Zhao Xing had to admit, he was truly impressed by Liu Tianning.
If it were Tian Yan, he might have said, "Don't rush, don't put too much pressure on yourself, just take it easy."
But Liu Tianning's approach was entirely different: "You're not under enough pressure yet, let me push you even further."
That was just Liu Tianning's style. He had an aversion to stupidity and couldn't stand seeing others make foolish mistakes.
His standards for his personal disciples were even stricter, almost to an extreme degree, because his own expectations were already quite abnormal.
If you couldn't learn it? Well, then you might as well die!
He constantly pushed himself to the absolute limit, repeatedly splitting his life soul to control more Self Straw Puppets and simulate countless techniques.
Even Zhao Xing, who had always been a bit of a madman himself, found Liu Tianning's intensity beyond comprehension.
"If you don't master this, the mission is sure to fail."
"You won't just lose merit, but the entire morale will plummet. If you don't retreat, eventually you'll be ambushed by the Holy Spirit King's Court, and at the very least, you'll lose hundreds of thousands of merit points."
"If you do retreat, the Six-Army Alliance will collapse, and all the previous efforts will be in vain, leaving you stuck at the gates of Jishun Pass," Liu Tianning stated calmly.
Zhao Xing's breathing became erratic.
He was already under immense pressure, but after hearing Liu Tianning's words, it felt like his nerves were stretched to their breaking point!
"I understand. Go ahead," Zhao Xing said, his voice resolute.
Liu Tianning nodded, extending his fair, jade-like hand. "The key to the perfect fusion of the five arts lies in harmonizing the five elements within the straw puppet, creating a never-ending cycle."
"The Self Straw Puppet technique essentially validates the principles of the Yin-Yang Self Sutra."
"The five elements reverse and complement yin and yang. You must not only perfectly control the five-elemental energy of the straw puppet but also adapt it to the duality of yin and yang souls. Therefore, the foundational art of the Self Straw Puppet must include the Soul Binding Straw Puppet."
"As your life soul inhabits the puppet, this straw puppet must serve as your second body, housing a thread of your life soul."
As Liu Tianning explained, his body began to dissolve.
Normally, when a straw puppet collapses, it disintegrates all at once, but Liu Tianning's disintegration was gradual. His skin, flesh, meridians, and bones all unraveled slowly.
He controlled the speed, deliberately slowing it down so that Zhao Xing could observe everything clearly.
The Self Straw Puppet's skin resembled human skin, but it lacked flesh and blood. When the skin tore, beneath it were "meridians."
Liu Tianning's puppet was made of very ordinary materials, as though it had been specifically prepared for demonstration.
Its meridians were made of third-grade yuan rice stalks—hollow, flexible, intertwined like human veins.
The internal "bones" were common fourth-grade materials—softwood branches.
The five-elemental energy flowed within the rice stalks, passing from one section to the next.
As Liu Tianning's left hand disintegrated, his right hand began casting spells.
Zhao Xing could see the flow of energy within his body, ultimately forming a spell.
"Buzz~"
A small cloud appeared in the palm of Liu Tianning's right hand.
"Cloud Summoning in the palm!" Zhao Xing recognized this technique. His first teacher in Gucheng, Xue Wenzhong, had demonstrated this technique when teaching him cloud techniques.
However, Liu Tianning's cloud summoning was faster and far more powerful, and he was casting it through a straw puppet!
Perhaps Xue Wenzhong had even learned the cloud technique from the Liu family.
"Watch closely," Liu Tianning said.
He didn't explain further because everything had already been discussed.
From this point, it was up to Zhao Xing to comprehend on his own.
As Liu Tianning's left hand disintegrated, his right hand continued casting spells.
An hour later, the left arm had completely disintegrated, but it still maintained the shape of an arm. It had simply been expanded in size, with each component now visible.
Zhao Xing focused intently. From the beginning, he activated his Hawk Eye technique, and the life soul within his sea of consciousness opened its eyes.
From different angles, he observed Liu Tianning's demonstration.
Completely immersed in the process, Zhao Xing lost track of time.
At some point, everything around him seemed to freeze.
When Liu Tianning's toes disintegrated as well—
"Crash~"
A pile of materials scattered on the ground.
Liu Tianning's straw puppet had completely disintegrated.
Zhao Xing looked up and saw a faint shadow—it was a wisp of Liu Tianning's life soul.
