Star Gate

Chapter 188: The Martial World of Silver Moon (I)

Li Hao put down his book and looked at his teacher.

“If we look at it from the perspective of single elements, opening the lock of the heart would probably make one a fire supernatural,” Yuan Shuo continued.

Li Hao nodded, those were his thoughts as well. Thinking deeply, the professor gently rapped his knuckles against the table.

“What if all five elemental locks were opened?”

All five? Li Hao looked quizzical.

“Like you strengthening the five visceral organs—if someone discovers all five supernatural locks of these organs and opens them at the same time, what happens then?”

The young man thought for a moment and responded, “Neutralization between the five elements and then... equilibrium? And transmutation into internal force?” Li Hao laughed after voicing this theory. However, his teacher remained very calm.

“And why not?” he said apathetically.

Li Hao cut off mid laugh. What did his teacher mean by that?

Yuan Shuo tapped his head and sank into contemplation. “Even if the balanced five elements are internal force, they shouldn’t count as simple mysterious power. When I entered Dominator of Thousands, I sensed my internal force nurturing the five elements!” Caught in the throes of mental struggle, he looked at his student. “There is no path beyond Dominator! What can withstand tens of thousands?

“I’ve been thinking that the weaknesses of martial masters at this level lie with the internal organs. If my organs reach unparalleled heights—if I can cultivate them to the point where their locks naturally open, will there be a surge of strength like the supernaturals experience? Will I be transformed from inside out and enter a new domain?”

Yuan Shuo had felt Wang Ming’s surge of power all too clearly when the young man opened the lock on his left arm. The human body was a treasure trove! He didn’t want to forcefully smash the lock and cause his internal force to be devoured, his body occupied by external energy. What would it look like if his own organs were strong enough to open the locks?

“You’ve been nurturing your organs.” The professor looked at Li Hao. “Do you think your locks have become stronger or weaker?”

“Stronger!” Li Hao answered honestly and thought for a moment. “I could sense their existence before, but now they’re harder to detect! It’s like a wooden barrel has become deeper and can hold more energy, so it’s harder for my supernatural locks to appear.”

“Are they still there?”

“They are!” Li Hao nodded emphatically. “They must be. I would sense it if they weren’t.”

“Then what if your organs are strong enough to open the locks? If the locks can be opened normally, do you think you’ll erupt with power?”

The young man mused silently. This was unknown territory, it was difficult to say. From what his body told him...

“It’s possible!” Li Hao answered with reasonable confidence. “The five organs have absorbed so much elemental energy, but they’ve only grown a bit stronger. Where has all the mysterious power gone? Has it dissipated? Impossible! There must be a place inside the organs that stores all of this energy!”

“That is my guess as well!” Yuan Shuo smiled, then said slowly, “The five visceral organs store energy so that it does not fade away. They should be full, yet not congested.” [1]

Li Hao understood this notion. The ancient tomes recorded that the five viscera were organs that stored qi, holding it in so that it did not scatter.

“The five viscera are often correlated with the six bowels.” Yuan Shuo thought a bit more. “The five viscera should be full, yet not congested, whereas the six bowels should be congested and not full...”

He mused over numerous theories, taking a while to say, “Let’s set the six bowels aside for now, they’re even more abstract! The five viscera are sometimes called the five viscera spirits or the five spirits. Dominators nurture the mind and spirit! The spirits are connected to the five viscera and from them spring the five spirits...”

“I use the five animals to nurture my spirit!” Yuan Shuo suddenly said after rapidly processing his thoughts. “The spirits of the five animals... the spirits of the five viscera... One spirit per organ! I nurture the five spirits to break my supernatural locks. Do you think I have a chance to climb higher if I employ this method?”

Li Hao swiftly postulated the feasibility of this suggestion. He understood that his teacher meant to use the five auras of the Five Styles to smash through the supernatural locks of the five viscera organs. Or rather, he meant to absorb or further nurture them, not just simply break them. He would then meld the five auras and spirits of the five animals to break through to a new cultivation realm.

Was that possible?

Li Hao didn’t know; the only thing he was certain of was that it might be very dangerous. Roads to the unknown were always thus. Each step was fraught with peril, but also accompanied by great harvest.

What kind of cultivation level would his teacher be if he succeeded? The Vanquisher of Ten Thousands that he spoke of?

No!

Certainly not!

If the spirits of the five animals broke the locks of the five viscera, that would be the equivalent of breaking five supernatural locks. In the supernatural world, that would make one of the fifth level—greater than Solar. Therefore, his teacher would skip past the Solar level and set foot straight beyond Solar.

Of course, that was based on supernatural divisions. It was different for martial masters.

“I think it’s worth a try!” Yuan Shuo laughed when the young man looked at him. “How will we know if it’s feasible or not if we don’t try? Apparently, Sun Yifei will be in attendance at the ruins. I may not be able to match him with my current strength. Or rather, it will be nearly impossible to!”

Regardless, the professor didn’t find that embarrassing. “He is a late Solar,” he sighed with emotion. “I had to put my life on the line when I killed the initial Solar that was Qiao Feilong. If I fight Sun Yifei... I might die. I can lose to anyone, but I refuse to lose to someone I once defeated!

“Those who I have conquered must always live with the specter of my magnificence over their heads. I will not have it be the other way around when I am old. Sun Yifei won’t do, and I will have my revenge on Ying Hongyue sooner or later when the opportunity presents itself!”

