"Great Xia, an imperial nation of the ninth rank, had suffered a devastating blow five years ago after losing a thoroughly crushing defeat to Qingsong Country at the Three Realms Mountain. Forced to accept numerous unequal treaties, it had spent the past five years enduring ceaseless cursing from court to countryside.
From high-ranking officials and nobles down to ordinary commoners, there was only one person everyone cursed: Fang Chen, the heir to General Fang's estate!
Five years ago, Fang Chen, then only eighteen years old, had led troops into battle as the number one expert of Great Xia. He was skilled in strategy and fierce in assault; undefeated since his debut, he had been hailed by the entire nation of Great Xia as the Military God.
Yet in this battle, out of the eight hundred thousand troops Fang Chen led, a full six hundred thousand had died! Even he, acting as the commander-in-chief, had his eyes crippled and his Qi sea shattered, reducing him from that moment on to a useless cripple.
Within the majestic and imposing General's Estate, a young man gazed quietly up at the sky. His nose was as straight as a suspended gall bladder and his brows like the edges of swords. Merely standing there so quietly, he exuded a faint, ethereal aura that made it difficult for others to see through him.
Yet in truth, he could see nothing at all. His eyes were an eerie, grayish-white, to the point where his pupils were nearly invisible.
Five years ago, when he engaged the number one wolf-general of Qingsong Country, a battle that should have ended in certain victory had been completely reversed because Qingsong Country had secretly invited a powerhouse from an eighth-rank realm to launch a sneak attack!
He had lost, his Qi sea had been broken, and he had been reduced to a useless cripple.
At the threshold of death from severe injuries, he had seemed to see a fairy gazing down at the human realm from within the blazing sun in the sky. He had looked at the fairy, and the fairy had looked back at him. Immediately afterward, a dazzling, blinding divine light had engulfed him, and after that, he became blind.
The number one wolf-general had not killed him, choosing instead to let him leave.
He vaguely remembered the parting words the number one wolf-general had spoken to him:
\"When you return to Great Xia, you will learn what it means to wish you were dead. Letting you live is, in truth, the greatest torture for you.\"
Sure enough, over the past five years, he had endured all manner of curses and insults. Those who had once raced to befriend him now avoided him like a plague-deity.
\"Second Sister, you must be eighteen this year, right? It's the age for you to marry—are you still going to play tricks on your eldest brother?\"
Fang Chen spoke up suddenly.
Not far behind him, Fang Zhixue, who had been creeping up step by step until she was still a dozen paces away from Fang Chen, instantly wore a displeased expression. \"Big Brother, why can't you ever miss me? My cultivation has already reached the Human Profound Second Realm - Burst Qi!\"
The Human Profound realm had four stages: Qi Condensation, Burst Qi, Qi Control, and Dan Qi.
The Burst Qi realm was already a rare sight in Great Xia, enough to be considered a top-tier expert. As for Qi Control, those were figures capable of splitting mountains and founding sects.
The Fang Chen of the past had possessed matchless talent, breaking through the Qi Control bottleneck to advance to Dan Qi at only eighteen years of age. He had also been the sole Dan Qi expert in all of Great Xia!
\"What brings you here?\"
Fang Chen asked indifferently.
\"Brother, the Emperor has bestowed a marriage upon you...\"
Fang Zhixue's expression suddenly grew dim.
\"Bestowed a marriage? Why would the Emperor bestow a marriage upon a cripple like me? Which family's maiden could possibly fancy me?\"
Fang Chen chuckled lightly. \"What tricks are at play here?\"
\"The Emperor wants you to marry into the Xiao family as a matrilocal husband, using this to ease the relations between Great Xia and Qingsong Country. Recently, Qingsong Country has begun growing restless once again, and the Emperor is afraid.\"
Fang Zhixue clenched her fists tightly, her eye rims turning red. \"Father... has already agreed...\"
\"The Xiao family, the premier clan of Qingsong Country? The family of Wolf-General Xiao?\"
Fang Chen was slightly stunned, and then his expression grew calm. \"Why? Even the Xiao family wouldn't deign to look at a cripple like me, not to mention that I was once a mortal enemy of Wolf-General Xiao.\"
\"It was proposed by the eldest miss of the Xiao family. She said she had seen countless men, yet she desperately wanted to taste what the former number one Military God of Great Xia was like. She used this as leverage to force the Emperor into submission. If the Emperor refuses to bestow the marriage, Qingsong Country will roll over us again, and this time, they won't stop until they march all the way to the Capital.\"
Fang Zhixue said in a low voice.
