The Nine Cauldrons

Earth Elemental Dao

It was a dark night. Teng Qingshan stood amidst the shadows outside the house of his grandfather, Teng Yunlong.

Then suddenly—

“Qinghu?” With one glance, Teng Qingshan could see a man, dressed in heavy armor while carrying an infant. Beside him was a woman whose eyes appeared red and swollen. It was Qinghu, and he looked completely different from four years ago.

“Father, Mother.” Qinghu stood in front of the house right beside Teng Yunlong’s. The door of that house opened, and a couple emerged. It was Teng Qinghu’s father, Teng Yonghang, and his wife.

“Qinghu, are you going as well?” Teng Yonghang said in a deep tone.

“Yes. I am the commander of the Black Armored Army. How can I cower at this time?” Qinghu gave the infant to his wife, who was beside him. With a loud bang, he knelt and kowtowed three times. Then he raised his head and said, “Father, Mother, please forgive my unfilliality. Wifey, take care of my parents while I am gone.”

The woman carrying the infant beside him bit her lips and nodded heavily as she replied, “I will, Qinghu.”

“Creak!”

The doors of Teng Yunlong’s house opened, and Teng Yunlong and Yuan Lan, who was pushing the wheelchair, came out together.

“Grandpa.” Qinghu said as he turned to face Teng Yunlong.

“Yes.” Teng Yunlong stared at his grandson as he laughed out loud and said, “Alright… Remember, you are Teng Qinghu, the Raging Inferno Spear in the 《Earthly Ranking》. You are a man of the Teng Clan. Go… The clan will take care of your family.” Teng Yunlong’s voice rang out clearly, but there were tears in his eyes.

Qinghu kowtowed repeatedly toward Teng Yunlong and stood up.

“Wifey.” Qinghu hugged his wife gently and carried his baby. He lowered his head and kissed the baby’s small face. A teardrop rolled down his face and fell on his child’s face.

“Whew!”

He then gave the baby back to his wife. Qinghu gripped a silver-colored long spear and strided forward. He never looked back.

“Sniffle…” The young woman carrying the baby couldn’t help but cry out loud.

Teng Qingshan watched this scene in silence. He stared at his father, who was sitting in the wheelchair, and his mother, who was pushing the wheelchair.

“Father, Mother, don’t worry… I will not let them die. I won’t,” he said inwardly.

Teng Qingshan stared at his parents. Then his body became a blur, and he vanished into thin air.

If war between Qing Hu Island and the Gui Yuan Sect really ensued, Qinghu naturally had to fight at the head of the troops since he was the commander of the Black Armored Army. No matter how powerful Qinghu was, he might still die while fighting in a sea of people.

At the Gui Yuan Sect’s training field:

Teng Qingshan walked inside the Gui Yuan Sect, and with one glance, he could spot the training field. In the past, when he had been the commander of the Black Armored Army, he had also lead the army at that same place.

The training field was illuminated by numerous torches. Many Black Armored Soldiers, dressed in heavy armor and wielding weapons, were guffawing and teasing one another.

“Haha, look at your cowardly face. It’s just the soldiers of Qing Hu Island. Killing them is as easy slicing watermelons.”

“Commander, all one hundred men of the third battalion of the first barrack have arrived!” A loud voice rang out.

“All one hundred men of the first battalion of the first barrack have arrived!” Another deep and loud shout boomed out.

……

Teng Qingshan stared at the men in silence. Although they appeared as though they didn’t care, many of them had red and swollen eyes. Teng Qingshan knew many of these Black Armored Soldiers, and he considered many of them as brothers.

“All one hundred men of the first battalion of the second barrack have arrived.”

“….All have arrived.”

The loud shouts stunned Teng Qingshan. Although he was the superior Emptiness Realm Expert, he still felt stunned when he heard the shouts of the many brothers in the Black Armored Army.

At this very moment…

“Old Commander.”

“Teacher, why did you come?”

“Old Commander, we alone are sufficient to defeat Qing Hu Island.”

