Ex-Wife is a Big Villainess
Chapter 618 - 308 Luoxue’s Thoughts_2

Chapter 618: Chapter 308 Luoxue’s Thoughts_2

Dugu Luoxue stared bewilderedly for a moment, sensing the Daoist School’s aura contained within the cave dwelling, and muttered in surprise, "Fist Dao... So this place was once a Daoist School."

The masters who owned a Daoist School were few and far between.

This sufficiently demonstrated that this person’s understanding of the Great Dao was at an extremely high level in a certain area.

The mentor from Huoyun Mountain was indeed worthy of being called the foremost fist in the world.

What impressed Dugu Luoxue most was that, under normal circumstances, when a person died, their Daoist School would also dissipate.

Only if a person’s realm of "Dao" had reached the pinnacle of perfection would the Daoist School they left behind remain in a place, influencing those who came after to cultivate.

The second-generation Sect Leader of Huoyun Mountain was such an impressive figure.

After his death, his Daoist School remained here.

To obtain the true and complete version of the Eight Extremes Sky-Burning Fist, one would have to perceive his Daoist School to glimpse the true method of the fist.

Clearly, up to now, only Jiang Shouzhong had achieved this.

What puzzled Dugu Luoxue was how Jiang Shouzhong, without the Taoist River Map, could have perceived the Daoist School.

This young man always managed to surprise people.

Dugu Luoxue stopped pondering, focused her mind, and sat cross-legged on a stone bed made of spread out grass mats, hands resting on her knees, her fingertips lightly forming a mysterious Dharma Seal.

The woman began to close her eyes and cultivate.

The swirling heat around her gradually turned calm, and her brows emitted an indescribable peace and serenity.

...

In the ink-like space, the skeleton continued to practice its fist technique.

But unconsciously, a red glow began to tinge the surroundings, and flames as if sentient, clung in bunches to the walls, making the space unbearably hot.

Jiang Shouzhong earnestly followed along with the fist technique.

At this moment, he had completely forgotten to stop; his limbs moved uncontrollably, and his brain was in an excited blank state, incapable of thinking.

Sweat slid down the man’s forehead, dropping to the ground, and instantly evaporating without a trace.

Jiang Shouzhong was as if placed within a giant furnace.

As time ticked by, what started as an effortless practice of the fist technique for Jiang Shouzhong gradually became sluggish, each movement of the technique like rowing upstream, each step strenuous.

Although the power of the fist was layering up, his arms became heavy as if filled with lead, increasingly difficult to lift...

Eventually, Jiang Shouzhong collapsed on the ground, gasping heavily.

The scorching waves of heat made his breathing suffocate, his skin about to split.

His consciousness gradually returned to clarity.

When Jiang Shouzhong raised his head, he was startled to see the skeleton sitting in front of him, between them a pile of bonfire.

The next moment, the skeleton unexpectedly started speaking.

"Lucky brat, stepping into my Daoist School by chance, but alas, your body is too frail, too insubstantial," it said.

Even though he was used to speaking with the dead, facing a skeleton still made Jiang Shouzhong feel a chill across his back, despite the raging inferno around him.

Jiang Shouzhong swallowed, then asked, "Senior, are you... the second-generation Sect Leader of Huoyun Mountain?"

"What? Don’t I look like one?"

The skeleton grinned as it spoke.

Looking at the skeletal frame before him, Jiang Shouzhong thought to himself, even if I knew you, I wouldn’t recognize you like this.

The fire from the bonfire was weak, the mentor broke off a piece of his own shin, tossed it into the fire to serve as firewood, and said with a laugh:

"Since you’ve learned my fist technique, you are now my Direct Disciple. From now on, promote this fist technique well and set aside everything else like swords and knives; in this martial world, the fist is supreme!

However, you’re really too insubstantial, I need to train you properly, lest you embarrass yourself out there..."

Jiang Shouzhong couldn’t help but retort, "I’m not insubstantial at all."

The mentor laughed, "True gold fears no fire; if you can withstand it, it shows you’re cut out for boxing. If not, you’ll leave your life here."

Leave his life?

Surveying the hellish scene around him, Jiang Shouzhong’s face changed.

He tentatively asked, "Can I come back to practice later? I have a magical treasure that isn’t with me now; if I had it, cultivating would definitely be twice as effective with half the effort."

The magical treasure Jiang Shouzhong referred to was naturally the Taoist River Map.

The mentor then broke off another foot, tossed it into the fire, and said lightly:

"Entering a dead man’s Daoist School, do you think you can just leave as you please? Only by truly mastering my intent of the fist can you leave from the Daoist School I left behind.

Besides, what I dislike the most is all those so-called magical treasures."