\"The daughter of my mortal enemy wants me to marry into her family as a husband? Hehe...\"
Fang Chen let out a faint, light chuckle.
Fang Zhixue's voice suddenly grew urgent. \"Big Brother, let me take you away from the Capital. We'll flee to the mountains where there's nobody else; they'll never find us.\"
\"Second Sister, if I leave, what kind of treatment do you think the Fang family will face? Would the Emperor spare the rest of the Fang family?\"
Fang Chen shook his head indifferently. \"I am merely a cripple. If I can use this crippled body to buy Great Xia a few more years of time, perhaps there will be a turning point in the future, and we might avoid national subjugation.\"
\"Big Brother, don't you know how those officials and commoners curse you? Why must you still think of them at a time like this?
For the past five years, even those peddlers and hawkers have dared to curse you behind your back. Are they really worth it?\"
Whenever Fang Zhixue thought of those scenes, her anger boiled over.
\"Aren't there still you, Father, Mother, and others like you? Even if it's just for your sakes, it is worth it. What is more, there are those infants waiting to be fed; they understand nothing. Have they ever reviled or cursed me?\"
Fang Chen waved his hand. \"Off you go. Leave me to be by myself for a while.\"
Fang Zhixue was startled. She sighed softly in her heart, then turned and left.
She knew her eldest brother's temper; once he made a decision, he could neither be persuaded nor moved.
Fang Chen continued to gaze out into the distance, his grayish-white pupils dull and lifeless. Regrettably, apart from that single fleeting glimpse, he had never laid eyes upon that fairy again.
He desperately wanted to figure out all of this, and he also wanted to know why, after that day, he had acquired the ability for his soul to leave his body.
Before long, Fang Chen's soul had already slipped free, flying up into the skies above the Capital to look down upon everything.
The laughter and cheer within the imperial palace, the peddling and shouting in the streets—everything, down to the minutest detail, was taken in by his gaze.
He saw the martial artists of Qingsong Country running amok in the Capital of Great Xia, beating commoners on the streets at will, and even subjecting certain officials to brutal beatings when they accidentally bumped into them.
He saw the anger in the eyes of the surrounding commoners, the sorrow in the eyes of the soldiers, and the deep humiliation hidden in the depths of the beaten officials' gazes.
\"Hahaha! You people of Great Xia are simply useless! From now on, whenever you see us folks from Qingsong Country, you'd better address us as Lords, or else you'd better watch out when the first wolf-general leads his troops to level the Capital and kicks your old Emperor right off his dragon chair!\"
The wildly arrogant laughter was hateful and heartbreaking, yet filled with utter helplessness.
\"Hoh, such a tiny nation, yet it possesses a fellow Daoist whose soul has left the body?\"
Suddenly, a startled voice rang out beside Fang Chen's ear.
Fang Chen was slightly startled and turned to look, only to see a semi-transparent Daoist priest standing in the void, gazing back at him with an expression of equal curiosity.
Fang Chen's heart was shaken. For five years, he had never been spotted while in his soul-out-of-body state, let alone been spoken to!
Retaining his composure, Fang Chen cupped his fists. \"Greetings, fellow Daoist. May I ask how to address you?\"
The other person called him a fellow Daoist, and he called the other a fellow Daoist; that certainly wouldn't go wrong.
"Poor Daoist Yunhe, hailing from Central Continent. Is fellow Daoist also wandering the world in spirit form while passing through this place?"
"Central Continent!?"
Fang Chen's heart trembled. From a very, very young age, he had heard tales of Central Continent. Legend had it that Central Continent was home to countless powerhouses and possessed boundless territory, making it a true imperial nation of the first rank.
Yet these were merely legends; he had never laid eyes on anyone from Central Continent, and some even said that Central Continent did not exist in the mortal realm at all!
"Wait, your spiritual soul is somewhat peculiar... Hoh? You are in a soul-out-of-body state, not a Nascent Soul projection?"
