Chapter 125: Obtaining the Treasure

By this point, Qingyuan understood that to pass the trial before him, he had to overcome another version of himself.

How to overcome his own self, he had no clue. But before anything else, he had to make himself stronger, to be no less than that manifested version of himself.

His mastery of thunder arts had already reached the most perfect state his current cultivation allowed. However, his Five Elements arts were still incomplete.

"Thunder arts, Five Elements arts, and even the techniques for exerting my physical strength—I must delve into all of them," Qingyuan pondered. "Among the Five Elements arts, I am adept at fire, yet even in that, my attainments are inferior to his. As for the others, I have rarely touched them, yet he wields them with such consummate skill that they all surpass my best fire arts."

"To catch up to him," Qingyuan thought, "I must first master the Five Elements arts until they are second nature, no longer requiring hand seals, incantations, or footwork. I must be able to unleash them with a single thought. But even that may not be enough to win; I must observe him as he performs them... and learn by studying his methods."

The trial set by the Ancient Heavenly Venerable Guangyuan was truly brilliant. Every person must face themselves—a version of themselves perfected in the art of combat. Though each encounter brought him to the brink of death, if he could survive, each battle served as an excellent whetstone.

"One's self... is the most suitable opponent." Qingyuan gripped his iron rod tightly. "This obstacle is also a trial and the best possible object of study, because it is, after all, a version of myself that can exert my own abilities to the absolute limit, reaching a state of perfection! To imitate him is to imitate myself, so I will not go astray or take the wrong path."

He began to practice. He began to ponder.

When he had brought the Five Elements arts to a state of profound proficiency, he could cast each one at will, dispensing with the need for seals and chants. But this was still not enough. He had seen with his own eyes that this "self" could condense all five elements into a single palm strike. Qingyuan could not yet achieve this, and he knew that the path to mastering such a feat was still distant.

Thus, he stepped back into the empty chamber, turned the corner, and revealed his double once more. Then, another battle ensued.

Qingyuan kept a trace of true qi in his eyes, observing every nuance as his opponent performed the arts. With every fight, he adjusted his own application of these arts, striving to match the other "self" exactly. Even the slightest detail had to be identical, for that was the perfect method to fully unleash one's own capabilities.

When his thunder arts fell short, he studied them relentlessly—from the amount of true qi used to the precision of its control, down to the minute shifts as the energy passed through the thunder seals—until he was no longer inferior in the slightest. Now that his fire arts were lacking, he dedicated himself to mastering those as well.

After an unknown amount of time—Qingyuan did not keep count—he spent his days constantly thinking, fighting, and observing. After sustaining several injuries, his mastery of the fire arts was no longer inferior to his opponent's.

Yet, while his fire arts were now adequate, the others still lagged behind. So, he began to refine the rest. He had been trapped in this empty chamber for several days. Almost every waking moment was spent fighting, practicing, recovering, healing, contemplating, and then returning to the fray to study his opponent’s techniques.

His Five Elements arts had finally caught up to his double. Even the techniques and methods of utilizing his physical strength had been learned from him. Now, although Qingyuan was still at a disadvantage, his life was no longer in peril. He remained on the back foot only because he lacked one thing: the seamless coordination between his arts.

Boom!

A bolt of crimson lightning crashed down, followed by a surge of fire. Thunder and fire fueled each other. Then, the earth churned and surged toward him. As Qingyuan repelled the earth, vines sprouted from it, coiling around him. He retreated several steps, only to feel a sharp pain in his foot as a blade of metal erupted from the ground.

Qingyuan left the empty chamber. He had been wounded by the blade and defeated once more, forced to retreat. But he had gained much insight from this battle. He believed that next time, he might truly be able to hold his own. His coordination of the arts had reached a state of fluid ease, and the final missing piece had been glimpsed during his injury.

After a long while, Qingyuan recovered, and his calculations reached their end. He took a deep breath and headed toward the empty chamber.

As he turned the corner, the mirror-like wall reflected his image. The Qingyuan in the reflection was identical, save for a sharp, cold expression and a white jade ruler in his hand.

"This time, I will not be defeated," Qingyuan said earnestly to his reflection. "Even if I cannot win, I will at least not lose to you again."

The moment Qingyuan felt confident enough to tie with this manifestation—which meant he believed he could now unleash all his abilities in the most perfect manner—he waited for a moment. Suddenly, he was struck with astonishment. The image in the wall did not vanish as it had before to appear in the center of the room; it remained reflected in the rock wall, motionless.

Qingyuan stood stunned for a moment. "Could it be... that once I reach this state, the trial is passed, and I no longer need to fight this manifestation? Can I bypass this obstacle directly?"

A flash of inspiration crossed his mind. He raised his iron rod and struck the wall with all his might.

The blow landed, and countless cracks spiderwebbed across the rock, dense and intricate. In an instant, the wall shattered and crumbled into dust, revealing the scene behind it.

A vast, hazy void lay ahead, featureless and indistinct. Even with Qingyuan's keen sight, he could not see clearly. He flicked his sleeve, sending out a surge of true qi that stirred the air into a violent gale.

The mist swirled and dissipated, revealing the scene ahead. It was another empty chamber, less than ten paces across. In the center, an object hovered in mid-air.

"Is this the supreme treasure left behind by the Ancient Heavenly Venerable Guangyuan?" Qingyuan held his breath. "Is this the artifact that can resolve the hidden danger of the Earth Dragon within me? Once I obtain this, I can rid myself of this affliction, and from this day on, my path of cultivation will be free of obstacles and harm."

He took a deep breath, and his usually calm, indifferent eyes erupted with a dazzling light. He stepped forward and grasped the object.

In a trance, it felt as if he had reclaimed his very life. From this moment on, his existence was secure, and he was finally free from the constraints of his cage. Like a bird taking to the vast sky, or a fish leaping into the boundless sea.