Don't let Yu Ding take on any more disciples.

Chapter 273 The Inner Scroll of Guigu

The sun rises in the east.

A great river rushed toward the cliff not far from them, making a deafening roar.

Yu Ding turned around, looking at the waterfall, with his back to the two people.

“Take a deep breath with your master, inhale…” Yu Ding said softly.

Huang Yu and Zhou Wu exchanged a glance, as if arcs of electricity were crossing in the air. The next moment, they both took a long breath: "Hiss..."

Just as Zhou Wu felt his lungs were almost full, he turned his head and glanced to the side. His pupils contracted involuntarily, and he saw that Huang Yu's breathing frequency was no less than his, but he was still taking deep breaths.

Seeing this, Zhou Wu was both shocked and indignant, so he... opened his mouth but didn't exhale, and started inhaling again.

"Hmm?" Huang Yu quickly felt that his lungs were almost empty. He turned his head to look to the side and saw Zhou Wu taking another breath and looking at him provocatively.

"Naive..." Huang Yu glanced at Zhou Wu indifferently, somewhat disdainfully.

Only children are this competitive, but... he's cultivated for several more years, isn't it a bit... shameful to lose here?
Thinking of this, he opened his mouth but didn't exhale, and instead took a deep breath.

So, in the open space, the two men stared at each other and began to compete.

"Hiss..." One person takes a breath and closes their mouth, while the other immediately opens their mouth to take another breath, then stares at the other person.

Before long, Zhou Wu's face turned a deep purplish-red, his eyes were bloodshot, and his body was swaying precariously, but he still stared intently at the opposite side, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

Huang Yu's condition improved a lot, but his face was still quite red.

"Follow your teacher's instructions... um?"

At this moment, the jade cauldron in front of them slowly exhaled, turned around, and immediately his face darkened. He was so angry that his beard almost stood on end.

Then, in a flash, he appeared behind the two of them and struck out with both palms without hesitation.

"puff!"

"puff……"

The two felt pain and instinctively opened their mouths. Fresh air immediately rushed into their mouths and noses. Huang Yu swayed for a moment, took a few deep breaths, and then his complexion quickly returned to normal.

Zhou Wu's cultivation level was low to begin with, and he immediately fell to the ground as soon as he took a breath. So he simply lay flat on the ground, panting heavily like a fish that had just come ashore.

“Xiao Wu, I’m glad you have this competitive spirit now, but I’m disappointed in your actions.”

Yu Ding stared at Zhou Wu and said, "Remember this: playing to your strengths and avoiding your weaknesses is the way of the wise. Trying to use your weaknesses to fight against others' strengths and fight for a moment's pride is... foolish."

"Yes!" Zhou Wu chuckled awkwardly, scratching his head sheepishly.

Just then, another hand reached out in front of him. Zhou Wu looked up in surprise and saw Huang Yu with his back to the rising sun, bathed in the morning light, his whole body seemingly glowing.

Zhou Wu reached out his hand and was pulled up by that strong hand for the second time.

At this moment, Yu Ding had arrived behind the two of them, his hands forming swords and pointing at their backs.

The two of them widened their eyes in surprise, feeling as if their breath had suddenly stopped for a moment. Then, guided by a powerful force, they involuntarily began to breathe in a peculiar rhythm.

"Close your eyes and don't get distracted."

Yu Ding closed his eyes and said calmly, "As for how much you can comprehend... it all depends on your own destiny."

Upon hearing this, the two of them tensed up and quickly closed their eyes to memorize the rhythm.

Following this rhythm, they soon exhaled a puff of white air, and then, after their next inhale, they shuddered and their expressions became ferocious again.

Although Zhou Wu was trying his best to suppress the excruciating pain, his whole body was still trembling violently. Just now, that breath felt like a surge of strong liquor going down his throat and into his lungs, where it was ignited, turning his entire lungs into a sea of ​​fire.

As for Huang Yu... although he was much better, his body was still trembling.

That breath felt like icy, dark water engulfing him, making it hard for him to breathe...

These two sensations were not unfamiliar to them, because they had already experienced them when they practiced breathing exercises and inhaled the spiritual energy of heaven and earth.

However, the breathing technique is extremely slow, while this time it was incredibly rapid, naturally causing a more intense level of pain.

Although their mental fortitude was strong enough to almost endure the pain, they were somewhat unable to control their bodies' reactions to the pain.

Hmph, you two brats, keep competing with me... Yu Ding snorted inwardly as he watched their reactions, especially Zhou Wu, who was quite ruthless; he almost exploded from holding his breath just now.

Having just exhausted their lungs, the influx of spiritual energy from heaven and earth into them now amplifies and exponentially intensifies the pain they experience.

"Endure! When Heaven bestows a great responsibility upon a person, it will surely test their strength, mental acuity, and physical endurance..."

