Chapter 93: Chenlong Doubts His Life

Stepping out of the quiet room, Wang Ping looked around, then silently circulated his Internal Force. Beneath his toughened skin, the roar of a surging river immediately echoed.

"Boom!"

His Divine Intent drove his flesh, instantly shattering the sound barrier as his speed continued to climb. Successive blasts of air and shockwaves marked his continuous breakthrough.

Two times the speed of sound.

Three times the speed of sound.

Four times the speed of sound!

He didn't slow down until he approached five times the speed of sound. Before practicing the Martial God Pictorial Record, this was the absolute limit Wang Ping could reach.

Now, this speed—which had once made him feel like he was carrying a mountain on his back, struggling with every step—felt ridiculously effortless. Every pore on his body opened wide as Internal Force surged, flowing through his skin, meridians, and internal organs to forge a more perfect, powerful physique.

'Too slow, too slow... I can go even faster!'

Wang Ping was thrilled. After all, he had reached this Realm using his physical body alone, without relying on any protective weapons or spells!

'If only I could obtain a divine suit of armor.'

'Or master a protective spell.'

Wang Ping allowed himself to fantasize for a moment, but upon noticing the devastation his sonic booms and shockwaves were inflicting on the surroundings, he deliberately slowed his pace.

"Crack!"

The rushing air subsided. Wang Ping stood perfectly still, yet spiderweb fractures continued to spread out from beneath his feet, giving him a stark realization of his own strength.

'So I am already this strong...'

At his current speed, if he pushed himself to the limit, he wouldn't even need to strike. His mere physical presence would cause unimaginable destruction.

All of this was brought about by the Martial God Pictorial Record. Wang Ping also understood the creator's mindset: 'This fundamentally alters my human constitution, practically equating to a qualitative transformation of the flesh... But in reality, this is merely the result of combining my Internal Force foundation with my flesh and blood.'

What did this mean?

'It means that in my current state, I can undergo a second qualitative transformation of the flesh! I can use this already transformed body to pursue an even higher Realm!'

This was the true value of the Martial God Pictorial Record.

An ordinary expert at the Martial Dao Grandmaster Rank could only use their Divine Intent to drive their flesh for a single transformation. Moreover, their foundation was a standard Mortal body, making the effects of that transformation extremely limited.

But after mastering the Martial God Pictorial Record, one could transform their flesh twice. The foundation for this second transformation would be a transcendent body with much higher potential, ultimately allowing them to reach a Realm that an ordinary expert at the Martial Dao Grandmaster Rank could hardly fathom. By then, wouldn't his physical body be on par with a divine weapon?

"Incredible!"

Wang Ping excitedly clenched his fist, his eyes shining. "A second qualitative transformation. That's right, there should be another corresponding martial art after the Martial God Pictorial Record!"

He firmly believed his judgment was correct.

And if his guess was right, that very martial art was the key to allowing a practitioner to push for that second physical transformation based on the Martial God Pictorial Record.

"I have to go ask!"

At this thought, Wang Ping could no longer hold back. He briefly tidied his appearance and strode briskly toward the courtyard where Chenlong resided.

Tap, tap, tap...

Almost simultaneously, inside the County Yamen courtyard, Chenlong, who had been sitting in silent meditation for three full days, opened his eyes. Sensing something, he looked in Wang Ping's direction.

His eyes were filled with disappointment.

'It's the third day.'

It took three whole days for him to finally step out of the quiet room and come looking for me. That meant he had only just now encountered a bottleneck in the Martial God Pictorial Record.

This was far below his expectations. Back when he had first obtained the Martial God Pictorial Record, he ran into his first bottleneck on the afternoon of the second day. He then sought guidance from the First Seat and spent another three days to finally comprehend it and continue his cultivation. He had assumed Wang Ping would at least be comparable to him.

Now it seemed he had thought too highly of the boy.

'Taking three days to encounter a bottleneck means it will take him at least ten years to truly master the Martial God Pictorial Record. It seems his martial arts talent is a sham as well.'

He had probably only managed to master the Thirteen Grand Protectors Hard Qigong because of his status as an extraordinary person.

"...Forget it."

Chenlong sighed. Although the boy wasn't the martial arts genius he had imagined, hitting a bottleneck on the third day wasn't considered terrible within the Tribute Hall.

"Creak."

Just then, Wang Ping arrived at the courtyard and pushed the door open. He smiled and said, "Lord, I have not disappointed you. As for the Martial God Pictorial Record, I have already..."

"Alright, you don't need to say anything."

Chenlong directly interrupted him, not wanting to deal a blow to the young man's enthusiasm. If Wang Ping learned that hitting a bottleneck in three days fell far short of Chenlong's standard for a genius, his mentality would become unbalanced. His Divine Intent would be affected, and his future path on the Martial Dao would inevitably suffer.

With this in mind, Chenlong stood up.

"I previously said I would stay in Longxing County for three months, but the Tribute Hall sent an urgent report a few days ago. I must leave; I can no longer stay here."

This was a lie.

Reality was cruel. Staying for three months was a privilege reserved for peerless geniuses. An ordinary genius simply wasn't worth him expending so much effort.

However, since he was already here, he might as well give the boy a bit of guidance.

"Before I leave, I will teach you one more saber strike."

"Watch closely, and learn well."

As Chenlong finished speaking, he flipped his hand. A long-handled, double-edged horse-cleaving saber suddenly appeared in his grasp, and a trace of killing intent surfaced on his face.

"Clang!"