But without the straw puppet to protect it, the wisp of soul quickly dissipated.
"Old Liu has really gone all out for me," Zhao Xing couldn't help but sigh.
This Self Straw Puppet of Liu Tianning's could have been recovered, with no loss to his life soul.
The life soul embedded in this straw puppet was incredibly strong!
But now, separated by thousands of miles, that thread of life soul had dissipated, and it would take him a long time to recover it.
Liu Tianning had no intention of fighting, so this thread of his life soul had been purely for teaching.
Now that it had dissipated, it would take at least a year or two to replenish, along with many rare and valuable resources.
Feeling the weight of responsibility, Zhao Xing began assembling his own straw puppet from the materials at hand.
"Rise!"
Zhao Xing attempted the fusion of the five arts once again. The five arts he was using were Divine Strength, Flying, Explosive Detonation, Invisible, and Soul Binding.
Each individual straw puppet technique required balancing the five elements within different parts of the body.
With the fusion of two arts, the difficulty of managing the internal flow of the five elements increased exponentially. With each additional technique, the complexity multiplied by ten.
Though Zhao Xing had mastered many high-grade techniques, their limit was merely high-grade.
But the Self Straw Puppet was a different beast altogether. High-grade was only the entry point—this technique was called the "ultimate technique" because every spell could be integrated into it!
The Self Straw Puppet was, without a doubt, the most challenging technique Zhao Xing had ever learned!
"Merge!" he commanded, manipulating the five straw puppet arts with both hands, trying to fuse them together.
Each step was a struggle. He had to control the flow of the five-elemental energy within every tiny portion of the puppet's body.
The difficulty of merging the five techniques was enormous. Zhao Xing quickly reached his limit.
A seemingly complete straw puppet formed before him, but it was riddled with problems—various parts repelled each other, and the elemental vortices either spun too fast or slowed to a crawl.
Zhao Xing found himself like a firefighter, trying to extinguish fires all over the straw puppet's body. As soon as he stabilized one area, another problem cropped up.
No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't keep everything in balance.
This feeling was all too familiar. After more than ten thousand failures, he always hit this same wall in the final steps.
"Five techniques, merge, damn it!" Zhao Xing roared internally, pushing himself to the brink.
Under the immense pressure, his energy, spirit, and focus peaked.
Even as the five-elemental energy spiraled out of control within the straw puppet, Zhao Xing pulled it back from the brink of collapse again and again.
The constant strain took a heavy toll on his mind. The elemental vortex in his dantian spun wildly, and even the Seasonal Qi Command and Pure Earth Sand within him wavered. He had truly reached his limit.
Suddenly—
"Boom!" A dull sound echoed.
Zhao Xing's vision darkened, and his body slackened. His heart sank.
That sound—had the straw puppet exploded again?
Had he failed yet again?
Opening his eyes, Zhao Xing saw "himself" kneeling on the ground.
"Huh?"
A strange scene unfolded before him, and Zhao Xing instantly realized what had happened.
Looking down at his hands, he saw rough, wood-like hands with tree bark patterns.
"The five techniques have merged! This is the perspective of the Myriad Arts Straw Puppet!"
Zhao Xing was ecstatic.
"Hahaha!"
He burst into laughter.
He had forgotten, however, that this straw puppet didn't have a mouth.
Overcome with excitement, the straw puppet collapsed.
The thread of life soul he had unconsciously embedded in the puppet returned to his body.
"Whew~"
Zhao Xing let out a long breath. Looking at the scattered remains of the straw puppet, he smiled.
The collapse didn't matter—he had learned it.
Having crossed this hurdle, it was now just a matter of fine-tuning the technique!
His status panel now showed a new entry:
[Myriad Arts Straw Puppet (High-Grade)]
[Progress: First Turn]
[Effect: Perfect fusion of five techniques, forming the Myriad Arts Straw Puppet. Upon casting, a thread of life soul is split, which can exist for a long time. As your cultivation improves, more techniques can be integrated indefinitely!]
"I've mastered the strongest straw puppet technique," Zhao Xing grinned. "This is an ultimate technique of the Yuan Qi era, and in the era of Spirit Qi's revival, its utility will be even greater, like a divine ability with limitless benefits."
The Myriad Arts Straw Puppet was the signature life-saving technique of the Shennong Priest. Even though Liu Tianning had faced countless assassination attempts during the Emperor Wu era, he had survived them all and lived out his days peacefully.
