A Night of Desperation

Chapter 294: Technique 293 II

"However..." Zheng Ming wanted to speak again, but Yu Mo interrupted him.

"There are no ’buts’, Zheng Ming. In reality, when considering pure combat abilities, our judgment is that you two should be evenly matched. But the current issue is, if you can’t win swiftly, it will damage the reputation of the temple and hurt the business of our shops everywhere. Thus, you and Ding Rou cannot act. Even if you do, Ding Rou must lose," Yu Mo quickly said.

"....." Zheng Ming’s face turned red with embarrassment as he looked towards Yu Hong.

Yu Hong nodded at him in agreement.

"That’s the way it is."

"Don’t you care about your own victory or defeat?" Zheng Ming couldn’t help but ask.

"I have compensation, so why should I care? I’m not here just to practice fighting but to learn the real deal. Victory or defeat doesn’t matter," Yu Hong said, waving his hand casually.

"....." Even the person concerned didn’t care, which left Zheng Ming somewhat at a loss.

In the end, he stood frozen in place for a moment, then let out a long sigh and disconsolately walked out of the Quiet Room.

"Alright, now that he’s gone, Ding Rou, you cooperated well this time; your performance was very good. As your master, not being able to provide you with enough fairness during critical moments is my mistake," Yu Mo sighed, "But for the sake of the bigger picture, for the whole Qingchen Temple, we have no choice."

"Master, you’re taking it too seriously; it was what Ding Rou should do," Yu Hong earnestly said.

"Fortunately, even though fairness is hard to achieve, as your master, I can still manage enough compensation," Yu Mo said, pinching his beard with a smile on his face.

"Tell me, what compensation or reward do you want? We’ll try our best to fulfill it."

Although he felt a bit embarrassed about the harsh words he had said earlier, after all, it was his own disciple. To randomly invest resources and, by chance, come across a good seedling, he could develop it as the temple’s face during ordinary times.

After all, most ordinary people can’t see how powerful your Daoist cultivation is, but fighting abilities and practical combat capabilities are rather self-evident.

Now that a promising young talent has emerged from the Golden Jade Class, it also reflects well on Yu Mo, so his attitude towards him is quite accommodating.

"As for the compensation..." Yu Hong pondered a while, "Disciple would like to get an early exposure to the application of Daoist magic. After all, disciple came here for this."

"Magic... have you entered the threshold of Daoist Skills?" Yu Mo’s expression changed slightly, and he suddenly asked.

Not just him, but the other two, Yu Zhong and Yu Fang, who had been relaxing and ready to start eating the fruits and seeds in front of them, all paused their movements and looked over upon hearing this.

"I have entered the threshold... It felt quite easy at the beginning, but then I hit a wall and couldn’t make it past. I was actually hoping to consult my masters on how to break through," Yu Hong earnestly said.

"You’ve entered the threshold... with just that, your talent is considered average, but if we add your formidable combat prowess… you’re a truly good seedling!" Yu Mo exclaimed, his face visibly showing pleasure, and his eyes seemed to start shining.

The other two were nodding in agreement.

"That’s impressive..."

"Not bad, not bad, it indeed is great fortune for our Qingchen Temple this year to have another promising talent!"

"Alright, Ding Rou, tell us, what exactly are you stuck on? The three of us here can solve a thing or two for you easily," Yu Mo said with a relaxed smile.

"Yes..." Yu Hong nodded, "It’s about when I chant and silently recite scriptures, the issue of overlapping phonetic sounds arises. The annotations say that two sounds need to be produced simultaneously, and in some parts, even three sounds at once. Disciple doesn’t know how to resolve this?"

"Producing two sounds simultaneously and three sounds simultaneously, that’s easy. You just need to find the appropriate Dao Artifact, and while silently reciting, lightly tap it, and you can...." Suddenly Yu Mo’s voice stopped abruptly.

His smile rapidly froze, and his eyes turned to Yu Hong’s cheek.

"Wait, isn’t this content from the Fifth Layer??"

