Transcending the Nine Heavens

For three consecutive days, Meng Chao Ran invested all his time on training Chu Yang. Both were literally in living in the same room for three full days. During this period, Meng Chao Ran imparted anything he could think of to Chu Yang. With hardly any rest, he inundated Chu Yang with all his experience and knowledge about the Jiang Hu, as well as all his tricks and tactics.

Although Chu Yang already knew most of these things, he enjoyed his teacher’s attention and guidance. He listened to Meng Chao Ran’s words attentively and immersed in all the warmth he received.

Chu Yang had never enjoyed such care and love from his teacher in the previous life. Therefore, he did not want to spoil the current state. He knew that even if he brushed off Meng Chao Ran’s words, Meng Chao Ran would not say anything. He would just be annoyed and unhappy internally.

Chu Yang did not want his teacher to be unhappy.

Three days passed by in the blink of an eye.

On the last day, Chu Yang stepped out of his door and watched in silence as the early morning mist drifted. He took in a long, deep breath. He was rather nostalgic. It was time for him to leave this place!

"As I embark on this journey, I don’t know when I will return. I don’t even know if I can return."

A heavy rain on the previous night had washed the Purple Bamboo Garden entirely. The atmosphere felt crisp and clean.

Meng Chao Ran had left to pick some herbs in the mountain since early morning. Chu Yang knew it was just his teacher’s excuse to avoid the farewell and hide his sorrow.

Suddenly, a terrified scream sounded from the toilet. The next moment, Tan Tan ran out frantically. His body gave off a strong stench and it was filthy beyond imagination.

Chu Yang was extremely surprised. "Why is Tan Tan holding the Heavenly Chi Gathering Fish in his hand?"

Tan Tan’s face was sad and embarrassed as he passed by Chu Yang. He did not even look at Chu Yang. He headed straight for his room and dropped the Heavenly Chi Gathering Fish back into the bucket.

The next moment, Tan Tan ran out naked with a wooden bucket in his hand., He poured water all over his body repeatedly until the stench started to wear off a little.

Just a short while ago, Chu Yang was feeling extremely sentimental about leaving the place. But the peculiar behaviour of his junior brother had made him very confused. "What is this crazy guy up to? Did he just fall into the toilet early in the morning?"

After Tan Tan finally cleaned himself up, he disappeared back into his room. The next moment, he rolled his filthy clothes into a ball and tossed it out of the window.

Shortly after, Tan Tan appeared again with a sheepish, awkward smile. His face was filled with a bitter look sighed deeply.

"What happened?" Chu Yang asked curiously.

"Oh, don’t ask." Tan Tan grumbled.

Ever since Tan Tan found the Heavenly Chi Gathering Fish, he had treated it like a treasure. He placed in a safe corner of his room and took care of it meticulously. Every once in a while, he would feed it with water plants and other food. However, on the day before, the fish suddenly floated to the surface and remained motionless with its white belly facing upwards.

Despite touching the fish repeatedly, it did not react and continued to stay floating on the surface with its belly facing up. It basically showed no sign of life.

When Tan Tan checked on it this morning, he realized that the Heavenly Chi Gathering Fish’s body had gone stiff. He had held the fish sadly and mourned over its passing. However, he had a sudden urge to use the bathroom, so he headed towards it with the fish still in his hands. As he thought the fish was already dead, he decided to toss it into the latrine.

But just as he tossed it in, an incredible thing happened. The weird-looking fish suddenly came to life and tried desperately to escape from the latrine.

Tan Tan had no choice but to jump in to save the fish. Unfortunately, the heavy rain from the previous night had flooded the entire latrine so Tan Tan had to swim in to retrieve the fish.

"Hahahaha..." After hearing the story, Chu Yang burst into fits of laughter. He was laughing so hard that his sides hurt.

Chu Yang had never imagined that his junior brother could do such a hilarious thing!

Tan Tan sighed tragically and said bitterly, "How would I know the fiendish fish could act dead like that? It was living happily in the bucket and then all of a sudden it just turned stiff and died. But when I tossed it in the latrine, it turned lively again. Does it actually thrive in stinky places?"

Chu Yang clutched his stomach. He was laughing so hard that his eyes were tearing up. "You are such a fool. The Heavenly Chi Gathering Fish absorbs the energy from the Heaven and Earth. When it reaches its capacity, it becomes immobile as it digests the energy. This allows it to absorb even more energy. During this time of digestion, martial artists will make use of the energy it absorbed for their cultivation! But instead, you threw it in the latrine! Hahaha!"