As long as he didn't want to die, no one could kill him.
Because no one could ever figure out which of Liu Tianning's bodies was the real one, nor where it was hidden.
Of course, this excluded the Emperor Wu.
If the Emperor Wu, in his prime, wanted to kill Liu Tianning, he could have done so.
But after a certain point, even that became impossible.
"If I reach Liu Tianning's level, acquire Mi Fu's Xuanhuang Essence-Breaking Technique, and nurture my spirit with the Ling Mountain Technique, I could eliminate the drawbacks of the straw puppet technique. Then, after boosting my fortune across all the great cave-heavens and obtaining a few treasures, even the Emperor Wu at his peak wouldn't be able to kill me," Zhao Xing mused.
His ascension to First-Rank Military Shennong would be far more powerful than Liu Tianning's ever was!
"It seems that this debt to Old Liu must be repaid."
Liu Tianning had taught him with such dedication, even sacrificing part of his own life soul. No matter what, they now had a true master-disciple bond. This connection ran far deeper than Tian Yan's financial investment.
"You've chosen me, and I won't let you down. I'll ensure the Liu family's straw puppet techniques flourish!" Zhao Xing silently vowed.
One of Liu Tianning's greatest wishes was to prevent the Liu Family's Straw Puppet Techniques from being lost to time.
Having mastered the Self Straw Puppet, Zhao Xing sent a message to Liu Tianning through the Earth Mirror, sharing the good news.
In the Palace of Myriad Techniques, Liu Tianning smiled upon receiving the message.
It wasn't just that Zhao Xing's talent was extraordinary—he had actually mastered the Myriad Arts Straw Puppet—but also that Zhao Xing had addressed him as Master in his message. With a successor for the straw puppet techniques, Liu Tianning was truly happy.
On the other hand, Zhao Xing quickly worked to refine the Myriad Arts Straw Puppet. In no time, he reached the level of High-Grade, Three Turns.
After mastering the Myriad Arts Straw Puppet, integrating other straw puppet techniques became significantly easier.
The basic techniques he had learned earlier, such as Scout Straw Puppet, Reviving Straw Puppet, and Mighty Vajra Straw Puppet, could all be integrated.
He could even integrate other spells, such as the Hawk Eye technique, allowing the puppet to see farther.
Of course, at his current level of High-Grade, Three Turns, Zhao Xing could only integrate middle-grade spells, not high-grade ones.
But in terms of utility, the puppet was often more practical than Zhao Xing himself.
The puppet could use abilities like Illusory Form and Invisibility, which Zhao Xing had never learned, but the puppet could still perform them.
"I can now simultaneously control three Self Straw Puppets, but any more would place too much strain on my life soul. And these three puppets can't be carelessly destroyed."
"If they are destroyed, it will damage my life soul." Zhao Xing observed the three puppets standing before him.
Thanks to the Illusory Form technique, the puppets looked identical to Zhao Xing. Dressed in straw raincoats and hats, and holding command staves, no one could tell them apart from the real Zhao Xing.
"It's time to break through the Illusionary Spirit Arrays on Anping Road and Nanxiang Road!" Zhao Xing wasted no time and immediately convened the Tonghuo City's Grain Redistribution Command for a meeting.
"From today onward, the supply convoys will once again use Anping Road and Nanxiang Road!" Zhao Xing issued his command. "I will personally lead the way."
The two routes, once cleared of the Illusionary Spirit Arrays, were much safer than the alternative paths.
These two routes allowed the frontline armies to provide immediate support.
If Jishun Pass attempted to harass them?
Perfect. No need to attack the city directly; they could ambush the reinforcements.
The news stirred some commotion among the officers, as Zhao Xing's command seemed incredulous.
He was only one person, yet he intended to lead multiple convoys.
Moreover, the Illusionary Spirit Arrays on those routes had become even more powerful, with ghostly armies guarding them. Many thought Zhao Xing had gone mad.
But, as the commanding officer, Zhao Xing's word was final. Even if there were objections, he could still carry out his orders.
The command was quickly implemented.
The convoys en route on the alternative paths were either halted or recalled, while those that had already departed were sent messengers ordering their return to Tonghuo City, abandoning the detour through enemy-occupied territories.
As soon as Zhao Xing made this move, the front lines immediately reacted.
