Chapter 38: Different Paths to the Same Destination

In the system's rating, the Sunflower Manual was ranked even higher than the Nine Yang Manual. It was no wonder that, in his previous life, some martial arts enthusiasts considered the Sunflower Manual to be the foremost scripture of the Jin system, for the true Sunflower Manual had long been burned by Master Hongye. Thus, whether it was the version practiced by Dongfang Bubai or the Evil-Resisting Sword Manual studied by Yue Buqun and Lin Pingzhi, both were but fragments.

Yet even with only a fragment, Dongfang Bubai managed to dominate the world of Smiling, Proud Wanderer, nearly overpowering three grandmasters single-handedly.

This piqued Ning Xiu’s curiosity about this technique, said to be created by an elderly eunuch who had long resided in the imperial palace. He perused the manual with great care. With the Nine Yang Divine Skill as his foundation, his understanding of martial arts had already reached a level unattainable by ordinary men.

The Sunflower Manual was divided into two volumes: Heaven and Earth. The Heaven volume focused on cultivating internal energy, while the Earth volume centered on swordsmanship.

The more Ning Xiu read, the more astonished he became. In his eyes, the Sunflower Manual bore intriguing similarities to the Nine Yang Manual. Neither paid heed to mere combat techniques; the true brilliance of both lay in their transformation of the human body.

Through cultivation, the practitioner elevated themselves to another level, gaining a speed akin to that of a wraith.

If the Nine Yang Manual enhanced the body’s regenerative abilities, then the Sunflower Manual pushed the limits of human speed.

This art centered on “swiftness.” It rendered one’s movements inscrutable, leaving the opponent no chance to counterattack. Or, even if the enemy perceived a flaw in one's technique, the speed was so great that the opportunity vanished in a flash.

Thus, the sword moves and acupuncture techniques within were but secondary.

If Ning Xiu could not bring himself to self-castrate, all he could learn were the lesser Evil-Resisting Sword Techniques of the Lin family, which were far from extraordinary.

Nevertheless, he was in no hurry to dismantle the manual. He put it away. Dongfang Bubai had once said that after years of diligent internal cultivation, he finally grasped the secrets of harmonizing with nature and nurturing all things. There might yet be aspects within the manual that he had not unearthed.

The matter in Shanshui Town had now been perfectly resolved. All that remained was to notify his fellow society members to come and collect the corpses of the three stewards. As for the gold ingots scattered across the ground, those naturally belonged to him. After all, one could never have too much money.

......

The Bamboo Grove Society had four main halls: Wind, Thunder, Rain, and Lightning. Each hall had two Four-Bamboo Elders, five Three-Bamboo Outer Stewards, and over a thousand disciples. Above them were four Five-Bamboo Guardians, two Six-Bamboo Deputy Leaders, and the Leader himself.

Ning Xiu belonged to the Blazing Wind Hall. But upon his return, he found the entrance draped in white mourning cloth.

Wailing echoed from within.

Ning Xiu frowned and strode quickly into the main hall, where he saw five brand-new gold-lacquered coffins placed in the center. A woman lay weeping bitterly over one of them, her cries hoarse and desperate.

That woman was none other than Guo Xiaofu. Injured during the previous day’s trial, Yan Song had ordered her to remain at the hall to recuperate, so she had not participated in the Fengshuixi mission.

Besides her, Ning Xiu noticed two others in the hall. One was Zhang Kuo; the other, a burly, bearded man, was likely Su Lie, the guardian of Blazing Wind Hall.

“Elder Zhang.”

“Ning, my friend, so it was you,” Zhang Kuo said, stepping forward as he saw Ning Xiu arrive. “When I saw your name among the newly recruited Outer Stewards in Elder Yan’s letter, I guessed it might be you.”

Ning Xiu noticed that Zhang Kuo’s face darkened noticeably at the mention of Yan Song.

“What has happened?” Ning Xiu asked.

“We’ll talk about that in a moment. Let me introduce you to our Guardian Su first,” Zhang Kuo replied.

Ning Xiu had already noticed this bare-chested titan, clad in the manner of a warrior. He must have trained in some advanced body-forging art, for his dark flesh gleamed faintly with a metallic sheen. Ning Xiu thought this to himself.

“Guardian Su, this is Ning Xiu, the one I mentioned to you recently. He is now an Outer Steward of our hall,” Zhang Kuo introduced.

Su Lie glanced at Ning Xiu and nodded slightly.

Just then, Guo Xiaofu, who had been wailing over the coffin, suddenly flew at Ning Xiu in a frenzy, shrieking, “It’s all your fault Feng is dead!”

“It’s all your fault he’s dead!”

Ning Xiu frowned and was about to act when Su Lie bellowed, “As a disciple of the Bamboo Grove Society, is this how you behave—wailing and making a scene? Take her away!”

At once, two disciples stepped forward and dragged Guo Xiaofu away. Even then, her curses continued to ring out, gradually fading as she was dragged farther and farther away.

“Now, tell me exactly what happened,” Su Lie said, turning to Ning Xiu. His tiger-like eyes radiated authority.

A master of the first rank.

Ning Xiu’s expression remained unchanged as he recounted the events in detail, neither speculating maliciously nor embellishing, but simply describing the incident as it happened. After all, he had been the true victim in the assignment.

“You’re telling me you not only investigated the matter in Shanshui Town, but also resolved it?” Su Lie’s face shifted slightly.

“That’s correct. The incident in Shanshui Town was not the work of the Black Calamity, but of human hands. The bodies of the three missing Outer Stewards have been found. Now, Guardian Su, can you tell me what happened to Elder Yan and the others?” Ning Xiu replied.

“You’ve earned great merit for your handling of Shanshui Town. The rest we’ll discuss on the way. You and Elder Zhang will accompany me to headquarters now.”

......

Su Lie was a man of swift action. Under his command, the group immediately set off, leaving the hall and heading straight for the Bamboo Grove Society’s headquarters outside the city.

On the way, Ning Xiu, Su Lie, and Zhang Kuo shared a carriage. Ordinarily, with Ning Xiu’s status, he would not have been qualified to sit alongside them.

Of the three, only Zhang Kuo was talkative. Ning Xiu and Su Lie were both taciturn, settling into meditative cultivation as soon as they entered the carriage. This left Zhang Kuo somewhat ill at ease; soon, he found an excuse to go out and ride in the open air.

No one knew how much time had passed before Su Lie slowly opened his eyes and suddenly asked, “Elder Zhang mentioned meeting you for the first time at a Black Calamity site.”

“The Gu family village in Shouchun County,” Ning Xiu replied with a nod.

“Then, Steward Ning, what are your views on the Black Calamity?”

Ning Xiu shook his head. “So far, I’ve only experienced the Black Calamity at Gu family village. Is the Black Calamity what you call those vengeful spirits, corpse puppets, and zombies?”

“And what do you think of these vengeful spirits, corpse puppets, and zombies?” Su Lie pressed on.