"Oh I see!" Tan Tan’s exclaimed, "Why didn’t you say so earlier?"

"We didn’t expect you to be such a fool." Chu Yang said, "The Heavenly Chi Gathering Fish can survive even if it is buried underground. Why would it die if in a clean bucket of water? Moreover, it thrives on the energy of Heaven and Earth, so feeding it does not make any difference! But you are really impressive to have tossed it into the latrine. If others know that you have tossed a precious Heavenly Chi Gathering Fish into the latrine, they would probably beat you into a pulp!"

Tan Tan sighed miserably, "I have already paid a price for it. My clothes are ruined, and my hands..."

Tan Tan raised his hands to his nose and sniffed. His whole body shuddered and he almost threw up, "I need my hands for eating. What should I do now?"

"You deserve it!" Chu Yang teased as he continued to laugh uncontrollably.

Chu Yang went into the room and inspected the fish. The poor Heavenly Chi Gathering Fish was swimming back and forth frantically. It even jumped out of the water every once in a while. At the same time, it was throwing up plenty of murky waste material. It was clearly in great discomfort!

"Quick! Change the water!" Chu Yang called out to Tan Tan anxiously.

Tan Tan quickly did so. After changing it seven to eight times, the Heavenly Chi Gathering Fish finally appeared to calm down. It laid at the bottom of the bucket with its belly puffing, clearly tired and in pain.

It seemed that the fish required a little more rest.

Chu Yang could not believe that he would encounter something so hilarious on his day of departure. After some distance away, he heard the squeaky voice of Tan Tan yelling after him, "Chu Yang, take care! I will find you one day! I will help you!"

The final words were overwhelmed with sadness.

Pausing for a moment, Chu Yang waved his arm without looking back. He turned about a corner and disappeared from Tan Tan’s sight.

"You must not die!" Tan Tan yelled loudly as tears poured in torrents from his eyes. He dropped to the ground and started wailing like a child who had lost his family.

He did not know what Chu Yang was doing, but he knew it was going to be dangerous! Otherwise, their master would not have spent so much time with him in the last few days.

Tan Tan was extremely worried and depressed.

Chu Yang felt a pain in his heart as well but he stopped himself from looking back. He continued walking on step by step, further and further.

Not far away on a mountain peak, Meng Chao Ran stood motionless and allowed himself to be bathed in the rays of the morning sun. He squinted his eyes and fixed his gaze on his disciple’s departing figure. Unknowingly, his hands had clenched into tight fists.

Meng Chao Ran held a piece of paper in his right hand. It was a message left by Chu Yang, "When executing the Fleeting Snow Cloud Movement Technique, you must keep your body low to reverse your internal flow. Then, start cultivating from the final step. You will only succeed if you cultivate in reverse order."

Chu Yang’s figure inched along the mountain path in the horizon. He only carried a small travel bag on his back.

Having left Beyond the Heavens Sect all on his own, he had to embark on this journey of uncertainty alone. Chu Yang suddenly felt a little lonely.

Words suddenly floated into his mind, "On this journey, you must not fear jagged mountains or oceans of fire. On this journey, you must experience nine death and one life. On this journey, you must laugh under the Heavens. On this journey, head straight for the Nine Heavens and never turn back."

These lines originated from a popular song in his previous life called "The Journey of Jiang Hu". Mo Qing Wu used to sing this song and complement it with music. Therefore, it had left a deep impression on Chu Yang.

As he thought about the verses, Chu Yang could not help but smiled. He hummed, "On this journey, do not fear the Heavens but fight it. On this journey, life will evade fate. On this journey, I will hold Qing Wu’s hand and laugh at life. On this journey, I will overturn the Nine Heavens!"

Chu Yang sang the lyrics softly and he composed his own version of the song as he left the territory of Beyond the Heavens Sect, leaving the Nine Peaks, One Garden.

Not a single time did he look back.

This young man had unruly hair covering half his face. Hidden beneath this hair were incisive eyes that constantly watched the world. His gaze was as sharp as a dagger, and it seemed ready to split the world apart.

The rays of early morning sun shone upon him, casting a long shadow behind him. Amidst the misty wilderness, his silhouette moved silently through the thin air. A crimson red aura emanated from it.

This seemed like a manifestation of something much greater...