Liao Rulong, Xia Jing, Chen Shijie, Wen Shaoyang, and the others received the news and quickly convened a temporary meeting via Earth Mirror.
"You plan to take Anping Road and Nanxiang Road? Are you sure that's possible?" Wen Shaoyang asked.
"I'm sure," Zhao Xing replied. "Keep an eye on those two routes, and be prepared to strike against any reinforcements sent from Jishun Pass. By switching back to these routes, we'll certainly provoke a response from the defenders, and that's an opportunity."
Seeing Zhao Xing's confidence, no one questioned him further.
Xia Jing and Chen Shijie both reminded Zhao Xing to be cautious, then ended the communication and began coordinating their ambush plans.
Meanwhile, Yuan Yang, Yi Zhijie, and Qiu Mingyi held a private meeting of their own.
"Zhao Xing of the Shenwei Army said he's switching back to Anping Road and Nanxiang Road, and he wants us to be ready to support the supply teams and strike at Jishun Pass's reinforcements," Yuan Yang said. "What do you think, Yi Zhijie?"
"Can he break through the Illusionary Spirit Arrays?" Yi Zhijie frowned. "If he can't, we'll not only waste our soldiers but also collapse the supply lines."
"Let him try," Qiu Mingyi said. "He already agreed that if he fails, we can send our own people."
"Alright, let's take this risk with him," Yuan Yang agreed. "So far, Zhao Xing and the Shenwei Army have performed admirably. If he succeeds, we'll continue our cooperation. If not, we'll have a reason to send reinforcements and increase our influence within the alliance."
Though Qiu Mingyi had some prior issues with Zhao Xing due to delays, overall, they were pleased with his work.
If Zhao Xing succeeded, they would maintain their current arrangement.
If he failed, they could push for reinforcements, increasing their power within the Six-Army Alliance, or perhaps even operate independently.
At the same time, the commanders of Jishun Pass were also discussing their next moves.
Morik and Qi Yuanzi, responsible for one section of the Anping Road Illusionary Spirit Array, had just received orders to intercept the supply convoys.
"There's no way Zhao Xing from Tonghuo City is really going to charge through the Illusionary Spirit Array, right?" Morik found the news hard to believe. "Does he really have the guts?"
"All the other supply routes have been recalled. That's a fact," Qi Yuanzi replied. "Whether he's serious or has some hidden scheme, we'll know soon enough."
"Morik, we need to take this seriously. If he actually manages to break through the Anping Road array, we'll need to retreat," Qi Yuanzi furrowed his brow. "I've got a feeling this guy isn't simple. Start preparing to fall back to Jishun Pass."
Over the past month, Zhao Xing had managed to keep the frontline armies well supplied despite tremendous pressure, which had surprised Qi Yuanzi.
His Saturation Transport Strategy wasn't something just anyone could pull off. The logistics, output, and reserves of Tonghuo City exceeded their calculations.
If Zhao Xing could solve the Illusionary Spirit Array problem, Qi Yuanzi and Morik's wild forces would have no choice but to abandon their positions along Anping Road and retreat to the gates of Jishun Pass.
In the Jishun Pass coalition, Morik's forces were the smallest and had the least influence. If Jishun Pass fell, they wouldn't bear the brunt of the blame.
"Losing Jishun Pass isn't the end of the world. We can retake it later. But if we lose our lives, there's no coming back from that."
"You're right," Morik agreed. He was from the Holy Spirit King's Court, and had no deep attachment to defending the Golden Feather King's lands. This wasn't his home territory, after all.
"Move the Dragon Head Warship forward by 1,200 meters. Withdraw the Land Hover Vessel Camp by 600 meters!"
"Seafloor Tower Ship, left rudder, turn!"
Along Anping Road, Zhao Xing stood at the bow of a low-altitude warship, issuing orders.
"Che Shi Hai, you're flying too high. Drop down 200 meters!"
"Boss, if I drop another 200 meters, I'll crash into the mountain!"
"I told you to drop. It's just an illusion!"
"Got it!" Che Shi Hai gritted his teeth, widening his eyes as he descended by 200 meters, aiming straight for the mountain peak.
Oddly enough, though it seemed like a collision was imminent, his hovercraft sailed through unharmed.
Once the lead hovercraft made it through, the others followed suit, flying past without issue.
"Damn, this really messes with your head," Che Shi Hai muttered, wiping the sweat from his palms.
