Heaven-Defying Rebel Sage
Chapter 87: Heaven-Defying Takes an Apprentice and Refines the Halberd

Chapter 87: Chapter 87: Heaven-Defying Takes an Apprentice and Refines the Halberd

Xue Rengui, with the Great Revolution Seal, had broken through the pass between the two realms. Li Ji led his troops to kill into the pass and annihilated the remaining defending army. After that, he ordered his soldiers to smash all the temples, Buddha statues, and so on in the city, forcibly entering the homes of the common people to destroy the Buddha statues and replace them all with statues of the Revered Taoist of the Three Pure Ones.

If you want to keep a race obedient, the best way is to destroy their faith.

Li Ji had his soldiers search the city for scriptures, Buddha statues, Buddhist instruments, and so on, and gave orders that anyone hiding these items would implicate their entire family, up to nine degrees of kinship, to serve as a warning to others! With the strict decrees proclaimed, most of the city’s residents dared not hide anything; however, a few households were searched out and taken directly to the execution platform.

Without delving into Li Ji’s grand efforts in dealing with the pass between the realms, let’s turn to Xue Rengui who rode into Chang’an and entered the Imperial Palace to have an audience with the emperor.

"Your Majesty, your servant has, in gratitude for heavenly grace, captured the pass between the two realms!" Xue Rengui arrived sweating profusely and, seeing Li Zhi come out, knelt down and kowtowed, saying.

At this time, Li Zhi had already retired to bed, but upon hearing the news, he got up immediately.

Li Zhi, full of vigor, laughed heartily, "Oh! General Xue, start from the beginning and tell us all about it. You managed to capture the pass in less than a day."

Xue Rengui nodded, "Not even a day? It was more like two to three hours..."

He then recounted the events at the pass to Li Zhi, listening to which made Li Zhi’s heart bloom with joy, and he repeatedly exclaimed with delight.

After the report, Xue Rengui asked, "Where is the Heaven-Defying Taoist Master so that I may return the Magical Treasure to him?"

Li Zhi summoned a guard and instructed him to escort Xue Rengui to the shrine built for the Heaven-Defying Taoist.

Upon entering the shrine, Xue Rengui saw the statue of the Heaven-Defying Taoist and said, "Taoist Master, Xue Li has captured the pass between the two realms and has come to return the Magical Treasure."

The Heaven-Defying Taoist emerged from the statue and stood before Xue Rengui, smiling, "Excellent!"

Xue Rengui presented the Great Seal and bow and arrows, and with a wave of his sleeve, the Heaven-Defying Taoist took them away.

The Heaven-Defying Taoist smiled, "Xue Li, let me ask you, would you like to take me as your master?"

How could Xue Rengui not wish for that? Having used the Great Revolution Seal, he had guessed how formidable the Heaven-Defying Taoist was. He promptly bowed his head in reverence and said, "Yes, I would be honored! Xue Li pays his respects to his master."

The Heaven-Defying Taoist nodded slightly and sat down in a chair.

Xue Rengui performed three kneelings and nine bows, served tea as part of the ritual to acknowledge his master, and then it was done.

The Heaven-Defying Taoist brushed his sleeve, dusting it off, and said with a smile, "I have here the Heavenly Constellation Thirty-Six Transformations and the Seventy-Two Earthly Fiend Transformations, which Dharma Gate do you wish to learn?"

Xue Rengui frowned in thought, murmuring to himself, "I wonder which of these Dharma Gates is the more formidable!"

Seeing the Heaven-Defying Taoist’s half-smiling face, he knew that if he asked, the master would likely not answer, so he had to choose on his own. At that moment, he paced with hands behind his back and tapped his forehead with the palm of his hand, deep in thought.

Once, Patriarch Subhuti had asked Wukong whether he wanted to learn the Heavenly Constellation Thirty-six Transformations or the Seventy-Two Transformations of Earthly Fiends. Wukong, puzzled, thought that Seventy-Two Transformations were more powerful because they were more numerous than Thirty-Six. Little did he know that the Thirty-Six Heavenly Constellation transformations were much stronger.

Internally, Xue Rengui deliberated, "Heaven is higher than Earth. Although the Heavenly Constellation transformations are fewer, they are probably refined and exquisite! Logically speaking, heaven is also greater than earth... In that case, I shall choose the Heavenly Constellation Thirty-Six Transformations."

Xue Rengui’s Qi Cultivation skills were obtained through dreams but weren’t particularly exquisite.

Xue Rengui respectfully said, "Master, I wish to learn the Heavenly Constellation Thirty-Six Transformations."

