Chapter 65: Investigating the Changes of Heaven and Man, A Startling Realization!
While Ji Xiongying was ‘fortunately encountering a rare opportunity,’ Lu Yang had also arrived at the most prosperous area of Tianjing City, which also housed the largest number of martial artists.
Haoran Academy.
This place, which held a volume of the Heavenly Book and created the Martial Dao Fourth Step, had now implicitly surpassed Daoism and Buddhism to become the sacred ground of the Martial Dao.
However, what was strange was that ever since taking the fourth step and spreading the method to the world, the Headmaster of Haoran Academy, ‘Sacred Heart Scholar’ Wang Boyuan, had gradually disappeared from the public eye. He lived in increasing seclusion, to the point where even the high-level members of the academy rarely saw him now.
“What a treasured land of Feng Shui.”
To avoid attracting attention, Lu Yang had already dispersed his form, transforming into a mass of invisible Qi. He observed the interior of Haoran Academy with great interest.
In his view, this academy could be called a place where outstanding people and spiritual land came together.
In the entire Tianjing City, only this place was overflowing with Spiritual Qi. Even if an ordinary person studied here for a few years, they would develop some spiritual intelligence and ingenuity.
Even more wondrous was that this was not a natural creation but man-made—including the overall layout of the academy, the position of every classroom, the flowers, birds, fish, insects, and the placement of various landscapes. It actually sublimated the mortal “Feng Shui Art,” vaguely qualifying as the embryonic form of a Spirit Gathering Formation!
Just based on this point, Lu Yang knew that the ‘Sacred Heart Scholar’ definitely had real substance.
Thinking of this, Lu Yang took a step forward and arrived directly at a study deep within the academy, preparing to meet this famous native.
Then, he was surprised by the scene inside the study.
The person inside was not the handsome scholar holding a feather fan and wearing a silk scarf as he had imagined, but a disheveled man with unkempt hair and a dirty face, drinking wine incessantly.
This was the ‘Sacred Heart Scholar.’
Just then, the disheveled man suddenly raised his head and looked toward Lu Yang’s location with drunken, hazy eyes: “I didn’t expect a distinguished guest to visit.”
“…”
With a thought, Lu Yang reconstituted his form, transforming from invisible Qi back into a tangible body. He cupped his hands to the disheveled man: “Lu Yang greets Fellow Daoist Wang.”
“Boyuan greets the distinguished guest.”
The disheveled man returned the greeting, then patted his sleeves and stood up, exclaiming in admiration: “The distinguished guest possesses extraordinary ability. Your battle with the King of Suppressing Martial Arts in the sky earlier made this Wang astonished as if seeing a celestial being, several times thinking it was an immortal descending to earth… I just wonder, what is the distinguished guest’s intention in seeking this Wang?”
“I wish to discuss the Dao of Heaven and Man with Fellow Daoist.”
Lu Yang got straight to the point and smiled lightly: “Regarding the Martial Dao Fourth Step, Investigating the Changes of Heaven and Man, although I have some understanding, I have never grasped the essentials. I ask Fellow Daoist to teach me.”
Wang Boyuan blinked upon hearing this: “With the distinguished guest’s ability, you are also interested in the Martial Dao?”
“Stones from other hills may serve to polish the jade of this one.”
Lu Yang said calmly: “Is Fellow Daoist willing to teach me?”
At these words, Wang Boyuan laughed loudly: “A visitor is a guest, especially a distinguished one. Since the distinguished guest wishes to learn, this Wang naturally will say all he knows and say it without reserve.”
“However, the Dao of Heaven and Man blooms with a hundred flowers; it is created based on the martial artist’s own understanding of heaven, earth, and themselves. Therefore, this Wang cannot describe it in detail to the distinguished guest but can only briefly explain this Wang’s personal method. If the distinguished guest still has doubts, you can go ask other Celestials.”
At this point, the two sat facing each other.
“The Martial Dao Fourth Step, this Wang calls it ‘Investigating the Changes of Heaven and Man.’ As the name suggests, it is using one’s own power to pry heaven and earth, using human power to peek into heavenly secrets!”
“This Wang’s ‘Qi Gazing Technique’ is exactly this. It contains the changes of the Three Talents.”
“The Three Talents are Heaven, Earth, and Man. First gaze at Man to know physiognomy; then gaze at Earth to know Feng Shui; finally gaze at Heaven to know the Mandate of Heaven! These three are interlinked!”
“Use Man to gaze at Earth, use Earth to gaze at Heaven, use Heaven to gaze at Fortune… At this Wang’s stage, one can know the changes of the world without leaving home. Gazing at the changes of national destiny—where disaster will arise, where civil unrest will occur, where officials do nothing, where those who eat the emperor’s salary compete with the people for profit—this Wang can gaze out most of it.”
“Although there are still errors and omissions, I can achieve accuracy seven or eight times out of ten…”
To Lu Yang’s surprise, Wang Boyuan truly did not hold anything back. He revealed the Qi Gazing Technique entirely, and its variations even involved karma!
