After wandering like this for two months, Xu Que started to become more self-aware.
This place is strange. I am almost certain that it is rectangular without any form of exit.
He was quite sure about the nature of this place and that it would be impossible for him to leave. Perhaps he could try to walk inwards and maybe he could find some type of outlet.
After making the decision, Xu Que managed to reach the center of the area. He felt something inexplicable in his heart, so he sat down with his legs crossed. Then, he closed his eyes slowly as he dismissed the distracting thoughts in his mind.
Since this problem was caused by his Taoist Connotation, he started to reintegrate it without focusing on immortality. His powerful mind only desired a carefree life in which he could do whatever he wanted.
Boom!
Runes suddenly gushed out from him and covered his body like thickly dotted tadpoles. They spread all over him and flowed into the ground and air. At last, the thickly-dotted, small, black characters formed neat lines of text flowing from above him to below him.
Xu Que could see these small characters even when his eyes were tightly closed.
"The way of Heaven is imperfect. The great Tao is impermanent. I only hope the Heaven and Earth can follow my will…
"Everyone in this world pursues immortality, the imperial throne, or the hegemony, but those are just trinkets. You may jump onto your horse and kill millions of enemies with your swords, and create a lofty mountain of white bones. However, the world will still run in its own way. Among numerous people who used to live in this world, who could be remembered forever…
"After all, all shall fade. When the Heaven and Earth follow my will, the supreme way of tough-acting will be realized and deemed the most powerful Tao."
Xu Que was quite surprised.
Is . . . this my Taoist Connotation? Why do my heartfelt wishes appear here? Are they recorded in a book?
He felt like a miniature person trapped in a piece of white paper!
This empty area was a book page, and he was just the pen for writing down the characters. His apprehension for his Tao gushed out and flowed into the book page automatically.
I get it! It's that wordless magic art!
A strand of white light appeared in Xu Que's mind, which enlightened him abruptly.
He remembered he had obtained a classless magic art without words when he had opened the Big Mystery Gift Bag. It was an ancient book for him to create a magic art himself!
These days, Xu Que was not in the mood to create his own magic art. He hadn't expected it to appear now after trapping him for three months.
This is interesting! Now I know how to create a magic art! It seems I have to finish this book at least partially before I can leave.
After his hypothesis, Xu Que took a deep breath and focused on understanding his Tao, dismissing all distracting thoughts.
As time passed, numerous characters flowed out from his body and spread out around him, creating many rivers of text.
Another two months went by.
The area had almost completely filled with characters. It was no longer empty and had filled with the power of Heaven and Earth!
Xu Que let out a sigh of relief.
Finally, I made it!
He had been in this area for over five months and had reviewed and carved the entirety of his Taoist Connotation. The area surrounding him was filled with magnificent power. Xu Que was exhausted as his body was almost drained of power; he could hardly resist the tiredness that pulled at him.
Ding!
"Congratulations to the Host for successfully creating a magic art, which has been identified as a fist art. Please name the magic art and the anonymous ancient book."
Xu Que was surprised. A fist art? Name it?
The System asked him to name to the fist art and the anonymous ancient book, which meant this ancient book had not been finished yet. He had just finished the first page!
This is interesting and fun!
Xu Que became more intrigued. The Taoist Connotation he had was an unprecedented means of tough-acting. He didn't expect he could create a magic art himself, which could combine with his Taoist Connotation perfectly.
However, what should I name it?
After pondering it for a while, Xu Que smiled as he had found the answer.
Ding!
"Congratulations to the Host on naming the magic art successfully. The name is, How A King of Tough-Acting is Born!"
As the System's Warning Tone came in, several big characters appeared on the top of the book page: the First Move of How A King of Tough-Acting is Born: The King of Tough-Acting Fist!
The King of Tough-Acting Fist! It is so simple, violent, confident and graceful! From now on, if I use this move, nobody else will be more proficient than me in acting tough!
Xu Que smiled in satisfaction.
At last, he was expelled from the book page and his soul returned to his body again. His normal cultivation resumed.
The entire process lasted for over half a year. After obtaining his Tao and creating his magic art, he was much more powerful than before!