The Heaven-Defying Taoist inwardly nodded, his expression unchanged, and said, "Very well, since that is your choice, I will pass on to you the Thirty-Six Transformations. Listen carefully, for these Thirty-Six Transformations are powerful martial abilities! The Thirty-Six Transformations can manipulate creation, invert Yin and Yang, shift stars and exchange constellations, revert sky and sun, summon rain and wind, shake mountains and earth, ride fog and ascend clouds, turn rivers into land, soar through golden light, overturn seas and stir rivers, point to the earth to create steel, employ the great escape of the Five Elements, use the secretive techniques of the Six Jia, predict the future, lash mountains and move stones, revive the dead, fly and leave traces, breathe deeply and restore calm, extract primary Yang energy, subdue dragons and tigers, patch the sky and bathe in the sun, push mountains and fill the seas, turn stones to gold, stand without a shadow, transform at will, bloom instantly, wander spirit and control breath, see through walls, reverse wind and fire, command the Five Thunders, shrink space and conceal depth, whirl sand and move stones, carry mountains and cross the sea, grow soldiers from beans, the Nail Head Seven Arrows spell."

As the Heaven-Defying Taoist went on about the Thirty-Six Transformations at length, Xue Rengui listened, shaking his head in awe at their remarkable power.

The Heaven-Defying Taoist said with a smile, "Choosing the Heavenly Constellation Thirty-six Transformations is your good fortune. The Seventy-Two Earthly Fiend Transformations are of a lower order compared to the Thirty-six Transformations of the Heavenly Constellation, studying them would be unseemly."

Xue Rengui bowed again, "Thank you, Master!"

The Heaven-Defying Taoist commanded, "Xue Li, why do you not focus your mind? What are you waiting for?"

Xue Rengui immediately sat down cross-legged with his hands in the lotus pose placed on his knees, his eyes half-closed, as he focused his mind intently.

The Heaven-Defying Taoist then passed on the Heavenly Constellation Thirty-Six Transformation techniques, chanting, "The universe lies within the hand, myriad transformations spring from the body... All of the universe’s myriad transformations are held within one hand, and nothing goes beyond the body. Thus, all kinds of Dharma Gates require manual gestures..."

Xue Rengui, with his exceptional talent, memorized them in his heart after hearing them just once.

The Heaven-Defying Taoist asked, "Have you understood clearly and memorized everything?"

Xue Rengui opened his eyes and replied, "I didn’t understand completely, but I remember it very clearly!"

The Heaven-Defying Taoist laughed and said, "Good! As long as you remember clearly, that’s fine. Ponder it repeatedly in the future, and you’ll understand it eventually. This path of cultivation must ultimately be comprehended by oneself. As the ancient saying goes, ’The master leads you to the door, the cultivation is up to you.’ In the future, you must be diligent in your cultivation; if you are lazy or negligent, you will only end up drawing cakes to satisfy your hunger. Do you understand?"

"The disciple understands," Xue Rengui bowed his head to the ground, "Thank you, Master, for imparting the Dharma Gate!"

This Heavenly Constellation Thirty-six Transformation is far more powerful than the Seventy-Two Earthly Fiend Transformations. These thirty-six transformations are what Wukong deduced from the Seventy-Two Transformations derived from the Primordial Three Thousand Transformations Dharma Gate. The Primordial Three Thousand Transformations Dharma Gate is extremely formidable, encompassing the Three Thousand Great Paths. However, it is not something ordinary people can practice; otherwise, they would end up with no more than the cultivation level of a Taiyi Golden Immortal for their entire life. Therefore, Wukong did not pass it on to Xue Rengui.

The Heaven-Defying Taoist then asked, "Have you realized anything from the Great Revolution Seal?"

Xue Rengui said, "I have realized freedom, equality, and a firm revolutionary will."

The Heaven-Defying Taoist laughed and said, "You’re teachable! Having realized it is good."

The Heaven-Defying Taoist realized that he really had little to offer, with only a World-Cleansing Dust Whisk, a Great Revolution Seal, and nine Sun-Shooting Arrows with a Sun-Shooting Bow on hand. He had no magical treasures to give to his new disciple. A thought struck him, as if he had remembered something, and he said, "What weapon do you prefer, disciple?"

Xue Rengui answered, "I favor the halberd."

The Heaven-Defying Taoist pondered for a moment and said, "Alright, follow me out. I will forge a halberd for you."

With that, he went out in search of Li Zhi.

