10: Chapter 10 The Great Dao Floating Pagoda Technique, Seventh Level: The Way of Hardness and Softness

The Young Clan Leader has vanished. For seventeen whole days, there has been no sign of him, and rumors about his disappearance are flying everywhere in the city.

“Yinlong Pavilion” is the largest and most prosperous restaurant in Dragon City. At this moment, a wealthy merchant dressed in a magnificent brocade robe, his face full of shrewdness, was whispering mysteriously to another middle-aged man in fine clothing: “I heard the Young Clan Leader has gone missing.”

An old man at the next table, who was keen on gossip, leaned in and said, “I heard that too. He hasn't come here to drink for over half a month.”

A young swordsman nearby said, “Perhaps the Young Clan Leader went to the Mist Sea to cultivate. His cultivation has progressed by leaps and bounds over the past century; it's hard to say if he might even have the strength to challenge the Five Great Divine Sons or the Two Great Divine Daughters.”

A mature and steady guest looked left and right, speaking with a slight warning: “It's better not to discuss such matters. Be careful not to invite trouble or get caught up in scandals.”

In the “Yicui Garden” in the west of the city, a group of brightly dressed girls were also chattering away.

Dressed in a pink silk skirt with a charming face, the sharp-tongued Xiang Ling said to a pretty, well-featured girl: “Little Sister Xiao Lan, has your Brother Wangchu abandoned you? It's been over half a month and he still hasn't come to see you!”

Nearby, the graceful Cui Liu, dressed in pale green gauze, frowned slightly and tilted her head: “I think, maybe Brother Wangchu slipped away somewhere to find other girls.”

Yun Yao, a girl with a gentle temperament dressed in a blue brocade dress, echoed: “Yes, yes, Little Sister Xiao Lan, your Brother Wangchu might have been spirited away by some little fairy.”

Meanwhile, on the West Gate wall, two Dragon Clan guards were also whispering: “Sigh, if the Young Clan Leader doesn't show up soon, I'm afraid the two of us will be punished as well.”

...

The Ancestral Dragon Mountains are millions of feet high, with peaks standing majestically and piercing the sky. From a distance, they give off a strong sense of pressure that is suffocating. The Ancestral Dragon Temple is located in the Ancestral Dragon Mountains, covering hundreds of miles with magnificent and imposing architecture.

At this moment, within the vast Great Ancestral Dragon Temple, the Dragon Lord sat high up, looking down upon all living beings with an air of disdain. Although he did not do so intentionally, an invisible pressure of the peak Divine Extreme Realm emanated from his body.

To be fair, he did not like the Young Clan Leader, who had mediocre talent and a treacherous nature. Even though his progress had been rapid in recent decades after tempering his body with Long Xi's blood essence, reaching the eighth level of the Divine Sovereign realm, it was still not enough to make him take notice. If he had a choice, he would choose Long Xi ten thousand times over the Young Clan Leader.

But every time he mentioned adopting Long Xi as his foster daughter, she would refuse without hesitation, leaving no room for negotiation. On the other hand, the Young Clan Leader was the only child and sole heir of the Ancestral Dragon Clan in this generation.

Reality was indeed cruel, but he could not resist it and had to accept and comply.

Before him was Long Chixin, who was reporting respectfully:

“This servant deserves death; there is still no news of the Young Clan Leader.”

Long Chixin continued:

“According to Wu Chi, the Young Clan Leader went to Long Xi's place seventeen days ago to demand blood essence.”

“According to the West Gate guards, the Young Clan Leader left the city gate that day.”

“Furthermore, according to the patrol guards, Yun Che was also seen appearing outside the West Gate that day.”

“Ten days ago, one of our patrol squads found the Young Clan Leader's hair, blood, and clothing more than ten thousand miles west of the city. There were signs of a brief struggle on the ground.”

...

At this time, urgent footsteps could be heard from far outside the hall. A guard outside shouted loudly:

“Dragon Lord, Wu Chi requests an audience, saying he has urgent matters to report!”

