During the Qin Dynasty, he brought chaos to the seven kingdoms.

Chapter 28 Obtaining the Holy King's Heart Sutra

Under the intense debate between Cao Yuan and Xunzi, Fu Nian, who was already at the peak of the half-step Grandmaster realm, broke through to the Grandmaster realm as if water had naturally flowed into a channel.

Wuming cupped his hands and smiled, "Junior Brother Fu Nian, congratulations on entering the inner sanctum and becoming a Grandmaster."

Cao Yuan said, "Congratulations, Master Fu Nian."

Congratulations, Senior Brother!

The hundred scholars in the arena offered their congratulations simultaneously, their voices resounding, causing the elite armored soldiers outside the mansion to tense up, and many of them to feel their legs go weak.

The Confucian scholars of this era were not to be trifled with; they were generally skilled in martial arts, especially Xunzi, who once single-handedly beat up over a hundred royal guards and thoroughly defeated the prime minister, causing a sensation throughout the entire state of Qi.

"Aman is really amazing..."

Jingni glanced at the infatuated Meng Jiang, her delicate brows furrowing slightly.

Fu Nian's breakthrough to Grandmaster level was not good news for her and Luo Wang.

Li Wu's eyes lit up as she stole a glance at Cao Yuan, who was full of vigor in the arena, and thought to herself that if Cao Yuan were to join the Little Sage Manor, his safety should not be a concern.

Fu Nian, always composed, regained his composure after a brief moment of surprise.

"Many thanks to Mr. Cao Yuan. Without Mr. Cao Yuan's 'Neo-Confucianism,' I don't know when I would have been able to make a breakthrough."

Before Cao Yuan could exchange pleasantries, Fu Nian continued, "I heard Junior Brother Zihan say that Mr. Cao Yuan wants to cultivate our Confucian mental techniques but is unwilling to enter the Little Sage Manor?"

Cao Yuan readily admitted, "That's right. I already have a master, so it's inconvenient for me to change schools. And since my master hasn't taught me any mental techniques, I want to learn some Confucian mental techniques."

Fu Nian learned from Zi Han that Cao Yuan possessed the Absolute Spirit Body, and thus understood why Cao Yuan's master had not taught him any cultivation techniques.

He could understand Cao Yuan's resentment.

"Most of the Confucian teachings are passed down from our ancestors, and I cannot make decisions on them. If Mr. Cao Yuan does not mind, I am willing to offer my own unique 'Sage King's Mind Method,' which takes the meaning of 'outer sage and inner king' to assist you."

Fu Nian pulled out an antique-looking leather scroll from his sleeve, presented it with both hands, and the scroll was covered with densely packed text.

Cao Yuan's eyes brightened slightly.

In the original work, Fu Nian and Xiao Meng discussed the Dao through swordsmanship. Fu Nian, using the Holy King Sword Technique, defeated Xiao Meng, who possessed the appearance of a celestial being, which was enough to demonstrate his extraordinary nature.

"The Way follows nature, and only propriety can guide it."

Cao Yuan praised and laughed, "Master Fu Nian has bestowed such a generous gift; from now on, let us address each other as brothers, shall we?"

Fu Nian felt as if he had met a kindred spirit and exclaimed, "Brother Cao understands me best."

As darkness fell, Cao Yuan took his leave.

If there's anything he regrets about today, it's the lack of the face-slapping scenes he's seen in online novels.

Those Confucian scholars were quite restrained; not one of them jumped out to cause trouble.

"Holy crap, where did this monster come from?"

As dusk fell, Cao Yuan was startled to see two pig heads suddenly appear at the gate of the mansion.

"Brother Cao, it's me, Han Fei!"

Han Fei was both amused and exasperated. "It's not some kind of monster."

Cao Yuan looked left and right, then exclaimed in shock, "Who did this?"

Li Si hesitated for a moment, "The teacher was angry last night, so..."

Cao Yuan deeply understood why the old man Xun, the chief of the Linzi sect, had such a fiery temper, and why his disciple could be so ruthless.

Furthermore, it's a sin for a grandmaster to beat up two ordinary people!

Cao Yuan patted his chest with some fear. Fortunately, he didn't want to win when he argued with Xunzi. The ending was "brothers, friends, brothers, respectful". Otherwise, if he was beaten like Han Fei and Li Si, where would he be able to reason with?

"Brother Han, Brother Li, is there something you need?"

Cao Yuan glanced at his personal wife, Jing Ni, and casually asked.