The saber slashed out and fell. It lacked Wang Ping's terrifying physical speed, but it carried a different form of profundity that imposed itself upon reality.

In a daze, Chenlong vanished from Wang Ping's eyes. All that remained was that horse-cleaving saber, emitting a deafening, fierce hum. As it slashed down, it possessed neither extreme speed nor peerless strength. There was only a world-splitting blade edge that cleaved directly into his pupils!

"This strike..."

Wang Ping's eyes went wide in shock. He instantly realized that, unlike his own methods, Chenlong's strike represented the orthodox path for an expert at the Martial Dao Grandmaster Rank of Great Shun.

His own saber technique, to put it plainly, relied on pure brute force and a constant pursuit of higher speed.

Chenlong's saber, however, valued intent over physical force. Because of this, its pure destructive power might not be as exaggerated as his own, but it was far more suitable for dealing with living creatures.

In other words, this was a killing technique!

The next second, all the illusions vanished. The horse-cleaving saber tapped lightly against the ground, like a stone dropping into a lake, stirring up faint ripples and displaying an incredibly high level of control.

"Tell me what you've comprehended."

Sheathing his saber, Chenlong turned around, clasped his hands behind his back, and said flatly, "When you can fully comprehend this strike, that is when you will have mastered the Martial God Pictorial Record."

Hearing this, Wang Ping thought for a moment, cupped his fists, and said,

"Lord, your saber arts are peerless."

"However, since you value intent over physical force, you must be lacking in bodily strength. I deduce that you haven't fully mastered the Thirteen Grand Protectors Hard Qigong, right?"

Chenlong: "..."

Seeing that Wang Ping hadn't offered a single shred of comprehension and was instead nitpicking at him, Chenlong shook his head. His evaluation of Wang Ping dropped yet another notch.

However, before he could open his mouth to reprimand the boy, he saw Wang Ping casually draw the Dragon Head Guillotine from his waist and slash forward. The edge of the blade pointed straight ahead. Just like before, everything in its path seemingly vanished. In all of heaven and earth, there was only that bright blade edge, reflecting deeply into the depths of Chenlong's pupils!

Only then did he hear the hum of the blade.

"Hum—!"

Chenlong's eye twitched. Almost subconsciously, he raised a single finger and flicked it against the oncoming blade, instantly shattering all the illusions.

"Boom!"

Billowing air currents exploded outward. Wang Ping took a step back, smoothly sheathing his saber. He then cupped his fists toward Chenlong with a face full of sincerity. "Thank you for your guidance, Lord."

Chenlong opened his mouth, but it took a long while before he managed to squeeze out a single sentence.

"You learned it?"

Wang Ping waved his hand modestly. "I only grasped a little bit. Fortunately, I have fully mastered the Thirteen Grand Protectors Hard Qigong, so learning it was relatively simple."

'Who the fuck asked you about that?'

"Whether it's complete or not isn't important. Martial arts value refinement!"

"Watch this strike of mine."

Chenlong remained expressionless as he drew the horse-cleaving saber once more. This time, however, he didn't just swing casually; he truly mobilized his martial arts.

As this strike was unleashed, Wang Ping instantly felt a sense of déjà vu. He had seen this strike before. Previously in Longxing County, when Shenhou and Xugou used the Dragon Head Guillotine, they had executed a strike just like this. After Daoist Nun You blocked it using the Perfected Wandering Spirit, she had even commented that the one who unleashed the strike was worthy of being a divine general...

The blade light formed a single line, dividing yin and yang, severing dusk and dawn.

As the blade light drew closer, it completely dominated Wang Ping's vision, leaving room for nothing else. The name of this strike naturally surfaced in his heart.

Peerless Slash!

Once this blade was drawn, it was without equal under heaven!

"Boom!"

The terrifying saber intent directly shattered Wang Ping's consciousness, leaving him feeling as if he were deep within the clouds. Only after a long while did he recover his senses, letting out a long breath.

"Phew... Lord, your saber technique has truly reached the pinnacle!" Wang Ping praised sincerely.

'Did that even need to be said?'

Chenlong's expression was indifferent. He calmly sheathed his horse-cleaving saber, casually spinning it once in his palm before asking coldly, "What have you comprehended?"

But before his voice even faded, Chenlong's hand trembled, and he nearly dropped his blade.

Because the only response he received was another hum of a blade.

The exact same saber intent, the exact same illusion, and even the action of the strike and the rhythm of his Internal Force circulation were almost identical to the slash he had just performed!

At first glance, one would think Chenlong was manipulating Wang Ping's body to execute the strike!

"Clack!"

Wang Ping sheathed his saber once again. He closed his eyes to reflect on the feeling for a moment before giving a slight nod. "Lord, this strike of yours is incredibly exquisite. If only it were a bit more complete, it would be even better..."

"You brat! You're asking for a beating!"

This time, Chenlong truly couldn't hold it in anymore. His vital blood surged, his old face flushed red, and he immediately slapped his palm fiercely onto Wang Ping's shoulder.

Of course, this wasn't just to vent his anger.

In fact, the moment his palm landed on Wang Ping's shoulder, Chenlong had already split off a surge of Internal Force. It broke through Wang Ping's defenses and rushed directly into his body.

He did this purely to probe the changes in Wang Ping's physical body.

In this moment, aside from shame, anger, and astonishment, Chenlong's heart was mostly filled with an indescribable, slightly apprehensive, yet intense sense of anticipation.

'There's something not right about this kid!'

'Just how much of the Martial God Pictorial Record has he actually learned?'