Daoist Yunhe let out a sudden exclamation of surprise, and in the next instant, he raised his hand and struck out with a palm.
Fang Chen instinctively wanted to dodge, but when he opened his eyes again, he found that his soul had already returned to his physical body.
"To think he is an ordinary mortal!? How wondrous and strange. A mere mortal, yet why is his spiritual soul so robust, and how can it leave the body on its own?"
Daoist Yunhe's voice sounded once more.
Calmly, Fang Chen cupped his fists and bowed in a certain direction. "Senior, this junior is merely a martial artist whose Qi sea was crippled. I have disappointed Senior."
"Disappointed? Hahaha, how could this old man be disappointed? This old man had intended to return after wandering the mortal realm for a century, but I unintentionally discovered a piece of raw jade like you. It can be considered a stroke of fate. Your spiritual soul is naturally robust and majestic; you are simply prime material for cultivating immortality."
Daoist Yunhe laughed heartily.
He was currently projecting his Nascent Soul, and his laughter could only be heard by Fang Chen, failing to alarm the others in the General's Estate.
"Cultivating immortality!? Senior... does immortality truly exist in this world?"
Fang Chen was slightly stunned, his mind continuously flashing back to that fairy standing still amidst the blazing sun.
"You hail from an imperial nation of the ninth rank, so it is no surprise that you have never seen cultivators. Whether there are immortals in this world, this old man does not know; this old man only knows that means such as ours are, to the likes of you, immortals."
Daoist Yunhe chuckled lightly. "This old man intends to take you as my final closed-door disciple. Are you willing?"
Fang Chen was silent for a few breaths. "This junior's Qi sea is already crippled; I fear I am unable to resume cultivation."
"Qi sea? That is the terminology of you martial artists. We cultivators do not refine Qi seas. As far as I know, you martial artists have three realms—Human Profound, Earth Profound, and Heaven Profound—each divided into four minor realms, am I right?
Yet cultivators like us have no such notions. Qi Condensation, Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, Nascent Soul—your Heaven Profound realm can barely manage to exchange blows with the peak of Qi Refinement."
Daoist Yunhe said proudly.
Fang Chen's heart was shaken beyond measure.
"This old man must hurry back to Central Continent to attend to matters. If you are willing to take me as your master, this old man will take you to Central Continent together with me."
Daoist Yunhe urged.
Go to Central Continent?
A wry smile appeared on Fang Chen's face, and he cupped his fists in a bow. "This junior cannot leave."
If he left, who would clean up the mess he left behind?
His father's hair had already turned gray, his grandfather was in closed-door seclusion of life and death making his status uncertain, and even his second uncle had spent the past five years working himself to the bone for the family and Great Xia, leaving behind incurable hidden injuries that forced him to rely on a wheelchair.
"You are actually unwilling to leave with me? What on earth is there in this tiny place worth your nostalgia? As long as you follow me, I guarantee you will inevitably advance to the Golden Core realm within a century. By then, returning will be effortless."
Daoist Yunhe was somewhat astonished.
"While one's parents are alive, one does not travel far. This junior must stay behind to clean up some messes, disappointing Senior."
Fang Chen sighed softly.
"Tsk, tsk."
Daoist Yunhe looked Fang Chen up and down repeatedly. "Everyone in this world yearns for immortality. If anyone knew they could become this old man's final closed-door disciple, they would crawl to Central Continent even if their legs were broken, yet you are unwilling to follow this old man.
The rules of my sect dictate that closed-door disciples must cultivate within the sect. Since you are unwilling to go, this old man cannot take you as my closed-door disciple, but it would be a pity to waste your supreme talent.
Thus, this old man shall impart to you the introductory manual of the Three Thousand Dao Sects. From now on, you shall be an outer disciple of the Three Thousand Dao Sects of Central Continent, and you are permitted to cultivate right here. You need only return to the sect to register your name after you advance to Foundation Establishment."
With that, Daoist Yunhe raised his hand and struck out a beam of spiritual light that plunged straight into Fang Chen's glabella.
In an instant, Fang Chen felt as though a multitude of memories that did not belong to him had flooded into his mind. These memories continuously intertwined, converging into a dazzling golden tome: [Introduction to Three Thousand Dao Methods].