“Haha, why? Do you think I am incapable because I lost an arm?” A guffaw rang out.

Teng Qingshan shuddered as he scrutinized the person standing in the distance. It was a one-armed elder… This one-armed elder was the senior which Teng Qingshan had met when he first joined the Black Armored Army—First Commander Ji Hong. Ji Hong had lost his right arm during a fight for the Black Fire Spirit Root and renounced his position as the commander, giving Teng Qingshan the position.

“Commander Ji Hong…” Teng Qingshan stared at the silver-haired one-armed elder. Compared to four years ago, Ji Hong looked much older.

Ji Hong was carrying a war saber. He laughed out loud and said, “Qing Hu Island wishes to eradicate the Gui Yuan Sect? Dream on!”

“I, Ji Hong, wore open pants in the Gui Yuan Sect when I was young. I peed in the Gui Yuan Sect and played with the mud in the Gui Yuan Sect.

“I learned to wield a saber in the Gui Yuan Sect, and I had and raised my children in the Gui Yuan Sect. I taught my disciples in the Gui Yuan Sect… This land belongs to the Gui Yuan Sect! No one can take away our home!” Ji Hong’s face appeared ghastly as he asserted, “I will kill the ones who try to take away my home!”

Ji Hong lowered his head and grabbed a handful of dirt. A calm and peaceful smile then crept onto his face.

“Senior Martial Brother Ji, didn’t we all grow up in Gui Yuan Sect? Didn’t we all marry and have children in the Gui Yuan Sect?” A group of several silver-white-haired but energetic elders, dressed in armour and wielding swords, sabers, and spears, appeared. These elders exhibited an imposing manner much more powerful than that of the Black Armored Army.

“I’ve played at Longgang since I was young. Even if I have to sacrifice my life, I will guard Longgang for the Gui Yuan Sect.” An elder turned and stared at Longgang, situated in the south.

The disciples of the Gui Yuan Sect loved this great land.

This place was their roots!

……

Teng Qingshan had already disappeared in silence and arrived at Elder Wu’s mansion. Besides the Six Legged Bladelike Chi resting underground, there was no one in the mansion.

Teng Qingshan sat cross-legged on the spacious training field.

“That kind of love…

“They love this land. They were born in this land. They grew up in this land. They got married and bore children in this land. Now, they are growing old in this land, and they are willing to fight to the death for this land.”

As Teng Qingshan was greatly influenced by the members of the Teng Clan, the Black Armored Soldiers, and the Elders of the Gui Yuan Sect, his Spirit entered a special state… Teng Qingshan’s Spirit connected naturally with the great land, and a strong sense of love surged in Teng Qingshan’s heart.

The love he had for this great land… It was as though this great land was his mother.

Soon…

A earthy yellow glow permeated from Teng Qingshan’s body. However, Teng Qingshan didn’t notice at all.

“Great land…” Unknowingly, Teng Qingshan had transformed into the great land.

He could feel the tiny grass breaking through the ground, growing, and withering, as well as the repeated cycle of this growth.

Teng Qingshan could sense the lively infants babbling and laughing as they learned how to talk. He could sense the lively children, the teenagers practicing their martial arts arduously, the young adults who ventured into the whole world, the middle-aged men and women with families and jobs, and elderly people having fun with their grandchildren.

He could feel the love that the grass, flowers, trees, and humans had for this land.

……

As Teng Qingshan was immersed in this feeling, he couldn’t help but begin practicing fist art. The moves of the 《Earth Element Fist》 exhibited a different but extraordinary appeal. The first move, second move, third move… When Teng Qingshan was done practicing the eighth move, he automatically began practicing the first move again.

Thus, the cycle continued like that.

A long, long time passed by…

“Rumble~~” Teng Qingshan didn’t use even a bit of the Power of the Heavens and the Earth, but the fist art that he performed caused the earth to tremble.

“Whiz!”

