Chapter 396: Watch My Fist

Qiu Jin'an, at the helm of one of the five great immortal sects, master of the Five Elements Sect and a wielder of true power in the Central Continent, could summon his entire sect with a single command, shifting the very balance of the world.

The Five Elements Sect thoroughly embodied the philosophy of the five elements, and any elemental spell in existence could be found within its walls; even beyond these, the sect maintained vast reserves of other techniques, boasting a scripture pavilion grand enough to rival that of the royal family itself.

Yet it was this very man who, to safeguard his seniority, bore humiliation and bore his burden in silence, secretly infiltrating enemy territory to humbly seek knowledge from an adversary's disciples—a spirit that filled Meng Jingzhou with profound admiration.

Meng Jingzhou fell into contemplation, recalling how his fist technique could have possibly leaked out.

It seemed he had casually mentioned it to Yan Tianzhi, Bai Ming, and others during the Qingzhou Grand Ceremony, and Bai Ming, likely having never seen such a technique before, had asked his master, Qiu Jin'an.

Upon hearing that such a fist technique existed, Qiu Jin'an had made his way here.

Everything was finally explained.

For Qiu Jin'an to become the sect master of the Five Elements Sect, his cultivation was beyond question; even the elders would not necessarily match him in single combat, making his infiltration of the Dao Seeking Sect an effortless task—for no matter how high Old Ma's cultivation might be, it could never surpass that of an immortal sect master.

Meng Jingzhou's face twisted in conflict, caught between a piece of good news and a piece of bad news.

The good news was that his personal safety was assured.

The bad news was that he had no idea how to teach the Bachelor's Curse Fist.

"Sect Master Qiu, it is not that I refuse to teach you, but I truly do not know how to pass it on; the Bachelor's Curse Fist belongs solely to my lineage of the Bachelor Spiritual Root, imbued with a dense, resentful aura, and it was only because I formed Dual Bachelor Golden Cores that I comprehended this set of strikes."

Qiu Jin'an watched Meng Jingzhou in silence, thinking to himself that the eldest son of the Meng family and a disciple of the Dao Seeking Sect was indeed bold beyond measure, for this was the first time he had ever heard of someone forming two Bachelor Golden Cores.

Such an attitude of burning one's bridges was truly worthy of respect.

He pondered for a moment before speaking, "To think such a thing could be; perform it once first and let me see."

Meng Jingzhou dared not defy Qiu Jin'an's wishes, and his twin Bachelor Golden Cores began to revolve, creating a vortex within his dantian that channeled spiritual energy throughout his entire body.

"Hah!"

"Yah!"

Meng Jingzhou fought with a fierce, howling wind, his fist imprints striking with astonishing force; even casting aside the effect of cursing people to be single, the sheer might of the strikes alone was enough to contend for supremacy in the Golden Core stage.

He also keenly perceived the power of the curse hidden within the fist imprints, which indeed possessed the capacity to doom someone to perpetual bachelorhood.

"A natural candidate for Buddhism."

He felt that if Meng Jingzhou were to devote himself to a Buddhist sect, he would likely be treated as a chosen Buddha-son.

Although a Bachelor Spiritual Root was generally ill-suited for joining a Buddhist monastery, that premise only applied when the root passively enforced bachelorhood.

The Meng youth was different; he actively maintained his single state, as evidenced by his determination in forming two Bachelor Golden Cores.

Meng Jingzhou finished his form and stood quietly, waiting for Qiu Jin'an's critique.

Qiu Jin'an found himself in a dilemma, recognizing that Meng Jingzhou had not lied; the core of this technique relied upon the Bachelor Golden Core, a feat only those with the Bachelor Spiritual Root could master.

Should he mimic the Bachelor Golden Core?

Qiu Jin'an pondered; the Bachelor Spiritual Root was a variant of the Metal Spiritual Root, and since he commanded the power of the five elements, mimicking the root and its core through elemental force would not be difficult.

Yet the Bachelor Spiritual Root carried a notorious reputation, and he dared not mimic it lightly.

What if he could not revert back once the mimicry was complete?

No, it was too unsafe; he had to find another way.

"Should I have the Meng youth deliver a strike to Old Second Ba?"

"No, the Meng youth's cultivation is too low; the curse of his fist would be useless against Old Second Ba."

"I have it; I can borrow his body to execute the fist technique myself, and in doing so, the Meng youth's cultivation will no longer matter, as it will be equivalent to me unleashing the strike!"

Believing this to be an excellent solution, Qiu Jin'an began to negotiate with Meng Jingzhou.