He had been flying for two hours now and had experienced several similar moments.
Each time, though, he couldn't help but tremble.
It was purely the Illusionary Spirit Array messing with his senses, causing fear and confusion within his life soul.
"Wang Ji, have the Dragon Head Warship's Fire Crossbow Unit prepare!"
"Left deck, target the fourth trigram position, Gen position, Central Wind Zone, and fire on my command!"
"Keep firing until I say stop!"
"Yes, sir!" Wang Ji immediately shouted orders to the warship's mechanists. "Left deck Fire Crossbow Unit, prepare! Adjust the ballistae to the fourth trigram position, target: Gen position, Central Wind Zone!"
"Fire!"
In Great Zhou, a Fire Crossbow Unit typically referred to the fire crossbow division on a warship, and only high-ranking warships of Fifth Grade or higher were equipped with such units.
After all, smaller ships didn't have enough space. A single ballista measured 108 meters long and 15 meters wide.
The ballistae consisted of five main components: the base, the firestone, the mechanism, the launching port, and the crossbow bolt.
A fifth-grade ballista could fire 1,600 rounds, with a rate of 80 bolts per second. These bolts were more like giant spears than arrows.
The bolts of a fifth-grade ballista expanded upon launch. Initially five meters long and as thick as a person's wrist, they grew to a length of 15 meters and the width of a thigh.
Each fire bolt was a three-sectioned spear with two inscribed layers, featuring a total of 1,285 engraved mechanisms. During flight, these mechanisms accelerated the bolt's head, reaching speeds beyond the Five Chirps threshold.
The three-layered tip of the bolt could pierce through barriers and warships, and after impact, it wouldn't immediately detonate. Instead, the internal mechanisms delayed the explosion for several seconds.
The core layers of the bolt contained fifth-grade explosive bamboo, an extremely volatile material.
To operate a Fire Crossbow Unit, one needed elite mechanists like Master Wang Gong. Ordinary craftsmen couldn't handle the intricacies of these mechanisms, nor could they produce the required materials in bulk.
"Buzz~" One by one, streams of azure light shot out from the left deck of the Dragon Head Warship.
There was no whistling sound, as the wind resistance was neutralized by the Wind Travel Spell etched into the bolts. The azure glow came from this spell.
The bolts only turned red upon hitting their targets.
Wang Ji, having issued his commands, watched the target zone closely.
To him, Zhao Xing's target appeared to be an empty patch of sky.
But as the ballistae fired, Wang Ji soon saw bursts of crimson light—indicating successful hits.
Still, Wang Ji couldn't see what the bolts had actually struck.
Standing on the deck, Zhao Xing used his Hawk Eye technique to see through the illusion. In the sky ahead, a fleet of pitch-black ships, each bearing ghostly soul sails, was being shot down.
"This is the air formation node of the Illusionary Spirit Array. It not only confuses the mind but also has offensive capabilities. Anyone who gets too close will have their life soul attacked. The lighter cases result in soul damage, rendering one mentally disabled, while the heavier cases cause instant soul death," Zhao Xing analyzed.
"A total of 300 spirit ships are anchored along the route. We must be close to breaking out of the Illusionary Spirit Array."
Sure enough, after the Dragon Head Warship's Fire Crossbow Unit shot down the fleet of spirit ships—
In less than two more periods, Zhao Xing saw a city ahead, the weather returned to normal, and the almanac ceased its warnings. The positions and times aligned correctly.
This meant his convoy had finally broken through the Illusionary Spirit Array.
"Old Liu really is amazing. Not only does he excel in military strategy, but he also has a deep understanding of formations," Zhao Xing couldn't help but praise him.
"This man is a Military Shennong, yet he also masters formations. Truly extraordinary!"
After Zhao Xing's convoy passed through, in a valley below—
Morik watched in shock as one by one, the ghostly soul-sailed ships fell from the sky. He had been overseeing this formation for a long time.
"This man is no simpleton. Using the five elements of heaven and earth as the foundation, combined with ghostly soul-sail ships to form the array, and yet he managed to get through." Qi Yuanzi's eyes were filled with disbelief. "The formation of my Xuantian Sect, designed to block both heaven and earth, couldn't stop him."
"Morik, we must retreat. Don't even think about intercepting him. We need to fall back immediately, or we risk being surrounded by the army! If we delay, we won't escape this encirclement!"