Chapter 131, Volume Three: This Staff Technique Can Startle the Heavens!

He was dressed in a bright red burial robe, his hands crossed over his abdomen. Strangely, a leather scroll was pressed beneath his palms.

On the surface of the crystal coffin lid, where the face would be, was an impression in the shape of nine dragons roaming. It did not appear to be carved, but rather like a mark left behind by an object that had rested there for a long time. Furthermore, the dragon patterns themselves resembled traces of Daoist runes.

Before Yu Mu could examine it closely, Tu Xiong had already shoved the crystal coffin lid aside.

"Wait!" Yu Mu hurriedly tried to stop him, but it was already too late.

"What’s wrong? Ah! How could it be like this?"

As Tu Xiong was about to ask, he suddenly noticed that once the lid was opened, everything inside the coffin began to decay and discolor rapidly. The clothing on the corpse turned into fly ash in an instant.

Even the body withered and dried up at a rapid pace; the eyes became two pitch-black hollows, and the lips shriveled, revealing a set of teeth as crystalline and white as jade.

"A Saint’s Body!" An Shu exclaimed.

A corpse that remains uncorrupted for ten thousand years, crystalline as jade—it must undoubtedly be a Saint’s remains. The identity of the person in the coffin was already self-evident.

In just a few moments, the body had become a desiccated husk, and thick white fur began to sprout all over it, a truly chilling sight.

Yu Mu’s attention, however, was not on these things. While warning Tu Xiong, he had instinctively released his spiritual energy to wrap around the scroll.

Despite his efforts, by the time he gently retrieved the scroll from beneath the corpse, the material had already crumbled into ash, with only a tiny fragment at the very center preserved.

Tu Xiong’s face was filled with remorse, knowing that his recklessness had caused a grave disaster.

Throughout the entire palace, this was the only item that seemed useful. Given where it appeared, its placement, and the identity of the occupant, its importance was clear—and it had been destroyed by his rashness.

It was truly heartbreaking, but regret was useless now.

Yu Mu sighed inwardly, unable to blame Tu Xiong. Tu Xiong could not have possibly understood the oxidative reaction that would occur; if there was anyone to blame, it was simply that they lacked the destiny to possess the complete object.

Although only a small middle section remained, Yu Mu was unwilling to give up. He carefully placed it into his internal space, the only place where it could be permanently stabilized and preserved.

Yu Mu sat down quietly, projecting his divine sense into his inner space to control the scroll and slowly unfurl it. He discovered that the remaining piece was only about a dozen centimeters long and a palm’s width wide.

The markings on it were already extremely blurred. He could only faintly discern three human figures holding weapons—whether spears or staves—in dynamic, dancing poses.

Because the top and bottom portions were lost, the figures’ postures were unclear, and the upper parts of the weapons were incomplete. However, it was fundamentally clear that this was a technique concerning spear or staff arts.

Even though only three stances remained, as Yu Mu looked closer, he was immediately drawn in by the artistic conception contained within. The spiritual essence and momentum emanating from the technique revealed that this was undoubtedly a peerless, world-class martial art.

In just a moment, Yu Mu became completely immersed, unable to extricate himself.

An Shu and the other watched Yu Mu’s intoxicated expression, unsure of what had happened. However, they could see that he seemed to be experiencing an epiphany.

Not daring to disturb him, the two sat on either side and quietly accompanied him in his cultivation.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

During these three days, Yu Mu remained immersed in the three staff stances. Since Yu Mu primarily practiced staff arts, he naturally interpreted it as a staff technique.

Over these three days, Yu Mu had basically grasped the artistic conception in the images and understood the essence of the three stances. However, he could not manifest them; in other words, he could not yet use them as a Daoist technique.

The three images lacked too much content, so Yu Mu could only comprehend the intent and essence, while the specific movements remained elusive.

He needed to derive a Daoist technique based on the principles contained within the three stances. Having grasped both the Dao and the logic, he now needed to combine them to create concrete moves.

Yu Mu, who had been sitting in silent meditation, suddenly stood up, summoned his Emerald Wood Staff, and began to practice.

Seeing that Yu Mu had "come back to life," the two rose and watched his strange movements with curiosity.

They saw him leaping and lunging, wielding the staff in very sophisticated patterns, but unfortunately, he could not project any spiritual energy.

No matter how sophisticated the moves were, if they could not be imbued with spiritual energy, they were at most nothing more than mortal martial arts. In a battle between cultivators, they would be of no use, just like the "Proud Bone Heaven-Righteous Staff" he had previously practiced.

