CHAPTER 46: CHAPTER 46 FUYU MOUNTAIN

"Tell me, which mountain or which temple did you offend this time? For ordinary people, my old face should be enough to settle things."

"No, no, I swear I’ve remembered your teachings, always kind to others, never making enemies. This time, I’m really just here to bring you some tea..."

As he finished speaking, the old man’s eyes widened, and he stood up as if to leave.

"Grand Uncle Master, don’t rush! The main thing is to bring you tea, truly!

But, well, while I’m here, there’s something I’d like to consult you about, it concerns the Scorching Sun Department, not really suitable to discuss here, would you..."

The old man sized up Zhang Laoxi.

"Really?"

"As real as it gets, you know me, I definitely don’t look for trouble."

"Alright, come with me." The old man stood up, waved his hand, and the packet of tea on the table vanished into thin air.

Once they reached the back yard and entered the house, Zhang Laoxi finally couldn’t hold it in any longer.

"Here’s the thing, Grand Uncle Master, this time the Nanwu County Scorching Sun Department asked me to join a case, they encountered a Big Executor Corpse."

"Hmm?" The old man was secretly shocked, even his drooping eyelids lifted: "Big Executor Corpse? Are you sure? You didn’t mistake it for something else?"

"How could I mistake that? The features are too obvious. At first, maybe, but that Big Executor Corpse turned into a Hopping Corpse overnight, the advancement was ridiculously fast. I nailed him with more than ten Black Nails and he was still moving. Even after pinning the throat with the last one and wrapping him up with the Talisman Cloth Scroll, he could still twitch. Except for a Big Executor Corpse, it can’t be anything else!"

The old man looked at Zhang Laoxi, a bit surprised.

"You managed to suppress a Big Executor Corpse that advanced to a Hopping Corpse? Seems you haven’t slacked off these past years outside."

Zhang Laoxi was a little embarrassed. There was no way he could manage that alone—Big Executor Corpses are a different league from ordinary zombies; he was too embarrassed to boast about it.

"Ahem, Grand Uncle Master, I had help, but that’s not the point. The key is, I remember, in our Fuyu Mountain records, there’s a divine skill related to Big Executor Corpse, right?"

"That’s a divine skill—all lost ages ago. Why are you asking about this?"

"I just remember it’s called Scorching Sun, right?"

The old man lifted his eyelids, his gaze deep, staring at Zhang Laoxi for a while.

He was only old, not muddle-headed. He might not recall all the specifics, but he had told that story to Zhang Laoxi’s generation of disciples at least ten times. How could Zhang Laoxi not remember the name of the divine skill?

Zhang Laoxi was clearly playing dumb. The old man pondered for a moment, then, having thought it over, didn’t ask why. After some consideration, he spoke slowly.

"A divine skill is called so because you are born with it—it can’t be cultivated later.

We call it divine skill; the Scorching Sun Department calls it Professional Ability.

We are all Taoists by profession. If we have Professional Ability, then that is our divine skill.

The divine skill of the Thirteenth Ancestor was Scorching Sun. But regrettably, after the Thirteenth Ancestor, not a single person of Fuyu Mountain ever awakened that divine skill again.

The Thirteenth Ancestor was a prodigy and, inspired by that skill, tried to create some methods that could be passed on. He even tried to break with sectarian traditions and incorporate it into our later Granting Scroll System.

But unfortunately, the signs of the Last Dharma were already appearing back then, and the Thirteenth Ancestor died young, managing to create only a tiny fragment of it.

Later, even that fragment couldn’t be used anymore. The dharma faded, the end times rolled in, each generation weaker than the last, until it all turned into legend.

Only a few decades ago did signs of revival begin to show again.

Sadly, the Thirteenth Ancestor left no offspring, no corresponding treasures, and didn’t integrate it into Granting Scrolls. All his power was spent to complete the last Enlightenment of the Big Executor.

If not for that, our sect wouldn’t have gone without anyone awakening the skill or putting it to use."

"Grand Uncle Master, does that mean only the bloodline descendants of Thirteenth Ancestor have a chance to awaken the divine skill?"

"The world is vast; not necessarily. Still, for some unique divine skills in different sects, the chance of inheriting them through bloodline is quite high. Except for ascending the scroll and turning it into a Daoist skill for later generations to use, bloodline is the most reliable way."

At this, the old man seemed to recall something, got up, and walked toward the inner hall.

"Wait here."

Moments later, the old man returned with a thick, black-yellowed book, flipping it gently to a certain page.

"Because of multiple losses and damage, the events of that year are unclear. I vaguely recall... Oh, found it, here it is.

This is the record about the Sixteenth Ancestor. Here, it says, although the Thirteenth Ancestor never married, he did have someone he loved. His elders even tried to arrange a marriage for him, but nothing came of it.

Before his passing, the Sixteenth Ancestor expressed regret about this matter.

Back then, the Sixteenth Ancestor had already sensed the world was descending into chaos, that the Last Dharma was about to begin.

From then on, the Daoist arts declined irreversibly. Martial training, on the other hand, managed to keep going—as a means of protecting the Dao.

The Scorching Sun Fist you practiced as a child was created by the Sixteenth Ancestor.

Actually, at first, it was the Sixteenth Ancestor who, based on the Thirteenth Ancestor’s leftover fragments, extended and developed the move—meant to be used in tandem with the Scorching Sun God Power.

Regrettably, since then, no disciple in our sect has awakened Scorching Sun, so we’re left only practicing the external skills for basic training."

The old man flipped some more pages in the book.

"This is all that remains of Scorching Sun Fist. Without Scorching Sun God Power, you need huge amounts of precious herbs to supplement it; results are halved with twice the effort—just not worth it. You’d be better off learning something else."

"Grand Uncle Master, am I allowed to read this?"

"Doesn’t matter now. Without Scorching Sun God Power, this Scorching Sun Fist is just basic training at most. Times have changed. Cherishing old things serves no purpose. Whoever wants to learn, let them. I’ve already had copies made—if you want one, find your junior brother outside and he’ll give you a copy."

Zhang Laoxi stared at the text, reading and reading, suddenly startled awake.

Does Grand Uncle Master know something? Or has he figured something out?

Why show him the deeper content of Scorching Sun Fist and openly say anyone can learn it—what does that mean?

He glanced at the old man. The old man’s expression was calm. It was clear he just didn’t want it all lost; nothing strange beyond that.

Zhang Laoxi had not, in fact, come back for this matter, but now, he felt there was no need to ask anything else.

After some hesitation, he said:

"Grand Uncle Master, regarding this case, I can’t really explain the details, I..."

"Enough." The old man raised a hand, stopping Zhang Laoxi: "If you’re working a case for the Scorching Sun Department, then follow their rules. As I’ve always said: after you left the mountain, as long as you don’t betray the sect, don’t deceive your masters or ancestors, don’t do evil—anything else, do as you will. Did you want to ask anything else on this visit?"

"Nothing else, I really just came to bring you tea, and ask a few things..."

"If that’s all, get out, then."

"Well... I’ll take my leave, then. I’ll be back to see you next time."

The old man watched Zhang Laoxi, seeing how quickly he lost his composure, and instead, he broke into a smile.

"Hold on. Since you can handle a Big Executor Hopping Corpse, go pick one from the back mountain. Whatever you can take, that’s up to you.

As for the rest, wait until you come back next time—when the case is fully over and you can talk, then we’ll talk."

"Grand Uncle Master..." Zhang Laoxi looked uncertain, wanting to say he’d met someone with Scorching Sun.

But the next moment, the old man shook his head and scolded with a laugh.

"Hurry up and get lost!"