The Dragon Lord lifted his eyelids and replied slowly, “Let him in!”

Wu Chi arrived before the hall in a panic, running all the way. He knelt on the ground, not daring to look up at the Dragon Lord, and said with a trembling voice:

“Yun Che sent someone with a letter, saying it must be delivered to the Dragon Lord!”

After saying that, he raised his hands high, holding the letter above his head.

“Chixin, you take a look first!”

Long Chixin stepped forward, took the letter, and opened it to read:

...

To the Dragon Lord:

“Your son is in my hands. I have long heard that the Dragon Clan's treasure, the ‘elemental dragon armor,’ is a peerless divine object that shakes the universe, and I have always regretted not seeing it personally. I now invite the Lord to personally bring the ‘Chaos Dragon Armor’ to Red Dragon Slope, three million miles west of Dragon City, tomorrow at the Hour of the Pig. You must not bring anyone else with you.”

“My only desire is to borrow the Dragon Clan's treasure for viewing. Do not make a mistake and endanger your son's life.”

“Yun Che!”

...

Inside the envelope was also a small piece of the Young Clan Leader's dragon scale.

The elemental dragon armor mentioned in the letter was precisely the guardian treasure of the Ancestral Dragon Clan.

Legend has it that in ancient times, a certain generation of the Ancestral Dragon Clan gave birth to three extremely powerful dragon brothers: Yaoguang, who specialized in fire power; Huanyou, who specialized in the way of ice and water; and Yunlan, who specialized in the power of lightning.

To look after their descendants, the three dragons each donated their hardest dragon scale and infused them with their own profound strength to jointly create a legendary armor. This armor possessed the fire, water, and lightning elemental powers of Yaoguang, Huanyou, and Yunlan, and was incredibly powerful, capable of both defense and offense.

It is said that during the God-Devil War, the contemporary patriarch of the Ancestral Dragon Clan wore the elemental dragon armor and fought three against one, slaying three members of the Devil Race and returning unscathed.

The Dragon Lord's face was extremely ugly as he raged:

“This is simply outrageous! A mere brat committing kidnapping and robbery, and he actually targets the Dragon Clan? Is he tired of living?!”

The Dragon Lord was furious to the extreme. With a palm strike, a hundred-meter-tall giant stone statue outside the hall was instantly turned to dust.

Long Chixin and Wu Chi were so frightened they didn't dare to speak, lowering their heads in silence.

After a moment, Long Chixin said cautiously:

“Dragon Lord, although this Yun Che's cultivation is only at the Half-step Divine Destruction Realm, he is elusive. The Seventh Elder has had people tracking this boy for nearly a month without finding any trace of him.”

“Now that he has suddenly appeared and kidnapped the Young Clan Leader, I fear he has other designs. It's better to be careful.”

Long Chixin was an extremely cautious person who always thought of the worst-case scenario first and worked toward a good outcome. It was not without reason that such a person was highly valued and trusted by the Dragon Lord.

The Dragon Lord glared at Long Chixin and said:

“What, are you also afraid of a mere Half-step Divine Destruction Realm?”

Long Chixin quickly shook his head: “No—no—, the Lord misunderstands, this servant did not mean that!”

At this time, Wu Chi also stepped forward and said, “Lord, although this Yun Che is skilled, he is after all just a mere Half-step Divine Destruction Realm. There is no need for the Lord to take action personally.”

Long Chixin glanced at Wu Chi and retorted sarcastically:

“Wu Chi, it seems you've forgotten the pain once the wound healed. Don't you remember how you were struck down by Yun Che a few days ago?”

The Dragon Lord waved his hand, signaling Long Chixin and Wu Chi to be quiet, and then said:

“Chixin, say no more. I have decided to go personally tomorrow. I want to see what tricks he can play.”

“He has the gall to bully me! I will definitely leave him without a whole corpse, his soul and body both destroyed.”