Had his epiphany failed?

The two couldn't help but feel a sense of regret. They knew that the opportunity for an epiphany was rare; one might not encounter it even once in a lifetime. If such an opportunity arose and one failed to seize it, the loss was unbearable.

Thinking of the various states of being he had witnessed in the Peach Wood Dao, it was easy to understand how rare the opportunity for enlightenment was.

The two watched as Yu Mu repeated the same few moves, practicing them back and forth countless times, but it remained the same.

Eventually, even An Shu grew impatient and couldn't help but tease, "Look at you, jumping around like a monkey. Don't forget, you're a bear—be steady! You're only cute when you're being clumsy and dull!"

An Shu’s jest was like a thunderbolt, waking the dreamer in an instant.

Yu Mu was jolted into realization. He immediately transformed into his bear form, and his movements instantly became steady. His center of gravity gradually lowered until, finally, he simply lay down on the ground.

The moment his body touched the ground, spiritual energy surged through the staff’s movements. The previous obstacles cleared away, and the Daoist technique flowed in one continuous motion.

The two exclaimed, "He did it! Haha, he achieved enlightenment!"

Yu Mu was overjoyed, thinking to himself, "So this is a 'Ground-Lying Staff' technique. No wonder I felt like I couldn't exert my strength; the problem was in my center of gravity."

The more Yu Mu practiced, the more excited he became. His body moved like a dragon amidst turbulent waves, rolling across the floor. The staff’s momentum followed his rhythm, forming layers of fan-shaped afterimages that scattered in all directions.

The staff struck the ground, sweeping across a wide area with the momentum of a thousand tons. Not only was the surface of the ground pulverized, but the earth itself shook. An Shu and the other, standing to the side, felt unsteady from the residual power.

"What a powerful staff technique! Area-of-effect damage, and it even has crowd-control capabilities!" Tu Xiong was secretly shocked.

As this move ended, the staff technique changed immediately. Using his back as an axis, Yu Mu began to rotate rapidly. The staff followed his body, resembling a coiling dragon, impenetrable by wind or rain.

Clearly, this was a defensive stance, but during the defense, a strike would occasionally lash out, making it impossible to guard against. It was an offense within the defense.

Following this, his rotation grew faster and faster, like a spinning top. Suddenly, his figure surged upward; the staff moved like a dragon, winding straight into the air. A beam of light as thick as the staff itself shot toward the sky.

The intense spiritual energy tore through the air, sounding like a dragon roaring in the nine heavens.

*Poof!* The light beam pierced into the ceiling of the palace. A round hole appeared in the stone wall above, exactly the same thickness as the Emerald Wood Staff in Yu Mu’s hand.

"Excellent! This staff momentum could shock the heavens!" Tu Xiong exclaimed loudly.

The two flew up immediately and, upon closer inspection, were struck with awe.

Yu Mu’s strike had pierced through nearly a meter of solid stone wall. They knew that when they first entered, he could only shatter the surface of these walls.

To have achieved such growth in just three days showed the power of this Daoist technique. Although this strike utilized the inherent spiritual power of the Emerald Wood Staff, even so, this blow was equivalent to the attack power of a late-stage Golden Core cultivator.

Although his cultivation had increased slightly since grasping this technique, he was still in the early stages of the Golden Core realm. To increase one's attack power by two or three times out of thin air—this could only be achieved by a Spirit-grade Daoist technique.

For ordinary Daoist techniques, a boost of eighty percent in attack power was considered top-tier. Generally, self-derived techniques could increase power by at least one hundred percent.

Self-derived techniques also varied in quality. A technique like Yu Mu’s, which could unleash two or three hundred percent of extra power, was undoubtedly a Spirit-grade technique.

With the three stances completed, Yu Mu stood frozen on the spot. He truly had not expected these three staff moves to possess such terrifying power.

The two landed. An Shu was about to step forward, but Tu Xiong pulled her behind him. He then lunged forward and threw a punch at Yu Mu.

Seeing the incoming strike, Yu Mu knew Tu Xiong wanted to spar with him to test his practical combat ability. In truth, seeing how sophisticated this staff technique was, Tu Xiong felt even more guilty and wanted to do something to make up for his mistake.

This was exactly what Yu Mu wanted. He did not hesitate, immediately rolling on the ground and swinging his staff to meet the challenge.