「Seven years ago, in a dream.」
Lu Xuan was only nine years old back then. He had already started tending the fire and cooking for Grandpa Li and Brother Zhang, and was also responsible for chores like splitting firewood. He didn't find it a burden. To him, them taking him in was a monumental act of kindness, and he believed he should naturally do his share of the work.
But he was still small and didn't have much strength, so splitting firewood was exhausting.
HUFF... PUFF...!
Little Lu Xuan gripped an axe that was half as tall as he was. He swung it down with all his might, but it barely sank an inch into the wood. He had to strike it more than ten times before he finally managed to split one log.
"This wood is so hard!" he whimpered, his eyes welling up with frustrated tears. Zhang Ling, who was nearby, burst out laughing and teased him:
"Hey, little guy, want me to help you?"
"No!" Little Lu Xuan grumbled, but then said with immense seriousness, "I do it my own self!"
Though so tired he was slurring his words, he raised the axe again and kept swinging, one strike after another.
"What an interesting little fellow." A middle-aged man visiting Grandpa Li chuckled, then bowed to the old man and said:
"Martial Uncle, I see that despite his youth, this child possesses great perseverance. I wish to teach him a Wood Splitting Form. May I?"
The old man glanced at him and said lazily:
"Do as you wish."
"Yes, Martial Uncle."
With that, the middle-aged man walked over to Little Lu Xuan, squatted down, and spoke gently:
"Little one, that's not how you split firewood. I can teach you. Do you want to learn?"
Little Lu Xuan put down the axe, tilted his head in thought, and then gave a proper-looking bow.
"I want to learn. Please teach me."
The middle-aged man chuckled again.
"Then I shall teach you. Hmm, let me think... Yes, I'll teach you this one. Let's see if you can learn it."
He paused, then placed his palm on Little Lu Xuan's head and began to guide him slowly.
"Now, in your mind, imagine a scene of Heaven and Earth inverting, of the sun and moon overturning. Imagine the entire firmament flipping over and crashing down. Then, feel the circulation of my energy..."
Little Lu Xuan nodded. A moment later, he spoke in a daze:
"What does it look like when Heaven and Earth invert and fall? I can't imagine it..."
"Just picture it however you think it looks. If you are fated to walk the path of cultivation in the future, I will let you see it for real."
"Okay!" Little Lu Xuan nodded again. He then lowered his head, grabbed the axe, and lifted it high above him. He focused his mind, trying to visualize the scene of the world turning upside down and to comprehend the flow of energy.
"You can put the axe down," the middle-aged man said cheerfully. "Although this is just the foundation of a powerful killing move, it's not something you can learn so quickly. Aren't you tired holding it up like that..."
He hadn't even finished his sentence.
"Hiyah!"
Little Lu Xuan's cheeks puffed out. He held the axe with both hands as if holding a great bell or lifting a massive seal. With a sharp sound, the axe fell, splitting the thick log in two.
The middle-aged man's jaw slowly dropped.
"Uncle, I learned the Wood Splitting Form!"
"Oh, ah, good..." The middle-aged man was dazed for a moment. He turned to Grandpa Li, his breathing quickening. "Martial Uncle, may I take this child as my disciple and have him cultivate alongside me?"
"Ask the child. Why are you asking me?" the old man said, glancing at him.
The middle-aged man immediately turned his gaze back to Little Lu Xuan, only to see him waving his hands frantically.
"Uncle, I'm not leaving! I want to stay here!"
"But... why?"
"Because Grandpa Li and Brother Zhang are here. They're like my family. I can't leave my family."
The middle-aged man staggered. When he stole a glance at his Martial Uncle and saw that the old man didn't refute the boy's claim, his heart trembled violently.
He gave a wistful smile and dropped the matter of taking a disciple. Instead, he ruffled Little Lu Xuan's hair.
"I'm not just some 'Uncle,' little one. Remember, my surname is Dong, and my Daoist name is Guangcheng Zi."
"Okay, I'll remember." Little Lu Xuan bowed again. "Thank you, Uncle Dong, for teaching me the Wood Splitting Form!"
After saying that, he muttered under his breath:
"But I feel like calling it the Heaven-Flipping Form, or maybe the Heaven-Flipping Seal, sounds better."