Han Fei's face was swollen, and it was hard to tell whether he was laughing or crying.

"My fellow disciples and I have some questions we'd like to ask Brother Cao. We wonder if you'll have time next month? Let's go to Zui... find a place to chat."

Because they were caught visiting brothels, the teacher sent them back to Xiaoshengxianzhuang and confined them to the back mountain for ten days. They were not allowed to go anywhere and could only come back to see Cao Yuan next month.

Cao Yuan smiled and joked, "Alright, let's go with Drunken Dream Pavilion then."

Han Fei glanced inside the mansion and saw his teacher surrounded by dozens of disciples. He lowered his voice and said, "Keep a low profile this time."

Cao Yuan chuckled and said, "Brother Han can treat us."

He hatched a plan to start with Tian Mi and see if he could obtain the cultivation method for "immunity to all poisons" to provide an extra layer of protection for his wanderings and eventual loss of contact.

He hadn't forgotten about Tian Mi drugging him.

Han Fei patted his money pouch and said generously, "No problem."

Li Si's face turned green with rage. If he got caught by the teacher again, he'd be in deep trouble.

But since it was Cao Yuan who suggested it, he had no choice but to accept it reluctantly.

I prayed silently that the teacher wouldn't find me again, or I'd really be in trouble with my bottom.

……

That night, the bright moon hung high in the sky.

Cao Yuan lit the copper lamp, knelt before the table, unrolled the scroll, and began to carefully study Fu Nian's "The Heart Method of the Holy King".

I learned from Fu Nian that the origin of this mental cultivation method comes from a sentence in the "Tianxia" chapter of Zhuangzi: "Therefore, the way of inner sage and outer king is obscure and unclear, and is suppressed and unexpressed. People in the world each do what they desire and make their own way."

Fu Nian drew inspiration from this, extracted the essence of Taoism, attained the Way of Inner Sage and Outer King, and created the "Sage King's Heart Method".

The mental cultivation method is divided into two parts: an inner and an outer section, one for training and one for swordsmanship.

These are the "Inner Sage Chapter," which serves as a cultivation method, and the "Outer King Chapter," which serves as a sword technique for the Holy King.

The Inner Sage Chapter focuses on cultivating one's mind and character, forging a noble state of mind that is "invulnerable to all evils";

The "Outer King Chapter" focuses on authority, evolving into the "one word determines the law" Holy King's sword style.

Only when the two are combined can one be called a "sage king"—possessing saintly virtue within and practicing the kingly way without.

Cao Yuanxian carefully studied the "Inner Sage Chapter," believing that his ability to refine spiritual energy into internal force and retain it within his body depended entirely on this.

The opening statement of the essential principles is clear: those who do not read and understand the principles will not be able to grasp its essence, and those who do not have the world in their hearts will find it difficult to fully comprehend its wonders.

Cao Yuan nodded slightly, which was very much in line with the essence of Confucianism.

This is why the various top-level martial arts techniques from different schools are not afraid of being stolen or learned.

Without the relevant knowledge and wisdom, one cannot even begin to understand the basics, or even if one does, it is difficult to cultivate oneself to a profound level.

If one could easily learn and master the art, he had reason to believe that the Net of Shocking Souls would be everywhere, and Li Wu would be no better than a dog.

"When the heart is upright, the law is upright; when the heart is clear, the Way is clear. Let the human heart reflect the heart of Heaven, and let the heart of Heaven prove my heart."

Cao Yuan whispered the general outline of the "Inner Sage Chapter".

This shows that it is many times better than the generic breathing method Zihan gave her.

However, to Cao Yuan's dismay, the "Inner Sage Chapter" of this practice only has two parts—Sincerity of intention and rectification of mind, and investigation of things and extension of knowledge.

They can only cultivate to the Grandmaster level, because Fu Nian also broke through to the Grandmaster level.

However, Cao Yuan was already very satisfied.

He just wants to try to keep the spiritual energy in his body and cultivate internal strength by using a high-level mental cultivation technique.

Everything else is secondary.

Otherwise, even if you gave him the most powerful martial arts techniques from all the schools of martial arts, it would be of no use.

Cao Yuan adjusted his mindset, first reading through the entire text to get an impression, and then began to study the first level of "Inner Sage Chapter"—rectifying intentions and cultivating sincerity.

He was quite familiar with the essence of Confucianism, so it was not difficult for him to get started, and he quickly entered a state of cultivation.