A figure descended into the courtyard. It was Zhuge Yuanhong. With astonishment, he watched Teng Qingshan practicing his fist art. “Qingshan, he…”

Simultaneously, two other figures descended. They were the Law Enforcing Elders of the Gui Yuan Sect, Elder Yan and Elder Ni.

With a grave and stern expression, Elder Ni stared at Teng Qingshan, who was practicing fist art. His expression changed to one of astonishment as he asked, “Sovereign, who is this?”

“I have never met this person before,” Elder Yan said with a frown.

“He is a guest of the Gui Yuan Sect.” Zhuge Yuanhong observed Teng Qingshan’s fist art attentively and ordered, “Don’t talk. Just observe his fist art.”

Teng Qingshan was so immersed in the practice of the fist art that he wasn’t aware there were people nearby.

“Rumble~~” The earth split open, and a horrifying triangular head popped out from the cracks of the earth. It stretched out a pair of its bladelike legs. The Six Legged Bladelike Chi shot a cold glance at Zhuge Yuanhong and the other two turning to focus entirely on Teng Qingshan’s fist art. Although the Six Legged Bladelike Chi mainly analyzed the Dao of the Gold Element, it had some understanding of the Earth Elemental Dao because of the long time it spent underground.

At this moment, the Six Legged Bladelike Chi was extremely excited as it watched Teng Qingshan practice his fist art.

“This is—” Elder Ni and Elder Yan were both shocked by the Six Legged Bladelike Chi’s emergence from the ground.

“This demonic beast belongs to our guest,” Zhuge Yuanhong said while his eyes remained focused on Teng Qingshan practicing fist art.

……

A long time passed, and a hint of light finally illuminated the space between the heaven and the earth. Dawn had arrived.

Teng Qingshan struck out with his fist art again. The first move, second move… until the eighth move!

After the eighth move, Teng Qingshan pressed down with his left hand and struck out with his right hand. In the eyes of Zhuge Yuanhong and the other two, Teng Qingshan’s last move seemed to exhibit the characteristic of the vast and endless earth, not excluding anything at all.

Then it became quiet.

Teng Qingshan resolved his stance and stood upright in a peaceful manner. Zhuge Yuanhong, Elder Wan, and Elder Ni all stared at Teng Qingshan.

Swirling earthy yellow lights enveloped Teng Qingshan. Gradually, his eyes opened, and tears welled up in his eyes. His eyes appeared brighter than before. “Mother Earth forgives, obey, and nurture all living beings that depend on it. She nurtures and tolerate every creature. She is the mother of all living beings, and all living beings love the earth.

“Mother Earth is kind and good. Thus, she was able to nurture all living beings”.

Teng Qingshan had never felt this peaceful. As he paced on the earth, he could sense the power transmitting from the earth.

Henceforth—

Teng Qingshan finally created the ninth move of his 《Earth Element Fist》. After he made accomplishments in the cultivation of the Fire Elemental Dao and the Metal Elemental Dao, he had now also made an accomplishment in the cultivation of the Earth Elemental Dao!

“It’s no wonder that I was unable to create the ninth fist for such a long time. I originally only knew that the earth was massive and heavy. Hence, I had aimed for a heavy and great strength… With such an understanding, how could I create the ninth move? How could I gain insight of the Earthly Elemental Dao?” Teng Qingshan finally understood.

“Walla~~” Clamors suddenly resounded from the east.

“Yes?” Zhuge Yuanhong and the other two looked eastward.

“Oh, no. The last army have arrived.” Elder Ni said with a grave and stern face.

“All three armies have arrived, and it’s daytime now. I’m afraid the battle is about to begin,” Elder Yan said solemnly.

“Senior Jing Yi, we will go up on the city wall first,” Zhuge Yuanhong said as he stared at Teng Qingshan.

“Jing Yi?”

Elder Yan and Elder Ni were astounded. As they exchanged glances, joyful expressions showed on their faces.

Teng Qingshan responded, “Go to the city walls first. I will be there later!”