The middle-aged man burst into laughter again, but there was a hint of regret in his laugh.
He had discovered a priceless pearl but was unable to take him as a disciple. How could he not be filled with regret?
......
「Inspectorate Building.」
No one would have ever imagined that the boy, who seemed to have gone stark raving mad, would dare to attack the White Elephant Hall Master.
But that was exactly what the boy did.
The White Elephant Hall Master watched the little boy leap into the air, the corner of his mouth twitching. He didn't dodge or evade, not even raising a hand to block. He simply stood there quietly.
And in midair,
Lu Xuan, his hands held as if carrying a great bell or lifting a massive seal, struck down viciously. He was using the Wood Splitting Form—the very technique Uncle Dong had taught him in his dream, the one he had used to split firewood for seven years.
"Foolish..." the White Elephant Hall Master uttered coldly.
The next instant.
BOOM!!!
A terrifying shockwave, far beyond anyone's imagination, erupted. The violent blast of air scattered in all directions, rattling the front counter, knocking Chen Xiaoyu to the floor with a thud that brought tears to her eyes, and sending Director Ji's clothes flapping wildly!
The ground cracked as dust and smoke billowed up.
But faster than the rising dust was a figure sent flying backward. Trailing a spray of blood, the figure slammed violently into a wall!
Everyone struggled to open their eyes against the gale-force wind. They instinctively looked to the side and saw the White Elephant Hall Master, half his body embedded in the wall.
The White Elephant Hall Master, who had been so imperious just a second before, now had a caved-in chest. Countless bones in his body were shattered. He hung limply from the wall, blood constantly spilling from his mouth. He was clearly critically injured!
What... what was going on??
Whether it was the ordinary bystanders, the Inspectorate staff, or even Director Ji, everyone's mind went blank. An overwhelming sense of absurdity washed over them!
It wasn't until the raggedly dressed boy slowly walked out of the dust and smoke that they snapped back to their senses, their expressions changing drastically!!
"This... this can't be real, can it?" someone murmured as if talking in their sleep, looking around in a daze. "Am I dreaming?"
GULP!
Someone's legs turned to jelly as they stammered out:
"That kid... he seriously injured the White Elephant Hall Master with one strike? Impossible, this is impossible..."
Director Ji had also reacted by now. His expression was a mixture of shock and disbelief, and he even took an involuntary step back.
Unlike the others, he wasn't just shocked that the boy had critically injured the White Elephant Hall Master in a single blow. He was even more astounded by the faint intent he had sensed when the boy attacked—an intent that felt like the world itself was being overturned!
It was faint, but the terrifying sense of crushing pressure was undeniably real. Even just watching from the sidelines had caused cold sweat to bead on his back!
'What kind of Technique is this??'
Just then, Lu Xuan slowly walked over to the White Elephant Hall Master and came to a stop.
The latter was coughing up mouthfuls of blood, his eyes filled with terror and disbelief. He wanted to say something but could only manage a guttural "HURK... HURK..." sound.
"I'm sorry," Lu Xuan said apologetically. "You're stronger than I thought, so I didn't kill you with the first hit. I'm truly sorry for making you suffer like this."
His tone was filled with sincerity, with no trace of mockery.
The White Elephant Hall Master's struggles grew more violent, his caved-in chest heaving dramatically.
"Let me send you on your way," Lu Xuan said with earnest sincerity. "This was my mistake. I'll be more careful next time."
As he spoke, he raised his hands again, as if holding a great bell or lifting a massive seal.
Director Ji's expression changed once more. 'That's it, that's the feeling!' he thought. 'That feeling as if the sky itself is falling!'
The boy brought his hands down again, chanting softly:
"Wood Splitting Form."
The White Elephant Hall Master's pupils contracted violently. In his daze, he saw an Ancient Divine Mountain crumbling, a vast expanse of sky collapsing, the entire world inverting...
He once again made a gurgling sound, trying to beg for mercy, but before the sound could travel far, it was silenced by a pair of hands as flawless as jade.
Shattered along with it was his vigorously beating heart.
"Rest in peace," the boy said softly. "Your killer was Lu Xuan."