Li Zhi wondered what it was all about, as the Heaven-Defying Taoist sought him to request a large number of swords, spears, fine steel, and the likes, thus he provided ten thousand steel knives, two thousand longswords, a thousand steel spears, five hundred halberds, and some fine cold iron. The Heaven-Defying Taoist wrapped these weapons in his sleeve using the magic of the horsetail whisk and, bringing Xue Rengui with him, left the building. Grabbing Xue Rengui by the collar, he cast Soaring Earth Golden Light and they promptly arrived at Yuan Tiangang’s Qingyang Temple.

"What brings my brother Taoist here to find me?" Yuan Tiangang, having been disturbed, opened his eyes to see the Heaven-Defying Taoist standing before him.

The Heaven-Defying Taoist laughed and said, "It is to borrow brother Taoist’s furnace to forge a magical treasure for my disciple."

Xue Rengui naturally recognized Yuan Tiangang, the famous man of Great Tang, and greeted him, "Xue Li pays his respects to Taoist Master Yuan."

Yuan Tiangang nodded and said, "No need for such formalities." He then pointed towards the back, "Come with me."

In Yuan Tiangang’s alchemy room, which was sizable, there stood a large alchemy furnace, one zhang tall, burning with Samadhi True Fire, so fiercely that Xue Rengui was immediately sweating profusely. Seeing Xue Rengui’s discomfort, Yuan Tiangang cast a Dharma Decree that made the temperature in the alchemy room drop sharply, turning it quite cool.

The Heaven-Defying Taoist then said, "Brother Taoist, collect the Samadhi True Fire. I will use the essence of the true sun to refine it."

Yuan Tiangang nodded and cast a spell to collect the Samadhi True Fire, storing it all in a jade gourd.

With a wave of his horsetail whisk, the Heaven-Defying Taoist brought forth the Golden Crow Dharma Body, which dove into the alchemy furnace. It spewed the essence of the true sun. The furnace was thankfully made of special materials and had been consecrated by Yuan Tiangang for many years; otherwise, it might have melted from the heat.

"Go!"

With a shout from the Heaven-Defying Taoist, he waved his robe, and the steel knives, longswords, steel spears, and halberds flew into the furnace, instantly melting into molten iron under the intense heat of the true sun’s essence. If not encapsulated by mana, they might have been directly vaporized into steam.

"Brother Taoist, assist me," said the Heaven-Defying Taoist.

"Alright!" Yuan Tiangang did not waste words, drawing a talisman and casting it into the furnace.

After refining for an hour, the shape of the halberd finally emerged. The Heaven-Defying Taoist threw the Great Revolution Seal into the furnace, transforming it into a hammerhead and continuously striking the halberd, imprinting it with traces of revolutionary spirit. In a moment, he also tossed in the fine cold iron at the blade’s edge and hammered it with the Great Revolution Seal. As the old saying goes, "Good steel should be used on the edge of the blade." This fine cold iron was a rare type of high-quality iron, and there was only a fist-sized chunk of it, making it most suitable for the blade.

The Heaven-Defying Taoist then drew nine talismans, individually casting them into the halberd, and cried out, "Supreme Elderly Lord, be quick like the law!"

After another two hours of refinement, he collected the true sun’s essence and struck the alchemy furnace, causing a brightly glinting Square Sky Halberd to leap forth.

The Heaven-Defying Taoist grabbed it and found it weighed ninety thousand jin. It would be difficult for ordinary immortals to even lift it. He activated the nine talismans, and the weight of the halberd dropped dramatically, leaving it at merely two hundred and some pounds. Holding it now felt as light as a feather.

"Excellent halberd!" Yuan Tiangang couldn’t help but praise.

The Heaven-Defying Taoist tossed the Square Sky Halberd to Xue Rengui, instructing, "This halberd is too heavy, so I have affixed nine talismans. Your cultivation level is too low to handle such a heavy weapon. When you achieve the status of a Supreme Immortal, you may remove the first talisman. As a Spiritual Immortal, you can remove the second talisman, and so on, removing the talismans in sequence."

Xue Rengui admired the halberd, finding it quite to his liking and was overjoyed. He exclaimed, "Thank you, Master, for this precious gift!" He also bowed to Yuan Tiangang, "Thank you, Taoist Master Yuan, for lending your aid."

Yuan Tiangang responded with a gesture of respect and said, "Brother Taoist has accepted a fine disciple."

The Heaven-Defying Taoist said meaningfully, "Yet not as fine as yours."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Tiangang burst into hearty laughter, and the Heaven-Defying Taoist joined in the mirth.