The Headquarters of the Kongtong Sect…
The Kongtong Sect was a prominent white-path faction, widely ranked as the fifth major sect in the martial world, standing right after the four giants: Shaolin, Wudang, Huashan, and Kunlun. For over a century, no one had dared to openly provoke the Kongtong Sect.
The sect's signature skill, the Seven-Step Fist Technique, was renowned throughout the jianghu. It was famed for being able to combine and deploy seven distinct forces within a single punch.
The weakness of the technique was that if a practitioner's internal energy was weak, they risked suffering seven corresponding internal injuries.
However, the current Kongtong Sect Leader, Ting Yang, was famous for having successfully mastered the Seven-Step Fist to its ultimate level. He was a figure who stood at the absolute pinnacle of the current martial world.
Today, the entire Kongtong headquarters was in an uproar. In the grand reception hall, Sect Leader Ting Yang and his Deputy Sect Leader, Mo Zhou, seemed restless, clearly awaiting someone's arrival.
Ting Yang's temples were deeply recessed, and his eyes shone with a sharp, dazzling light—a clear sign of a supreme master with deep internal energy.
"Sect Leader, I doubt this fellow will show up. He's likely just a boastful braggart," Deputy Sect Leader Mo Zhou said to Ting Yang.
"Never underestimate an enemy, Mo Zhou. The entire martial world is showing signs of impending disaster. We hear rumors that the Nine Yin Manual Variant has reappeared, and there are stories of a hideously ugly, merciless, and terrifyingly skilled youth emerging. This so-called Nine Haven Master might be connected to these events. In any case, we must not let down our guard."
At that moment, the bell by the main gate chimed once.
"Ah, speaking of the devil, he must be here. Do not stop them. Let them enter," Ting Yang commanded, his voice calm and steady.
The man who had named himself the Nine Haven Master walked composedly into the Kongtong Sect's reception hall, hands clasped behind his back, as if merely taking a pleasant stroll. He wore a flowing, gold-colored robe and a matching golden mask that concealed his face.
Trailing close behind him were two bodyguards who looked savage and cruel. When Sect Leader Ting Yang saw the face of one of the bodyguards, his heart seized with alarm.
One man had a badly damaged eye, while the other darted nervously, restlessly scanning the surroundings. His features combined the treacherous cunning of a fox with the blood-lust of a wild beast.
Ting Yang's shock was justified. The man was Pi Wusun the Fox, a paramount figure in the dark underworld.
Pi Wusun was an infamous black-path master, a figure of terror for fifty years. He had vanished from the martial world after his humiliating defeat at the hands of the Gongsun Family Master.
Now, he had returned as a subordinate to the Nine Haven Master. He was certainly not a guest who brought goodwill. Pi Wusun was a man who had made a pact with death itself.
"Well, well. If it isn't Pi Wusun the Fox, who lost his tail to Gongsun Yang! And the other must be your sworn brother, Zhong Qi the Wind! You two are top masters—why do you serve a man who is afraid to show his own face? Hahahaha, how utterly ridiculous!"
Ting Yang's subtle but cutting sarcasm made both Pi Wusun and Zhong Qi flush red with anger.
"Sect Leader Ting Yang, your martial skill isn't your only strength; your tongue is quite sharp, too! Our Master is preparing to found the great Nine Haven Sect. Today, he merely came to test your Seven-Step Fist and to officially invite you to the grand opening," Pi Wusun retorted.
"Hahahaha! Don't be shy, man! If it's a challenge, then call it a challenge! Very well," Ting Yang replied, forcing a laugh and an easy-going demeanor. In reality, he was struggling to maintain his composure so his enemies wouldn't detect his anxiety.
Pi Wusun and Zhong Qi were individually a match for him. Together, they would surely defeat him.
At that moment, the Nine Haven Master, who had remained silent, addressed Ting Yang. His voice was terrifyingly level, without rise or fall, and chillingly cold—like a voice emerging from an ice tomb.
"Sect Leader Ting Yang, I do not wish to fight a crowd. Let us settle this with three moves between you and me. If I cannot defeat you within three moves, the three of us will kneel and leave this place. If I win, however, you must announce your defeat to me to the entire martial world."
"Very well. Let us begin," Ting Yang said, his voice betraying a slight tremor.
The battle had begun: the challenger and the challenged. The guest and the host.