Fang Chen's spirit was lifted. He gently opened the tome, immediately becoming immersed in the immortal cultivation techniques.
imperceptibly, the spiritual qi of heaven and earth gathered and surged into his body without stop. This spiritual qi circulated through his meridians, nourishing his physical body. Years of failing to practice martial arts had left his vital blood depleted, but under the nourishment of this spiritual qi, his vital blood steadily grew robust once more.
Soon, the spiritual qi passed through his already damaged Qi sea, yet it showed no intention of lingering there whatsoever, continuing its circulation onward.
The sun sank and the moon rose, the moon hid and the sun appeared.
Fang Chen stood motionless in the exact same spot for an entire day and night.
The servants and maids of the General's Estate whispered among themselves in the surroundings, only falling silent when Fang Zhixue and the others hurried over.
"Could Big Brother have stood here from yesterday all the way until today!?"
Fang Zhixue gasped aloud.
"Sigh... Perhaps the news of the matrilocal marriage has filled him with resentment. Your eldest brother's pride is exceptionally high; how could he ever accept marrying into the Xiao family as a husband?"
A middle-aged man sighed softly. As he looked at Fang Chen's figure, straight as a mountain peak, a trace of heartache flashed through his eyes.
He was none other than the head of the Fang family, Fang Canghai.
As a Qi Control expert, he ought to have possessed youth-preserving techniques, yet at barely over forty years of age, his temples were already streaked with white and wrinkles multiplied on his face day by day.
"Father, can't we just refuse the Emperor? If Big Brother goes to Qingsong Country, I'm afraid he won't even live as well as a pig or a dog!"
Fang Zhixue said with a trembling voice.
"Over the past five years, Qingsong Country's national strength has grown day by day, while in contrast, our Great Xia has grown increasingly depressed. Wolf-General Xiao spoke up on behalf of his daughter, demanding that Wudao marry into the Xiao family as a matrilocal husband, or else he will lead his troops to trample the Capital of Great Xia.
This is neither a joke nor idle talk. If we refuse, Great Xia faces imminent subjugation; if we agree, perhaps there is still room for maneuver. We are constrained by circumstances beyond our control..."
Fang Canghai's eye rims reddened.
"Does Aunt's side have no way out either?"
Fang Zhixue asked in a low voice.
"Though your aunt is the Empress, she must also put Great Xia first. She understands the logic behind this as well. What way could she possibly have?"
Fang Canghai shook his head slightly. "Tomorrow, the daughter of Wolf-General Xiao will personally arrive in the Capital with an entourage. By then, your eldest brother will need to show his face. Go and persuade him to head back and rest."
At the same time.
A crystal-clear immortal meridian condensed within Fang Chen's body. In an instant, all the spiritual qi seemed to find its rightful home, surging overwhelmingly into this single immortal meridian.
The Twelfth Layer of Qi Refinement was the process of condensing immortal meridians.
With his first immortal meridian now formed, Fang Chen once more set foot into the transcendent realm. This time, he was no martial artist, but an immortal cultivator!
"Casting an immortal meridian in a single day? Hahaha, your talent is indeed extraordinary. Remember, come to my Three Thousand Dao Sects to register after reaching Foundation Establishment!"
Daoist Yunhe laughed heartily, turned, and stepped forward, vanishing without a trace.
Fang Chen slowly awoke from his trance. He bowed and cupped his fists toward the direction where Daoist Yunhe had vanished, his heart filled with gratitude. What Daoist Yunhe had done here changed not just him alone, but the fate of countless living beings across all of Great Xia!
"What is wrong with Big Brother!?"
Fang Zhixue stood there in a daze. Why on earth had Fang Chen bowed toward an empty, vacant space?
The servants of the General's Estate also failed to understand, their faces gradually taking on a strange expression.
"Chen'er."
Fang Canghai sighed softly.
"Father, why are you all here?"
Fang Chen turned to look at Fang Canghai.
At this moment, everyone fancied they saw a faint flash of brilliance shimmering within Fang Chen's lifeless, dead-still eyes. They assumed they were seeing things; after all, Fang Chen's eyes had been blind for five years.
