistic Conception, he mostly added it to his blade or himself to enhance the might of his strikes. Only later did he gradually come to understand more of its mysteries, and from there, he developed the 'Autumn Wind Sentience' sensation.

Under the flickering candlelight,

Chen Mu pondered deeply over the Thunderclap Diagram.

Actually, to this day, this Thunderclap Diagram could hardly offer him much deeper insight as it was just a rubbings diagram. Chen Mu even felt that he had almost completely absorbed the meager remaining Thunderclap insights from the rubbings. Now his contemplation was more for gaining experience from the system panel.

Finally,

The sky in the distance began to lighten, the glow of dawn had not yet touched the earth, but the darkness between heaven and earth was gradually receding.

Chen Mu, who had been sitting quietly in front of the Thunderclap Diagram, finally slowly raised his head, blew gently at the lantern on the table, extinguishing the lamp flame, and then closed his eyes slowly, calling up the system panel.

[Martial Arts: Thunderclap Artistic Conception]

[Experience: 10001 points]

[Number of deductions available: 0 times]

"Finally, it's enough for one more attempt. I hope this time I can step into the second phase of Artistic Conception in one go," Chen Mu muttered to himself.

The true teachings of Heavenly Sword Sect, the unknown individuals of Mysterious Mechanism Pavilion, the assassins from Blood Hidden Pavilion... The changing situation in Yu County made him feel insecure even with his current strength.

Within the context of the Four Great Families, he was at an acceptable level, but at the rank of the Four Great Sects, those in the Bone Tempering Realm did not amount to much. Only by stepping into the Fifth Realm and reaching the Five Viscera level could one truly be considered accomplished.

The Five Viscera Realm was still far from him,

But the second step of Artistic Conception was also a level that could touch the might of the Five Viscera Realm.

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Chen Mu calmed his thoughts for a moment, made some adjustments, and then, as the first ray of dawn completely illuminated the entire Yu City, and even the whole Yu County, he also willed his accumulated experience to be exchanged for additional deductions, and deduced once again!

Whoosh.

In the darkness that filled Chen Mu's vision, suddenly appeared a desolate, ancient world where no sign of life could be seen, not even a hint of greenery. All that existed was a barren wasteland.

In such desolation, dense clouds suddenly gathered in the sky above, and then a flash of light burst forth from within the cloudbank, followed by a thunderclap that seemed capable of scattering one's soul.

Boom!!!

Startling thunder rumbled, and the colors of the wind and clouds transformed.

This blinding bolt of lightning shot down from the cloud-covered heavens, piercing through to forge a link between the vault of the sky and the earth!

This might not be the first bolt of lightning in this desolate world, but it was certainly the most crucial among countless others. In the extreme destruction of this bolt, from supreme yin new yang was birthed, and in the once silent and barren world, a faint glimmer of life emerged.

Though feeble, its existence was real, and as the profound mysteries of the universe turned, it would eventually change everything slowly.

"Qian Heaven Kun Earth, wind, thunder, water, fire... Although wind, thunder, and fire all lean towards Qian Heaven, resembling a display of heavenly might, in reality, there is no absolute division among myriad phenomena. Thunderbolts manifest heavenly might but also connect heaven and earth."

Chen Mu murmured to himself thoughtfully.

Thunderbolts represented destruction, and yet, they were imbued with rebirth.

In his previous insights from the Thunderclap Artistic Conception, what he managed to capture were always aspects like speed and penetration, and although he understood early on that the thunderbolt should contain even greater power, he was never able to touch upon it.

But now, he had finally penetrated the surface, reaching into the essence of the thunderbolt's might.

The deduction was not yet over.

What followed was the rapid transformation of the desolate world, with greenery swiftly covering the land, and various creatures began to roam about; but as Qiankun cycled, impurities were born, eventually causing some creatures to turn into rampaging demons.

Ghosts roamed freely, and demons ran amok!

In the blink of an eye, the once green world began to lose its vitality again.

Boom!

Another bolt of lightning appeared suddenly, plummeting from the ninth heaven.

The might of the thunderbolt shook the heavens and the earth, like the wrath of heaven.

With one strike,

The evil demons scattered!

"Destruction... No, this is a form of suppression. Under the might of the thunderbolt, all evil and petty creatures have nowhere to hide and are scattered."

Chen Mu gained enlightenment.

The birth and restraint among all things in heaven and earth were clearly demonstrated here.

Like the assassin from the Blood Hidden Pavilion, his Artistic Conception was terrifyingly powerful. The aura of evil Qi and momentum revealed in that instant turned his entire sleeping chamber into a desolate realm nearing death.

Normally, among the Qiankun Eight Phases, apart from heaven and earth, maybe three other Artistic Conceptions would be needed to counteract it, but this kind of fierce and evil Qi happened to be restrained by the Thunderclap Artistic Conception, making it shatter with a single strike!

"I see."

"The reason why the Qiankun Eight Phases are considered the ultimate in Martial Arts is not solely because of their complexity, or because they combine eight phases to possess essential might greater than others, but because these eight phases almost encompass all the fundamental principles of birth and restraint in all things in heaven and earth.

No matter what Artistic Conception the opponent practices, there will always be one in the eight that can counter it."

Without realizing it, Chen Mu gained a deeper understanding of the entire Qiankun Eight Phases.

Just imagine, when the Qiankun Eight Phases are gathered, the fundamental might of their Artistic Conception is inherently higher than that of other Martial Arts, and whether it's dealing with Blood Fiend, Five Elements, Yin Yang, among others, the Eight Phases contain the ways of birth and restraint.

Even if they can't form an absolute counter against certain specific Martial Arts Artistic Conceptions, there are no techniques in the world that can counter the Qiankun Eight Phases all at once.

At best, sects like the Heavenly Sword Sect issue slogans like 'One Sword Breaks Myriad Laws,' but in essence, it's still a clash of might without any real simultaneous restraint over the Eight Phases.

Even if their Sword Dao is not the most fundamental and formless type but contains elements of destruction and slaughter, then from within the Qiankun Eight Phases, one can directly extract a more complete phase of birth and restraint that corresponds to it.

At last.

All that was before his eyes gradually disappeared.

Chen Mu still had his eyes closed. In the darkness of his view, countless threads appeared, representing the various aspects of the thunderbolt, drifting between heaven and earth.

At this moment, each thread became incredibly clear in his eyes, far clearer than when he first comprehended them.

In a trance, Chen Mu slowly extended his hand and reached for the nearest thread.

Crackle!

The thread transformed into a bolt of lightning and vanished from between his fingers.

But there was no disappointment in Chen Mu's heart, instead, a trace of joy gradually rose. Although he didn't manage to grasp it, he truly touched it, touched that part of the essence in the universe that represented the thunderbolt.

Touched upon it.

That was… the second step of Artistic Conception!

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