The Nine Haven Master was utterly serene. Head up, hands behind his back, he still looked like a man enjoying a cool breeze. Ting Yang, by contrast, was intensely wary, constantly scanning for his opponent's opening.
Ting Yang launched the first attack: the first move of the Seven-Step Fist, the Seven Stars Flare their Tail. As the leader of a top-five sect, his technique was expert and intricate.
He channeled his full internal energy, making the force immense—enough to shatter a boulder. Unwilling to underestimate his foe, he poured his entire strength into this very first move.
The seven distinct forces accompanying his punch silently sped toward seven different points on the Nine Haven Master's body. As the incredibly fast fist neared its target, the forces split into seven separate forms. It was nearly impossible to evade.
Just then, the Nine Haven Master's feet executed a strange, complex footwork. With that single, intricate step, his entire body not only evaded Ting Yang's punch but also, like a flash of lightning, closed the distance to the now-exposed, momentarily unbalanced Ting Yang.
It was the move that steps on the throat of a poised viper.
In the next instant, the Nine Haven Master curled his right hand like an eagle's claw and struck at Ting Yang's head. Evasion and counter-attack were executed in a single, devastating move. His speed was like a shadow; to the onlookers, it seemed only a flash of gold had moved.
Kongtong Sect Leader Seven-Step Fist Ting Yang lay dead in a pool of blood, his face horribly contorted. Such was the savage law of the jungle, where only the winner survives.
Pi Wusun stepped forward.
"Your Sect Leader is dead. The rest of you, choose now: will you pledge allegiance to me, or follow him into death?" he bellowed.
As expected, several cowardly, greedy, and faithless disciples immediately scrambled to pledge their loyalty. The rest were ruthlessly slaughtered. And just like that, the Kongtong Sect, a major power in the martial world for centuries, vanished forever.
Dragon Coil Mountain...
Dragon Coil Mountain was located in a remote, arid, and sparsely populated region in the center of the Chang'an territory.
The area was a barren wasteland, a cursed land where no crops could grow. Dragon Coil Mountain stood right in the center of this hundred-mile stretch of desolate earth.
The mountain itself was shaped like a coiled dragon or snake. The only way up was a narrow path that snaked around the mountain's circumference. It was the perfect, most defensible location to guard against an enemy.
Atop Dragon Coil Mountain stood a heavily fortified bandit lair. Its leader was known as Double Blade Jin Hu.
One night, the lair was attacked and seized by the Nine Haven Master. Double Blade Jin Hu swiftly and easily pledged his fealty to the conqueror.
This event occurred about three months after the tragic demise of the Kongtong Sect. No one in the jianghu paid much attention to the disappearance of a minor bandit group.
However, soon after, the entire martial world was forced to take notice of Dragon Coil Mountain. The reason: a massive, grand sect headquarters had sprung up on the summit.
Overnight, living quarters, horse stables, guard posts, and a complex network of mazes and traps were constructed around the mountain, as if by magic.
The speed and scale of the construction suggested that the Nine Haven Master was not just a master of martial arts but a multi-talented genius. Or, at the very least, he had successfully recruited a team of multi-talented experts.
Given that he killed the Kongtong Sect Leader with a single move, it was evident that his martial skill was already unrivaled in the martial world.
Neither the current Shaolin Abbot, who was considered the number one master, nor the Gongsun Family Master, ranked number two, could have defeated Ting Yang in a single move, as Ting Yang himself was still ranked in the top eight.
Why did a master of such caliber only now step into the jianghu? Based on his skill, he should have claimed the title of martial emperor years ago. It was truly astonishing.
Where had this man been hiding all these years?
The steps of the Nine Haven Master were now becoming clear. His ambition to dominate the martial world was undisguised. The war between white and black, light and shadow, had begun.
A Wilderness in the Miao Region…
Two men stood facing each other. One was Zhong Qi the Wind, the Nine Haven Master's left-hand man. The other was Ouyang Feng the Poison Vagrant, a figure so feared that his name made the entire jianghu tremble.
The Poison Vagrant was famed for his unrivaled mastery of poison arts. Not only that, his Poison Palm Technique was also terrifyingly effective.
He had been severely injured in a past siege by the martial world and had been hiding in the Miao region ever since.
Why had Zhong Qi the Wind sought out the Poison Vagrant? It was clearly not for a friendly visit.
"Poison King, listen closely. Our Master, the Nine Haven Master, has now successfully mastered the Nine Yin Manual Variant. His martial skill is arguably peerless in the world. The Nine Yin Heat Manual, which he has long sought, is now almost within his grasp.