Hearing this, a mysterious light flashed in Wu Chi's eyes.

Meanwhile, inside Long Xi's barrier, Yun Che, who was sitting cross-legged on the ground, suddenly opened his eyes and said:

“He has received my ultimatum, and he will go personally tomorrow! By the time he reaches Red Dragon Ridge, discovers the problem, and sends a transmission back, it will take about an hour and a half. We must complete the task within this time.”

Long Xi seemed to lack confidence in the next day's operation and asked, “Father, are you sure we should act tomorrow?”

“Yes!” Yun Che replied very certainly.

Long Xi asked again, “Should we make some preparations?”

A pleasant smile appeared at the corner of Yun Che's mouth as he replied, “Xi'er, you're right! I'm going to start preparing now.”

The seventh stage of the Great Dao Pagoda Art!

The dividing line between a divine body and a mortal body!

When Jasmine first taught Yun Che the Great Dao Pagoda Art, she had warned him that this was a forbidden technique that mortals could not cultivate, otherwise their bodies would explode; if a mortal inherited part of a True God's legacy and achieved a half-human, half-god body, they might be able to cultivate it to the sixth stage.

As for the seventh stage, that was absolutely unattainable and existed only in legends.

Now, after Yun Che had refined the Evil God's sixth elemental seed, the Earth Seed, and achieved the Divine Profound Veins, he decided to challenge the seventh stage of the Great Dao Pagoda Art!

Yun Che's eyes were slightly closed, his hands placed gently on his knees with palms facing up and fingers naturally extended. Wisps of heaven and earth profound energy gathered from all directions, swirling around him.

Rays of purple-gold light erupted from the top of his head, shimmering brilliantly. Then, a seven-layered purple-gold pagoda faintly appeared. The color of the pagoda grew deeper and clearer until it was almost tangible. The pagoda grew larger and descended, completely enveloping his entire form.

Yun Che entered a state of meditation, feeling the heaven and earth profound energy within his body like a rolling river, rushing uncontrollably and crashing into everything. Wherever it went, acupoints, meridians, and bloodlines were all blasted open. Yun Che felt intense pain; every inch of skin and every bone seemed like they were about to be blown apart, and every meridian and profound vein was being crushed to pieces.

At this moment, he did not dare to give up and continued to draw in heaven and earth profound energy. Mist swirled around him, and thick, liquid-like gas surged frantically into his body. One cycle, two cycles, three cycles... each circulation of profound energy was incredibly difficult, like an infant leading a mad bull through a porcelain shop.

The profound energy continued to rampage, repeatedly ravaging and battering his body. His skin, which he took pride in for being as hard as rock, seemed to be decomposing and melting; his bones, as solid as refined steel, seemed to be disintegrating; and the profound veins and meridians inherited from a god were splitting and exploding like paper...

If it were him from a year ago, without having obtained the Evil God's Earth Seed, Yun Che's meridians would have burst and his body would have exploded long ago.

Undoubtedly, Yun Che's self-healing ability was the strongest in the world, perhaps even the strongest in history. For so many years, no matter how severe the injury or how tragic the physical damage, he could always recover quickly and re-enter battle. This was one of the important reasons he could frequently turn danger into safety, survive desperate situations, and defeat many enemies.

However, now his powerful self-healing ability had almost become a joke. Every time an inch of skin, a bone, or a segment of profound vein was generated, it was immediately destroyed again by the frantic profound energy...

He simply didn't have time to recover; his body became more and more broken and weak.

Long Xi, watching from the side, was stunned. Several times, she felt that her father was about to pass away. She kept praying silently, hoping her father would not meet with an accident.

Countless times, he brushed past the edge of death from body explosion; countless times, he hovered at the intersection of life and death!

Finally, at a certain critical point of bone-piercing pain that led to unconsciousness, Yun Che felt an extremely subtle change in his body.

