The three remaining sect representatives stood in the sky, watching Sect Master Mu leave with his disciples. Sect Master Lan’s eyes flashed, and the other two turned toward him. Occasionally, one would nod or frown, clearly locked in silent communications.

Weiheng Wu descended to Hui’s side. He nodded at Hui. “You did well.”

“Thank you, Master,” Hui said, bowing.

Li Xiang bowed respectfully to Weiheng Wu. He ignored her.

“The time has come. When we return to the peak, I’ll pass down my ultimate technique,” Weiheng Wu declared.

Eh? Ultimate technique? But I’m only at the third stage… Ah! How disrespectful! He swallowed his doubt, bowing instead. “Thank you, Master! Disciple is grateful.”

Maybe it’s a technique with tiers, or one that can grow as I grow. I shouldn’t doubt Master!

No, no, wait. Did I hear right? Did Master just say he’s going to teach me? Master! You never do that!

All at once, Sect Master Lan’s voice rang out. It echoed over the peaks, loud enough that every disciple could hear it, no matter where they stood. “Effective immediately, the inter-sect tournament is cancelled. Azure Fang and Silk Heart disciples, please enter to the main square to be returned to your sects.”

Hui blinked. Cancelled? My glorious plans—!

Ah, but it’s fine. This small disciple didn’t want to fight, anyways.

Beside him, Li Xiang frowned, dissatisfied. Her sword hummed in its sheath, as if agreeing with her disappointment in missing out on more battles.

Disciples murmured amongst themselves. Further off, those who hadn’t been involved in the mess frowned at each other, confused, while those closer to the epicenter gave each other nervous looks.

Weiheng Wu stepped atop his sword and took off back to his peak. Hui watched him go, then sighed to himself and started the long trudge back.

We might be battling soon. Even if the tournament is over, Sect Masters Lan and Mu now have a reason to conflict. Therefore, I need to make more talismans. I wasted them all just now trying to keep my little life.

Hmm… based on this experience, I think I should put more time and qi into making each talisman as high tier as I possibly can, rather than making many at my default level. I can combine them, but if all I do is combine them, I end up wasting a lot of paper and ink at once! It’s not easy to make more, and this poor disciple is too broke to buy more.

Besides, it seems to give me diminishing returns to combine them, the same way eating too many pills will offer diminishing returns. Ah, I wonder if there’s a curve that determines the level of diminishing returns? There’s got to be an optimal level of combining talismans that gives me the biggest boost for the fewest combined talismans…

Argh, I hated math! Even when I went to school, I always tried to skip it!

No, no, it’s for cultivation. It’s to save this small disciple’s talismans in the future! Think of it that way, Hui. Think of it as less paper and ink spent!

As he walked, he circulated his death qi. Much less circulated in his second dantian than before, so little that he could barely perceive the second system. In contrast, his life qi swirled vivaciously in his original dantian. Every now and again, tiny songbirds materialized from the circulating golden ball and flew a loose path around it, always to crash back into the ball and merge with the life qi once more.

Mmm, if having too much death qi lead to me falling out of my body, that’s not going to happen again soon. I have less life qi than I had death qi, but now I have even less death qi than that! I wonder if there’s fewer ducks now? He turned his attention to his second dantian.

Black death qi moved slowly through his secondary passages, so thin as to be almost translucent. Not a single feather escaped from the darkness. No hint remained of the strand of blood qi represented by the first Fatty clone, aside from a faint scent of blood.

They’re gone? Or… no, it’s not the first time the ducks have vanished. When I recover more death qi, they’re likely to reappear.

The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

But where am I going to find death qi? It’s not as if I’m around demonic cultivators! I’m in a righteous sect! We don’t have any death qi lying around!

Wait, if I recall, there’s supposedly a lot of ghouls and undead in the outside world. Hmm, I wonder if there’s an extermination quest…

No, no, it’ll have to wait. The first step is to make more talismans. Then I can figure out what my next goal is. And putting aside death qi… the most urgent business right now, the most imminent threat to my beloved, easy life as Weiheng Wu’s inheriting disciple in Starbound Sect is the Mysterious Heavenly Forest Sect!

And besides… He recalled the image of Ding Bo falling over, gore splashing over the ground. When he ‘died,’ there was no death qi! If I claimed to be second best at faking my death, who would claim to be first? I, the expert death-faker, am almost sure Ding Bo did not die!

A death-faking technique with such realistic gore, with such a gruesome false injury? Ah! I need it! Mysterious Heavenly Forest Sect, the time to give up your secrets is now!