"You've been standing here for an entire day and night, and Father was worried. If you have any thoughts in your mind, feel free to tell Father."
Fang Canghai gritted his teeth. "No matter what, Father will help you!"
"Does Father think I am worrying over this matter of marrying into their family?"
Fang Chen smiled.
"Aren't you troubled by this matter, which is why you stood here for a whole day and night?"
Fang Canghai was slightly taken aback.
Fang Chen shook his head gently. "It is not this matter. Child has figured out a few things, so Father need not worry about this affair; child will handle it properly."
With that, Fang Chen cupped his fists. "Child takes his leave first."
"Father, what do you suppose Big Brother has figured out?"
Fang Zhixue watched Fang Chen's departing back, a thoughtful expression on her face.
"Your eldest brother has been precocious since youth; the things that run through his mind are different from us ordinary folks. Perhaps he already knows how to handle the current predicament."
A sharp light flickered in Fang Canghai's eyes. This son of his had never been one to shoot arrows without a target; if he said he would handle it properly, there would fundamentally be no mistakes.
The only time he had ever been wrong was that battle at the Three Realms Mountain five years ago.
Yet while ordinary commoners did not know, he was well aware that experts from an eighth-rank imperial nation had joined that battle, which was why the situation had spiraled out of control!
"What kind of methods does Chen'er still possess? Could he be relying on those people? But his cultivation has been crippled, and even if those people were personally cultivated by him, they probably lack the ability to turn the tides in this particular matter..."
Fang Canghai fell into deep thought, unresponsive even when Fang Zhixue called out to him several times. Seeing this, Fang Zhixue could only stamp her foot and turn to leave.
...
...
Fang Chen walked out of the General's Estate. Though his eyes remained tightly shut, he walked just like any normal person, his perception of his surroundings extremely acute—an ability he had acquired only after going blind.
Or rather, it was an ability he gained when he caught that single fleeting glimpse of the blazing sun female immortal. Even without his soul leaving his body, his mind was capable of projecting everything happening around him.
"Military God Fang is out for a stroll again."
"Heh, for the past five years, our Great Xia has suffered relentless humiliation from Qingsong Country, yet only Military God Fang occasionally strolls out for tea as if this matter has zero impact on him. Could it be he doesn't feel even a shred of shame in his heart?"
"Sixty thousand soldiers buried their bones at the Three Realms Mountain, yet he still has the mood to stroll and drink tea. I truly don't know what to say."
As the surrounding passersby caught sight of Fang Chen, they pointed and gestured at him, their words laced with reprimand and anger.
"Yo, isn't this our Military God Fang? No, no, in just a few days, all of us martial warriors from Qingsong Country will have to address you as a good son-in-law!"
Suddenly, several burly men dressed in animal-skin coats appeared on the street, blocking Fang Chen's path.
The leader wore a look of contempt, mocking Fang Chen with a derisive expression.
Only the martial artists of Qingsong Country fancied wearing these animal-skin coats. Upon seeing them, the surrounding citizens of Great Xia instinctively retreated to the side, casting glances filled with a faint trace of hatred toward the men, yet lacking the daring to show it.
"What are those Qingsong Country martial artists babbling about?"
"Address Military God Fang as a good son-in-law? What is the meaning of this?"
Whispers broke out all around.
Seeing this, the Qingsong Country martial artist crowed triumphantly in a loud voice, "You lot still don't know this news? Wolf-General Xiao has already proposed marriage to your Emperor! Before long, this Military God Fang of yours will have to marry into the Xiao family as a matrilocal husband, taking the apple of the first wolf-general's eye, Xiao Shennü, as his wife!"
Marry... Xiao Shennü?
Boom—
The minds of the surrounding commoners shook, and they cast incredulous gazes toward Fang Chen.
"You're talking nonsense! How could Military God Fang ever marry into the Xiao family as a matrilocal husband!"
A scholar suddenly flushed red with anger, roaring indignantly.
"You bookish pedant, you dare say I'm talking nonsense? You truly have the guts of a bear and the heart of a leopard!"
That Qingsong Country martial artist walked straight up to the scholar, grabbed him by the collar, and slapped him across the face a dozen times on the spot, causing the scholar's head to buzz."