“So you’ve decided, teacher?” Li Hao asked solemnly.

“I have!” Yuan Shuo mulled over his response. “I started considering this when you began nurturing your five organs. My thoughts solidified when I saw how much power resides within after Wang Ming opened his supernatural lock last night. I want to cultivate the five organs! Fortunately, my Five Styles is a perfect match!

“The five organs foster the five auras and cultivate the five spirits. When the five spirits emerge from the five viscera, I either die or I ascend beyond Dominator!” The professor looked at this student. “The heart, liver, spleen, lung, and kidney correspond to tiger, bear, deer, ape, and bird. One viscera for one animal! Heart, fire, and ape. The fire attribute rules the heart and the ape is attributed to fire! The heart nurtures the ape, while the spleen nurtures the bear as both are of earth! The tiger walks into the kidney, strengthening it and the body. The bird corresponds to the liver and deer to the liver...”

Yuan Shuo reeled off strings of theories and various trains of thought, assigning the five spirits to the five viscera so they would ultimately break free—smash through the locks.

Li Hao listened intently, understanding that if anything happened to his teacher, that would be the end of his heritage. Was it correct to have the five organs nurture the five spirits? If there was a way available to the ancients, they would not walk it in this manner. They could not have all practiced the Five Styles, to say nothing of anything else. Not everyone would’ve mastered the auras of the Five Styles, so his teacher’s road was his alone.

Perhaps it traveled in the same direction as the ancients, but the details were most certainly his teacher’s own invention. Li Hao may not even be able to imitate his teacher due to the need to master five auras, but it was a way at least!

“Little Hao, I want to cultivate my five organs right now!” Yuan Shuo smiled toothily. “I shouldn’t see a change in strength in the short run, but I most likely won’t see further improvement if the five spirits do not break free of the viscera. So I think about it a little more... and probably first use the fire energy from Qiao Feilong to see if I can raise a fire heart ape.”

“As it should be, teacher!” Li Hao hastily said. “We have four hundred cubes of the five elements and two hundred unattributed left. Use it all, teacher!”

“I’d wanted to save them for you to swiftly strengthen the five organs after you ascend to Dominator.” Yuan Shuo glanced at the young man. “But now... we will not be short of them if I succeed! However, I’ll need a portion of sword energy too...”

“As you’d like, teacher!” Li Hao took out the small sword and offered it to his teacher.

Yuan Shuo might meet with powerful enemies in the ruins. Late Solars were strong, but if his teacher brought his full strength to bear as well as the stone blade and Incantation of the Blade of Blood, he might not lose. If there were powerhouses greater than Solar, however, he would be dead without a doubt!

He might stand a fighting chance if any one of the five viscera spirits could be formed. Of course, it’d be better if all five spirits could be nurtured. They didn’t have enough time for that though. There was only enough to try for a fire heart ape.

“I’ll make an attempt with one viscera spirit,” Yuan Shuo said. “If I fail, you should do the same if you have a chance to in the future! Equilibrium between the five organs might be the best result. One organ dominating the others might lead to drawbacks.”

“Don’t worry teacher,” Li Hao responded solemnly. “I have committed everything to heart. If you fail, I will kill all of your enemies and bring their heads to your grave when my spirits break free of their organs!”

Yuan Shuo threw his head back with laughter. Was this demoralizing? Not at all! Only gratification. Well said! This was how things should be. He would walk this path first and leave some experience behind for Li Hao. It would be a beautiful story if the young man succeeded and offered his enemies’ heads at his grave.

“I’ll take the sword and blade, as well as all of the mysterious power,” Yuan Shuo concluded. “Based on my calculations, I should see some initial results within five days. Go home and come back after five days. If I succeed, we will head to Rift Canyon that day. If I fail and my heart shatters, take everything and hand the real sword and blade to Hou Xiaochen. He will protect you!”

The real sword and blade! Plainly, Yuan Shuo felt that Hou Xiaochen had likely guessed that Li Hao had given him a fake sword. If the professor failed, there would be no one protecting Li Hao. Liu Long could not do so. The only one who could in all of Silver Moon was Hou Xiaochen.

“Teacher!”

Yuan Shuo laughed when his student wished to speak. “Go on! I would like to carve a path through martial dao myself. Inspiration has struck today. Since I have determined the direction, I should try it. Whether I fail or succeed, I will have a clear conscience!” He patted Li Hao’s shoulder with a benevolent smile.

Li Hao lowered his head, not saying a word. “Then... master... I will return home!”

Master...

In the world of martial dao, one who passed on knowledge was both teacher and master. Li Hao was just used to calling Yuan Shuo teacher as he’d learned civil subjects before, not martial dao. The habit stuck after he started learning martial dao, but today, he changed the honorific.

This was the first time, and it might be the last.

Both master and disciple were decisive sorts. Since Yuan Shuo had decided, Li Hao knew there was no stopping him. Neither did he have the right to. He sank to his knees and kowtowed.

“I await your emergence from seclusion, master! If you fail, I will go to White Moon City and keep a low profile for a few years. When I succeed, I will eliminate all of your enemies from this world!”

1. In Chinese medicine, the five viscera are viewed to store qi, whereas the six bowels of the gallbladder, small intestine, stomach, large intestine, urinary bladder and triple energizer deal with food and water. Qi fills an organ, whereas food and water congests the organ. They should be handled by the appropriate set of organs ?