At last, Hui climbed to the top of his Master’s peak. The same as ever, the simple hut and well sat out under the elements, no more or less worn than the first time he’d seen them. His Master stood atop the hut, staring out into the distance, hands clasped behind his back.

“Disciple salutes Master!” Hui said, cupping his hands as he announced his presence.

Weiheng Wu turned. He lifted a foot and drifted off the hut, falling gracefully to earth. He nodded at Hui and lifted his hand. “I will only demonstrate this technique once. Watch closely.”

Hui nodded eagerly. Knowing Weiheng Wu never joked about doing something once and exactly once, he circulated his qi into his senses, enhancing them as far as he could. He reached out with his mental energy as well, completely enveloping Weiheng Wu’s hand.

Weiheng Wu nodded, approving of Hui’s actions. Holding out his hand, he generated a field of lightning around his palm.

Hui stared, flabbergasted. Every sense is telling me… but it can’t be. It couldn’t possibly be.

“Properly practiced, this art can summon lightning to frighten off even the highest cultivators,” Weiheng Wu announced, a scholarly air to his words.

Hui cleared his throat. “Er, Master… this small disciple doesn’t mean to speak out of turn, but…”

“Speak freely. You belittle yourself too often. A disciple of mine should be proud.”

It’s precisely because you’re so proud that—ah, well, it’s true that it’s also a habit. But someone has to bow their head to apologize after you smash through everything! Hui coughed again. “Master, I… is that the Lightning Palm?”

Weiheng Wu nodded once.

“The, er… the technique taught to Qi Gathering disciples?” Hui probed.

Another nod.

I don’t mean to question Master. Clearly his comprehension of the Lightning Palm is high above ordinary levels—it is Master, after all! But as for me, I only have average comprehension. I skipped Qi Gathering, so I was never taught it, and it wouldn’t be very useful now that I’m a higher level. I’m not Master, so I can’t turn a Lightning Palm into a sky-splitting bolt. At best, I could produce a weak lightning attack.

Wait, maybe…if I remember my novels… Hui glanced at his Master. “Is… is there a secret inheritance in the Lightning Palm technique? A Dao mystery that everyone has overlooked?”

Weiheng Wu shook his head.

“So… this is…?”

Frowning, Weiheng Wu lifted his hand again. “All it takes is a bit of contemplation. Once you comprehend the Lightning Palm fully, one can even call down great bolts of Heavenly lightning.”

Ah, yes. It’s simply Master being Master, as I suspected. I should’ve known better to expect a mysterious ultimate technique from Master!

But, ah, this small disciple can’t help but notice… Hui cleared his throat again.

Weiheng Wu cut his eyes at Hui. “A cultivator at your level should not face throat troubles.”

“Er, right, I, ah… Master, do you know any… other techniques?”

A distant, haughty expression was his only response.

Hui licked his lips and forced a smile. If Master was an ordinary expert, I’d take that as an ‘of course’ but it’s Master so… so… so! So he’s almost certainly got no other techniques!

Master! Master, how have you come this far only knowing Lightning Palm?

To be fair, Master sometimes does strange things, like use body cultivation to repair clothing. He probably has developed countless techniques, but because he categorizes them as comprehensions of body cultivation and other such things, he doesn’t see them as techniques. And since he invented them himself, he’s free to call them whatever he wishes.

He bowed to Weiheng Wu. “Thank you for your guidance, Master.”

Weiheng Wu nodded once. The wind lifted his hair, imbuing him with the aura of a distant expert, haughty and mighty. “Do not be distracted by flashy techniques. The most important aspect of cultivation is comprehension! As long as you can comprehend, and continue to comprehend, your advancement is without limit!”

A heavy weight fell over him with Weiheng Wu’s words. The world stirred around him. Lights swirled, mysterious and shapeless. A rushing sound filled Hui’s ears. For a moment, the world was centered on Weiheng Wu, and Weiheng Wu was the sole center of the world!

Hui blinked, then bowed again, deeper this time. This… this is Master’s Dao! This is the path he walks! Only he can limit his growth. Only he can comprehend his future!

With that, Weiheng Wu’s sword unsheathed itself. He flew off, soaring to the sky. Hui remained bowed until Weiheng Wu disappeared. Though he learned no techniques today, a glimpse at his Master’s Dao enlightened him as to the form of the Dao and the future before him.

Hui finally stood, eyes glimmering. I’ll surpass the fourth tier, and the fifth, and on and on until I reach the immortal realm. I’ll find my own path. I’ll forge my own future. Just like Master, I, too, will find my Dao!