There is half a year left, which is enough for me to realize a breakthrough in the Infant Transformation Stage and reach the Void Training Stage! Xu Que thought.
After that, he dismissed the distracting thoughts and continued to use the Ancient Five Elements Arts by focusing his attention. His body was just like a bottomless pit, absorbing the magnificent Spiritual Qi around him through his pores.
…
Six months quickly passed.
Xu Que's long hair fell across his waist and touched the ground. His hair was spotless, black and shiny. Each individual strand dazzled like a sword.
His body, with skin as soft as that of a newborn, was extremely tough!
During the six months of secluded cultivation, his five Celestial Spiritual Roots and his Celestial Thunder Spiritual Root in his Dantian absorbed Spiritual Qi crazily like bottomless pits.
Now, the most critical time had come.
Boom!
Xu Que broke the bottleneck. All his spiritual roots reached the consummation state as he realized a breakthrough in the Infant Transformation Stage.
The pores on his body opened wide to gather all the surrounding Spiritual Qi.
Xu Que opened his eyes, which were incredibly deep, as if the galaxy was rotating inside of them.
He uttered a loud cry and stood from the ground abruptly. His hair floated around him. A horribly powerful momentum gushed out from his body.
Liu Jingning awoke with a shock. Before she had time to say anything, a loud sound came from outside the underground palace as if it had come from Heaven.
"Oh, no! The Heavenly Tribulations are coming!" she said nervously. "The Mystery Land is about to close soon. You can't cross your Heavenly Tribulations here!"
Xu Que glanced at the entrance of the underground palace and smiled faintly. "Don't worry, it's just the Heavenly Tribulation. It won't come as long as I don't agree with it."
Xu Que's Taoist Connotation had just taken shape, and what he pursued was to follow his will.
He didn't allow the Heavenly Tribulation to happen just yet—he would not allow Heaven to go against his will. This was the horrible power of his Taoist Connotation.
Liu Jingning was totally terrified and didn't believe her eyes.
How could such a powerful Tao . . . exist in this world?
She was almost subdued by Xu Que's momentum.
Xu Que retracted his momentum and smiled after sensing Liu Jingning's panic. "Let's go. It's time to go out! Let's go meet someone!"
"Meet someone? Who?"
"A cute little girl!" Xu Que replied as he stepped out of the underground palace.
The thunder clouds surged together with the deafening thunders in the sky above the third level of the Mystery Land.
However, it seemed the Heavenly Tribulation was still in preparation and that it would stay there forever without Xu Que's consent.
Xu Que ignored the thunderclouds and continued walking.
Two years had passed. Duan Jiude and Buttface had disappeared long ago. The empty mountains were deadly silent.
Xu Que found a message on a giant rock that had been left by Buttface. Buttface wrote that Duan Jiude was about to do something secretie, so he decided to follow him and discover what was going on. He also wrote that Xu Que didn't need to wait for him.
"What a thoughtless dog!"
Xu Que shook his head. Then, he purchased a jet fighter from the System's Store and prepared to cross the Upflowing Sea and go to the first level of the Mystery Land with Liu Jingning.
…
The world outside the Mystery Land was in an uproar.
The Patriarchs who had gathered outside the Mystery Land had eventually left, one after another, over the course of the year. Only the Patriarch of the Heavenly Horn Ox Tribe motionlessly remained atop the hill.
Over the past year, the Patriarchs of the other big families and sects had also left for the North Sea after waking up. Nobody knew where they were heading.
Their actions puzzled a lot of cultivators.
"The Mystery Land is about to close. People who are still in the Mystery Land will be forcibly teleported out. Why did the Patriarchs leave?"
"It's weird! Could it be the big change is really going to happen?"
"I've heard that the Carefree Building left first. Someone saw them leave the North Sea and move forward to the Infinite Sea!"
"Not just them—the Patriarchs of the big families and sects also headed in that direction. I guess they found something precious."
"It doesn't make sense! I heard they were going to meet and greet some big shots."
"What? Are there really big shots welcomed by the Patriarchs of the big families and sects?"