The other two old Taoists also realized this by now. They looked at Yu Hong with odd expressions on their faces.

"This is Guanwu Skill’s Fifth Layer phenomena of producing two sounds simultaneously. Ding Rou, in practicing cultivation, one must not overreach; otherwise, if the foundation is not solid, facing great tribulations in the future, it can be harmful to oneself and others," Yu Zhong couldn’t help advising.

"But Disciple really feels like I have cultivated to the Fifth Layer... I just need to condense and defeat the Fear Illusion, layer by layer. It was quite easy at the beginning," Yu Hong said seriously.

The Quiet Room quietened down for a moment.

Yu Mo and the two others exchanged glances, falling into silence.

The testing of Daoist Skills is often not quantifiable, unless a resentful mark appears for him to try. Otherwise, others can’t see how many illusions Ding Rou can summon.

Furthermore, theoretically speaking, it’s indeed possible for someone like Yu Hong, who not only has exceptional talent but also has an immensely tenacious willpower, to quickly progress through the Guanwu Skill, theoretically making it possible to burst through four layers and get stuck on the Fifth Layer.

But...the chances of that...are incredibly slim.

More likely, another explanation had a much higher probability...

"Breaking through the Fifth Layer—Yu Zhong, you have more experience in this area; why don’t you have a look?" Yu Mo couldn’t help but turn to his junior brother, Yu Zhong.

"..." Yu Zhong couldn’t remember when he broke through the Fifth Layer—it was many years ago. His highest cultivation reached the Seventh Layer, which was also the record in the temple, but now, after years of diminishing willpower, he had regressed layer by layer and was no longer able to control the Fear Illusions of the Seventh Layer. At most, he could summon the Sixth Layer.

"Never mind, I’ll do it." Seeing him like that, Yu Mo knew he must have largely forgotten about this area.

Left with no choice, he had to personally inquire about the details.

Time slowly passed by, and after more than half an hour.

In the Quiet Room, the three old Taoists looked at each other, all silent as they stared at Yu Hong.

"It all matches up...."

Yu Mo said in a low voice.

"It seems, it’s real...." Yu Zhong rubbed his hands, feeling a bit hot.

"Even the details are there... this..." Yu Fang fondled the Jade Pendant on his neck, his lips dry.

The three of them faced Yu Hong, and although all the details matched, theoretically, if someone had prepared by memorizing and meticulously pondering in advance, it was still possible to achieve such a disguise.

"If only Yu Han were here…" Yu Mo murmured to himself.

Yu Han was a devout Taoist who had always maintained his cultivation at the Seventh Layer, but had recently been expelled by the current Temple Master due to differing opinions.

It’s safe to say that when it came to Guanwu Skill, he was the top expert within the temple.

If he were here, he could certainly discern whether Yu Hong was genuine or a fraud.

Alas...

"Do I invest or not?" Yu Mo felt that it was worth taking a gamble. He observed Yu Hong’s eyes and felt that the man did not seem to be psychotic.

After all, there was once a disciple who was delusional, fantasizing that he had reached the pinnacle of Guanwu Skill, with the same resolute look and coherent speech.

But Yu Hong was different; his resolute gaze was clear, lacking the chaos and murkiness of insanity.

Yu Zhong looked over at Yu Fang.

After the tests, both had a foundation in their minds.

"Invest!"

"We can invest!"

The two nodded together.

"Fine! At worst, we’ll just lose some resources, but our Qingchen Temple is not short on anything else—we have plenty of money! We can afford to gamble!" Yu Mo decisively slapped his thigh.

Despite Yu Hong’s unknown background, and the fact that he was not a local, his advanced age, and his recent induction,

none of that could outweigh one factor—talent.

If Yu Hong’s talent proves true, how would they cope if they slighted him and pushed him into joining another Taoist Sect?

Especially considering how understanding Yu Hong was, taking initiative to maintain the Taoist Temple’s reputation and cooperating with the mentors.

It had been years since they encountered such a promising candidate with such awareness of the big picture. Investing resources in him, given his initiative, would not be a loss.