It is said of old: ’Fists open the heavens and earth, palms unite yin and yang. Standing between heaven and earth, only the fist is the natural weapon, neither gold nor iron, an extension of the heart, where intention goes, power issues.’

Those who use swords, knives, spears, miscellaneous external objects, or engage in Dual Cultivation, self-mutilation, and other heretical practices to temper their Dao are all worthless.

In the old man’s view, fist is Dao, Dao is fist. There is Dao in the fist, and the fist embodies the Dao!"

The grandmaster’s voice was steady, his tone bold.

When he reached the point of excitement, he directly removed one of his thigh bones and threw it into the bonfire.

The flames crackled fiercely, burning intensely.

The grandmaster pointed at the bonfire and continued, "Among all the truths in the world, only the fist can make itself understood. Even if the heavens do not tolerate you, you must fight until they submit to you!

Why did the old man name his boxing technique ’Eight Extremes Sky-Burning’? What are the Eight Extremes?

They are the ultimate extremes between heaven and earth.

The highest extreme is the heavens, the lowest is the underworld, the eastern is the sunrise, the western is the sunset, the southern is the blazing fire, the northern is the cold ice, the central is the human heart, and the outer is all things.

With the power of the Eight Extremes, one can burn the heavens and boil the seas!"

The grandmaster’s skull’s sockets blazed with fierce white phosphorous fire as he stared directly at Jiang Shouzhong, "Boy, if you can cultivate your Dao Heart to pure Yang, and merge your body with heaven and earth, then you can truly master this technique."

Having said that, he pointed at the roaring bonfire before him, "Roast!"

Roast?

Roast what?

Jiang Shouzhong appeared bewildered.

With a cold snort from the grandmaster, Jiang Shouzhong’s hands uncontrollably reached towards the bonfire.

Then, he directly thrust them into the fire.

The intense heat instantly devoured his skin, the agony like thousands of arrows stabbing his heart, overwhelming Jiang Shouzhong with pain.

Terrified, feeling as though his insides were burning, Jiang Shouzhong couldn’t help but scream out in agony.

The surrounding air stiffened as the flames licked every inch of his exposed flesh, making a crackling sound... Soon, Jiang Shouzhong’s hands burst into flames.

"Life or death, it’s up to your fate."

The grandmaster’s skeleton said, removing two of his ribs and tossing them into the bonfire.

The flames grew fiercer.

The fierce flames continuously licked Jiang Shouzhong’s skin, the burning sensation penetrating deep into his flesh, bones, and marrow, each breath as if a thousand-pound burden pressed upon his heart, causing unbearable suffering.

Jiang Shouzhong could only crawl on the ground and howl to slightly alleviate the pain.

"Stand up and practice the fist!"

The grandmaster reached towards the top of Jiang Shouzhong’s head.

A brand new skeleton was forcibly pulled out.

As the skeleton was removed, Jiang Shouzhong collapsed on the ground like a puddle of mud, yet the searing pain still persisted.

With a kick, the grandmaster shattered Jiang Shouzhong’s skeleton into fragments.

"Is this it? It’s as fragile as grass, worthless for training!"

Having said that, the grandmaster kicked all of Jiang Shouzhong’s shattered bones into the fire to roast.

After roasting for a while, the bones began to take shape again, returning to the form of Jiang Shouzhong’s skeleton, covered in ash, with scorch marks and a few sparks.

"Practice the fist for the old man!"

The grandmaster bellowed.

Jiang Shouzhong’s skeleton uncontrollably began practicing the fist.

But after a few movements, the skeleton couldn’t withstand the overwhelming power of the fist and collapsed into pieces.

The grandmaster again threw the bones into the fire for roasting, cursing, "Too fragile, too hollow, like a woman, what use is it until you forge a pair of Vajra iron bones and then train!"

This grandmaster advocated a violent form of training.

Initially, to cultivate his Vajra Bone, he had jumped directly into the Master of Famous Sword Mountain’s sword refining pool.

Now that he had finally caught such a disciple who could enter his Daoist School, how could he not torment him a bit.

But Jiang Shouzhong, who had lost the Taoist River Map, was ultimately not like those cultivators who had been rigorously practicing from a young age. Without a solid foundation, after several bouts of bone refining, he was already on his last breath, nearly done for.

The grandmaster saw this, rather helplessly.

Seeing Jiang Shouzhong really reaching his limit, the grandmaster somewhat reluctantly said,

"Enough, enough. You boy, just endure one more bone refining session. If you really can’t withstand it, the old man won’t torment you anymore, even if you master only sixty to seventy percent of the old man’s boxing technique."

As he spoke, he again removed a few of his own bones and tossed them into the bonfire.

To refine the bones, one must first sacrifice bones.

He intended to use his own Vajra iron bones to forge a supreme set of iron bones for Jiang Shouzhong.