Of course, this was not true divination of karma.
Strictly speaking, what Wang Boyuan did was merely “guessing.” Therefore, he couldn’t calculate details but could only understand the general situation and know some specific events.
However, even so, it was stunning enough!
How did he do it?
Facing Lu Yang’s doubts, Wang Boyuan shook his head: “To tell you the truth, this Wang merely had a sudden flash of insight one day… there is no tricky method.”
“So that’s it.”
Lu Yang could only nod upon hearing this. Afterward, the two exchanged ideas for several hours before he stood up to take his leave, intending to visit other Celestials.
Meanwhile, inside the Wei Family residence.
The Yun Family Ancestor opened his spiritual eye and silently witnessed the entire exchange between Lu Yang and Wang Boyuan. Then he withdrew his gaze without the slightest fluctuation.
“Demon, truly ignorant.”
He had zero interest in Wang Boyuan’s insights because no one knew better than him that Wang Boyuan’s insights were only realized because he manipulated karma!
Anyway, it wasn’t anything that could truly understand karma; it was merely a “method of guessing” for mortals. The Yun Family Ancestor didn’t care at all and couldn’t stop sneering in his heart: “Discussing the Dao with the Celestials… do you want to take a fifth step based on my foundation and pull the Martial Dao back on track?”
Simply wishful thinking!
After all, he manipulated karma to let Wang Boyuan create the Martial Dao Fourth Step, raising the limit of the Martial Dao to the Great Perfection of Qi Refining. This was already the limit.
Because any higher would be Foundation Establishment!
And how could the method of Foundation Establishment be created by Lu Yang? Therefore, in the eyes of the Yun Family Ancestor, Lu Yang’s actions were meaningless futile efforts.
According to the Yun Family Ancestor’s calculation, the Celestial Method had already ruined Lu Yang’s cultivation of The Sage Steals. The only way to break the deadlock was to kill all the Celestials first, then ban the Celestial Method. And what he had to do was kill Lu Yang’s avatar, forcing his true body to act personally.
In this way, Lu Yang would fall into the trap.
From this perspective, Wang Boyuan was merely the Yun Family Ancestor’s pawn.
And naturally, the Yun Family Ancestor would not have the slightest interest in a pawn. As for the brilliance in Lu Yang’s eyes, it was even more worthless in the Yun Family Ancestor’s eyes.
Including Lu Yang—although the Yun Family Ancestor treated him solemnly, he always harbored disdain in his heart.
Because in the end, they were just a bunch of mortals.
“With the ‘Investigating Heaven Instrument’ bestowed by the Sect Master, even a Foundation Establishment Perfected One cannot detect my existence. How many waves can mere mortals stir up?”
Leaving Haoran Academy, Lu Yang transformed into invisible Qi again, walking through the alleys of Tianjing City while carefully contemplating his exchange with Wang Boyuan just now.
“Three Talents Qi Gazing Technique…”
Ten thousand miles away, Lu Yang’s main body opened his eyes. The round light behind his head shone brightly. The Taiwei Imperial Edict circulated, silently calculating the many changes in Tianjing City.
The karma fed back showed: Everything is normal.
“Tianjing City will be very stable for the next thirty years. Karma has no changes. This is normal, after all, there are two Martial Dao Celestials presiding over it…”
Immediately after, Lu Yang suddenly changed his line of thought. He no longer calculated the karma of the entire Tianjing City directly from a “macroscopic” view. Instead, learning from Wang Boyuan’s ‘Qi Gazing Technique’ approach, he started with the populace of Tianjing City, calculating individual karma, and then reverse-deducing the karma of heaven and earth based on the changes of the Three Talents.
The reason for doing so was merely to verify the ‘Qi Gazing Technique.’
However, the next second, Lu Yang was stunned.
“East Street Breakfast Stall, Wang Erniu’s family of three. Calculating with the Taiwei Imperial Edict, supplemented by the Qi Gazing Technique, they should have a house full of children and grandchildren, yet there is a Great Tribulation of Violent Death…”
“Six Fan Gate Patrolling Constable, Chen Qing… has a Great Tribulation of Violent Death.”
“Li Chengrong… Great Tribulation of Violent Death.”
“Liu Xinshang… Great Tribulation of Violent Death.”
Tribulation! Tribulation! Tribulation!
Everyone—almost everyone Lu Yang saw in Tianjing City—had a Great Tribulation of Violent Death in their fate. But when magnified to the whole city, there was absolutely no change!
How is this possible?
If the citizens of the entire city truly had a Great Tribulation of Violent Death, the entire Tianjing City would have long been covered in dark clouds. With his personality, he would absolutely never approach it…
‘…No!’
In an instant, Lu Yang’s pupils shrank abruptly!
From the small, one can see the big; through man, one can calculate heaven. One person might be calculated wrong, but ten people, a thousand people, ten thousand people all being the same—then it is Heaven that’s wrong!
“Heavenly secrets and karma are being obscured… Fuck! There is a Foundation Establishment Perfected One in the secret realm trying to harm me!?”
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