"Ding Rou, from today on, you will formally join the Dao Seed Class, becoming the fifth Dao Seed, enjoying the equivalent treatment of the other Dao Seeds. Additionally, concerning the Resentment Technique which you wish to understand, the temple will open all its records to you. You may also attempt to practice our exclusive Qi Condensation and Shadow Transformation Technique."

Yu Mo said solemnly.

"The difficulty of Qi Condensation and Shadow Transformation Technique is immense, and it requires substantial mastery of Daoist skills. When you practice, make sure that the Fear Illusions you summon are under your control. Otherwise, once the Technique is used and the illusion is out of control, it can cause great harm to you first."

Yu Hong was overjoyed and nodded quickly.

"Disciple understands!"

With this, his true goal had been achieved.

Guanwu Skill and Qi Condensation and Shadow Transformation Technique should represent the core essence of Qingchen Temple.

Next, using Qingchen Temple as a stepping stone to enter the Taoist Sect and come into contact with the high-end powers of the Nine Sects would be naturally forthcoming.

The power that has been sealing the entrance to the Black Disaster and suppressing it for many years... Yu Hong was very curious about this.

After the decision by the three real people of Yu Mo to jointly invest fully in Yu Hong, they, of course, informed the Temple Master and other high-ranking officials promptly.

Following discussions, Yu Hong’s status as the fifth Dao Seed was swiftly confirmed.

Starting from that day, Yu Hong’s status had completely changed.

His requests for resources were responded to promptly and with high quotas. Any materials he needed were delivered to his residence by a Taoist as soon as possible.

In theory, aside from specially powered talismans that he couldn’t obtain, he could freely use anything else, as long as it wasn’t too outrageous.

Moreover, after confirming the situation, Yu Mo also gifted him a three-bedroom apartment in the city center.

He was also provided a thirty-something-year-old Taoist as an assistant.

Not only was he exempt from paying, but he also received an additional salary of twenty thousand yuan a month for living expenses.

His only mandatory obligation was to participate in the sect’s fixed promotional activities.

Of course, these were of little concern to Yu Hong, who was truly focused on how to break through the Fifth Layer of Guanwu Skill. Especially after acquiring the Qi Condensation and Shadow Transformation Technique, his desire grew even stronger.

*

*

*

Black Wind Camp.

The frigid wind and snow were howling outside the sturdy gate.

The sky looked blue with a hint of dark gray, the thick clouds obscuring the stars and moon.

Yu Hong stood behind the door, peering through the viewing window outwards.

The Ultimate Gate of Cosmic Divine Light had been mostly frozen over, the surroundings akin to a fortress of ice, with only the front continuously releasing blue mist.

This mist kept rising and converging into the sky, becoming the fundamental source of light for this sky.

"Guanwu Skill... coupling with Dao Artifact..."

Yu Hong stood behind the door, in a room as warm as spring, and then looked out at the bitter cold temperatures of well below minus one hundred degrees Celsius.

He became lost in thought for a moment.

In his hand, he held a standard Dao Artifact from Qingchen Temple.

It was a black bell engraved with runes, but this bell could not be rung.

According to Master Yu Mo, it required using fingers with a special sealing method to strike the surface.

Only by striking to produce a simultaneous dual tone could the Fear Illusion cohesion of the Fifth Layer be truly completed.

"It’s difficult, but given time, I should be able to overcome it. However, this Qi Condensation and Shadow Transformation Technique... is quite interesting..."

Yu Hong took out a dark blue, thread-bound booklet and began to flip through.

’Using one’s own Essence Qi to fill the illusion can amplify its effects. At the highest level of training, one can influence reality to a certain degree.

The so-called Qi Condensation and Shadow Transformation is about reaching a level where one can turn Fear Illusions into a part of one’s own shadow, manifesting thousands of shadows at the thought. According to the records, it has a powerful targeted effect against resentful marks.’

The Qi Condensation and Shadow Transformation Technique consisted of four techniques, perfect for him to try out here once he masters them, to see if they could affect the Black Disaster.