We are an organization built from the outcasts and the downtrodden of the martial world.
Many people like us, who have had to live in the shadows because of the so-called virtuous white-path masters, are now gathering under the banner of our Lord.
The time has come to reveal our true strength to the world. Today, the martial world must be brought to its knees beneath our feet! Therefore, I ask you to join us. Let us share in the fruits of victory together."
Zhong Qi's voice was gentle, diplomatic, and compelling. He sounded sincere, as if speaking from the heart.
"Very well, Zhong Qi. I have waited a long time for this moment. The time has finally arrived, it seems. My patience has been rewarded. I will join you," the Poison Vagrant replied.
It's no surprise that birds of a feather flock together. Are not great men attracted to each other, like the saying goes? In this incredibly short period of time, the Nine Haven Master had single-handedly recruited top black-path masters, black-path sects, and solitary black-path fighters.
When ten other high-ranking black-path masters, including Ghost Hand Zhou Yang, Cobra Jing Yong, Clay Doll Tan Xiaofeng, and Soul Blade Min Taibei, pledged allegiance to the Nine Haven Master, the power of the nascent Nine Haven Sect grew incalculably large.
The entire martial world was now shaking with fear.
The Heaven-Reaching Peak of the Kunlun Mountains…
The Heaven-Reaching Peak was situated many miles away from the main headquarters of the Kunlun Sect. It was an extremely cold area, perpetually covered in a blanket of snow.
Facing the Heaven-Reaching Peak was a steep, rugged ridge. Between the two peaks was a chasm of seemingly bottomless depth.
Today, soft snow fell on the peak. The entire area was utterly silent, devoid of any human presence.
Suddenly, a figure quickly ascended to the summit. It was a man, a real human being. He stood on the edge of the deep chasm, opened a small notebook he carried, and flipped through its pages.
He stared intently into the abyss and muttered, "Hmm, this must be the way." With that, he suddenly leapt into the deep chasm.
A man plunged into the abyss of the Heaven-Reaching Peak. Yet, his fall did not seem accidental.
He appeared to have jumped deliberately, as a rope was tied around his waist.
Though the chasm was incredibly deep, it wasn't wide, being situated between two mountain peaks. It was, in fact, quite narrow.
Tree branches jutted out from both walls of the chasm. When the man reached the halfway point, he wrapped the rope around a large branch, contorted his body, and with a flash, sprang across to the opposite cliff wall, tightly embracing a large tree growing there.
Beside the tree, there was a small cave entrance. "Got it," the man whispered, and he squeezed into the opening.
The cave mouth was wide, but the interior quickly narrowed. Eventually, he could no longer stand upright and had to crawl on all fours.
The man used a Bone-Shrinking Technique to squeeze through the ever-narrowing passage until he finally saw a streak of light. He had reached the exit.
When he emerged from the cave, the man was amazed by the stunning scenery. On the other side of the cave mouth was a massive hollow valley.
At the base of the valley was a lush, vibrant green meadow. The air was filled with fragrant flowers, beautiful birds sang, and strange animals roamed amidst ripe fruit trees. This place resembled a veritable paradise.
The valley was entirely enclosed by towering cliffs on all four sides, looking much like the base of a giant gourd.
Not far from the cave entrance, a waterfall cascaded down a small gorge into a large, crystal-clear pool.
On the cliff face next to the waterfall was a carving. It was very old, with parts having deteriorated over the years. It read: (…Manual of…) Place.
The man used a sword to dig at the spot beneath the inscription. A moment later, a small manual wrapped in oil-soaked paper appeared. Seeing the book, the man let out a cry of triumphant joy.
"Hah! Hahaha! I've done it! I've succeeded! Since the Nine Yin Manual Variant fell into my hands, I've been hunting for this Nine Yin Heat Manual. Finally, it's mine! Who can possibly challenge me now in this world?! Hahahaha!"
This man was the Nine Haven Master, the figure who now terrified the entire martial world. This was worse than giving a tiger wings.
The Nine Yin Manual Variant and the Nine Yin Heat Manual were a pair of complementary martial scrolls. The Variant focused on the techniques and moves, while the Heat Manual focused on internal energy cultivation. To master just one was enough to claim the title of martial emperor; to master both was beyond measure.
The martial skill of the Nine Haven Master had now become truly unrivaled in the world.