A certain grain of disintegrated skin, a piece of shattered bone, a segment of ruptured profound vein—once reborn, they were no longer as hard as steel, but possessed an extra measure of flexibility, full of elasticity and vitality. Though they looked like they could be kneaded at will, they could also return to their original state at any time, perfectly intact.

Then, more and more reborn skin, bones, and profound meridians began to take over. Finally, the entire body completed its rebirth and transformation.

Yun Che sat still, re-examining his body, feeling deeply confused.

He felt his entire body was like a giant piece of modeling clay, highly plastic, capable of being bent and deformed at will, yet able to instantly return to its original appearance.

Yun Che took out a precious sword from the sky poison pearl and tried to strike his left hand with it.

As the sword light fell, his left hand simultaneously sank and deformed. When the sword was withdrawn, his left hand immediately returned to its original state.

Yun Che was secretly delighted. Not bad, not bad!

Malleable yet immutable, changeable yet unchangeable!

Overcoming rigidity with flexibility, the harmony of hardness and softness!

Making oneself more supple and elastic to counter external pressure and strikes, thereby achieving the goal of enhanced defense.

This was the realm of the seventh stage of the Great Dao Pagoda Art.

Ever since Jasmine first taught him the Great Dao Pagoda Art back on the Azure Cloud Continent, his cultivation direction had always been to make his body harder and stronger to resist external strikes and pressure, using overbearing profound energy to increase the recovery speed of physical injuries. This was true from the first to the sixth stage of the Great Dao Pagoda Art.

But the painful experiences just now had warned him that even if he cultivated the Great Dao Pagoda Art to the sixth stage, his proud defensive power and self-healing ability were just a joke when facing the impact of frantic and violent profound energy.

And what had destroyed his proud capital, crushed his defense, and almost caused his body to explode was the invisible, gaseous profound energy. Therefore, the previous path of cultivation was simply a road of no return, a dead end.

The idea of strongly resisting external pressure and strikes by constantly strengthening the physical body and squeezing its potential was fundamentally a wrong route. Even without external force, this extreme cultivation method of constantly squeezing the physical body could lead to one's body exploding.

No wonder mortals cannot cultivate this method. Because a mortal's body has no potential to be tapped; the result of squeezing the physical body is direct explosion.

Even gods, as powerful as Jasmine's brother, Heavenly Wolf Xisu, could only cultivate to the sixth stage. The result of continuing to squeeze the physical body would only be a direct explosion.

Yun Che fully believed that the Desolate God who created the Great Dao Pagoda Art must have seen where the problem lay.

Meeting hardness with hardness and rigidity with rigidity—this violent cultivation method of the first six stages of the Great Dao Pagoda Art clearly had major flaws. Therefore, at the seventh stage, the Desolate God started over and completely changed his thinking.

Overcoming rigidity with flexibility, the harmony of hardness and softness!

Yes, it was precisely by turning to this path that the seventh through twelfth stages of the Great Dao Pagoda Art existed.

Yun Che couldn't help but feel a sense of emotion; the Desolate God didn't seem to care much about the feelings of mortals.

Otherwise, why didn't he change it from the beginning, introducing the concept of overcoming rigidity with flexibility and the harmony of hardness and softness from the first stage of the Great Dao Pagoda Art? That would have made it so mortals could also cultivate it.

In future generations, if not for the appearance of a lucky person like him, who could have cultivated to the seventh stage of the Great Dao Pagoda Art, and who could have discovered this major shift in the technique?

Vaguely, he felt that the philosophy of the seventh stage of the Great Dao Pagoda Art shared common principles with the Book of Inverse World he cultivated.

All things in the world share common truths.

If rigidity can be overcome with flexibility, and hardness and softness can harmonize, then could a similar principle of transformation appear between void and reality, or existence and non-existence?

The so-called void is reality, and reality is void. There is no such thing as void or reality. Existence is non-existence, and non-existence is existence. There is no such thing as existence or non-existence.