"Young Meng, how about I borrow your body for a brief moment; once the deed is done, I will impart my cultivation insights to you, and you may even choose to learn one of the closely guarded techniques of my Five Elements Sect, guaranteed to be fully mastered!"

Meng Jingzhou's eyes lit up, for the five element spells of the Five Elements Sect were renowned throughout the entire cultivation world, and he had heard that even his own Meng family had offered a fortune to acquire a single technique, only to be rejected.

"Deal!" Meng Jingzhou agreed.

It was not as if his refusal would matter anyway; before a cultivator of an immortal sect master's caliber, even if he declined, the man could easily seize control of him by force.

Where seniority and a potential stepfather were concerned, Meng Jingzhou felt Sect Master Qiu was capable of anything.

Old Uncle Ba, I am truly sorry; every grievance has its source and every debt its debtor, and though I support a twilight romance, my cultivation is too meager to stop Sect Master Qiu.

Seeing Meng Jingzhou agree, Qiu Jin'an transformed into a streak of spiritual light and entered his body.

"Execute it once more."

Meng Jingzhou unleashed the Bachelor's Curse Fist again, and with Qiu Jin'an's augmentation, his strikes carried a curse potent enough to affect even those in the Body Integration stage!

A cold, sinister smile touched Qiu Jin'an's features; Old Second Ba, let us see what you will do this time!

"Are we going now?"

"Wait, going in the dead of night is too conspicuous and might arouse Old Second Ba's suspicion; we go at daybreak."

Having been rivals for over a thousand years, Qiu Jin'an was intimately familiar with Old Uncle Ba's temperament.

This stealth technique of Qiu Jin'an's had also been forged during his youthful clashes against the Nine Disciples of the Dao Seeking Sect, who used any means necessary and frequently relied on sneak attacks.

To counter them, Qiu Jin'an had dedicated himself to comprehending the art of stealth, finally achieving a breakthrough.

His stealth prowess was now grand enough to be spoken of in the same breath as the Silent Daoist!

With dawn still far off, Meng Jingzhou resumed his meditative cultivation to pass the time, and seeing this, Qiu Jin'an began to offer earnest guidance.

"I am aware of your master's body-tempering method that refines the shadow, and it possesses merit, yet it is not without its flaws; listen to me, when training the shadow, you must avoid these specific pitfalls... these are defects even your master does not know."

In terms of breadth of knowledge, Qiu Jin'an undoubtedly ranked at the very top, and a few words of advice from him instantly resolved the issues that had plagued Meng Jingzhou for days, bringing him sudden, absolute enlightenment.

Meng Jingzhou continued his training until dawn broke, and seeing that the time was ripe, Qiu Jin'an urged him to step out of his cave dwelling.

At that moment, Old Uncle Ba was lounging at the entrance of the medicine garden, dreaming of a beautiful future.

"The method Lu Yang taught really works; girls love being praised as clever and beautiful, and Yu'er is no exception!"

A smile graced the corners of Old Uncle Ba's lips; though he appeared elderly, in terms of a Body Integration stage lifespan, he was currently equivalent to a mortal in middle age, not old at all.

"Little Meng, why have you come?"

Seeing Meng Jingzhou approach, Old Uncle Ba asked with a jovial, casual air, his pleasant mood blinding him to anything unusual about the youth.

"I have some business with you."

"What business?" Old Uncle Ba asked curiously.

"I hear you want to be my stepfather!" Meng Jingzhou erupted fiercely, his aura surging violently.

"What! Who are you!"

"Realizing it now is too late!"

Sensing imminent danger, Old Uncle Ba attempted to strike and suppress Meng Jingzhou, but a surge of energy wrapped around the youth, shattering Old Uncle Ba's controlling methods.

A smirk of successful scheming appeared on Meng Jingzhou's face as he unleashed the Bachelor's Curse Fist.

The strike landed squarely and solidly upon Old Uncle Ba's body.

Old Uncle Ba blinked his eyes, feeling absolutely nothing at all.

Meng Jingzhou and Qiu Jin'an felt as though they had struck a tangled mass of red threads; their fists could not pierce through the mesh, and instead, the crimson cords coiled around them layer upon layer, binding them fast!

"What on earth is happening?!" Qiu Jin'an cried out in shock, for this was entirely different from the outcome he had envisioned!

Meng Jingzhou’s face turned deathly pale: "We're doomed! Even you, Sect Master Qiu, cannot suppress the marriage affinity binding old man Ba—we're being struck by the backlash!"