Yu Ding calmly said, "Of course, the main reason is that if you are like this, I will not be able to teach you the next step."

Upon hearing this, the two men's trembling bodies jolted violently again. Then, they gritted their teeth and their violently trembling bodies gradually calmed down.

"Indeed... I knew I hadn't misjudged you."

Yu Ding's eyes flashed. Being able to do what they couldn't do before showed that their mental fortitude had increased once again.

“Well then, the crucial part… is here,” Yu Ding said in a low voice.

The next moment, the two of them shuddered, and blue light and red light emerged from their mouths and noses, respectively. They felt a large amount of flames and icy water rushing into their lungs.

Immediately afterwards, with this breath, the flames and ice water spread rapidly through the veins to every part of the body…

With this feeling, they felt their internal power surge instantly, as if it were inexhaustible.

"Ah!" The two suddenly opened their eyes, let out a long howl, their eyes shining with red and blue light respectively, and violent spiritual energy surged and poured out from their bodies.

Seeing this, Yu Ding calmly lifted his foot and landed. Before the violent power could be released, it turned into a small breeze under his feet and disappeared without a trace, without even damaging a single plant or tree in Guigu.

After doing all this, Yu Ding took the sword finger off their backs, blew on it, and quietly watched them.

His breathing technique is for cultivation, absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth and refining it for his own use through martial arts cultivation. His breathing law is to absorb a large amount of spiritual energy of heaven and earth in an instant, enhance his power, and then unleash it.

Martial artists possess powerful physiques, making them stronger in combat than fragile Qi cultivators, and this breathing technique further enhances their abilities...

Yu Ding looked at his two disciples as if admiring two perfect masterpieces. As for the two disciples, they stared wide-eyed at the sky, savoring the rhythm of their breathing and the feeling of unleashing spiritual power.

"Senior brother, how much of it... did you remember?"

After a long while, Zhou Wu came to his senses and asked Huang Yu, who was pondering beside him, in a low voice.

"About 70-80%!" Huang Yu glanced at him and said, "What about you?"

"I... well, that's about right!"

A hint of joy flashed in Zhou Wu's eyes. He deliberately listened to the tone and said regretfully, "Alas, what Master taught is too difficult. I'll go to the side and try to comprehend it some more."

Ha, senior brother, you didn't expect that, did you? Actually, I remembered everything. This time, I won... Zhou Wu raised his sword and placed it on his shoulders. He walked away with both hands, and as soon as he turned his back, a happy smile appeared on his face.

Huang Yu watched him walk away, a slight smile playing on his lips, his gaze carrying a deeper meaning: "Junior brother, actually, I—remembered it all!"

To be honest, although he held a high position in the past, he was overwhelmed by various troubles. But after arriving here, his life became simple, consisting only of cultivation. Now he has a competitor, but this kind of life is much more interesting than before.

As for the breathing technique... his willpower was stronger than Zhou Wu's, and the damage to his lungs was less, so the pain was less, he was naturally more alert, and he remembered more.

noon.

Yu Ding was by the reed hut, evolving sword techniques from the Horizontal and Vertical Mind Method he had created. Suddenly, he raised an eyebrow, turned to his side, and pretended to be asleep.

Before long, Zhou Wu was seen furtively looking around before finally arriving at the reed hut.

Seeing Yu Ding taking a nap, he sighed, hesitated for a moment, then turned around and prepared to leave.

Then... "Is it Xiao Wu?"

"Master, it's me!"

Zhou Wu was overjoyed and turned around, only to see Yu Ding sitting cross-legged on the reed awning. He quickly knelt down in front of the awning.

"Well, have you mastered the breathing technique I taught you?" Yu Ding asked.

Zhou Wu said somewhat guiltily, "No..."

Yu Ding raised an eyebrow and said, "So you mean... you didn't memorize the breathing technique?"

In fact, his breathing technique requires extremely high skill and cannot have the slightest error, so even those with good talent need to practice dozens of times to master it.

Remembering is only the first step. The next step is to absorb a large amount of spiritual energy into the body in a short period of time and then send it into the limbs and bones to explode all at once. This requires long-term training.

"No, not exactly!" Zhou Wu glanced at the jade cauldron, seemingly wanting to say something but then stopping himself.

Yu Ding smiled and said, "If you have something to say, please speak frankly!"

Seeing this, Zhou Wu didn't hesitate and asked directly, "Master, how long do you think it will take for me to catch up with my senior brother?"

“Three years!” Yu Ding said.

Zhou Wu gritted his teeth and said, "What if I double my training?"

"Six years!" Yu Ding said calmly.

"Huh?" Zhou Wu was stunned for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said, "What if I work day and night, without sleep or rest?"

"Good lad, so cunning, he's ruthless..." Yu Ding held up a finger and gave him a meaningful look: "Less than a year..."

"Really?" Zhou Wu looked up, overjoyed.

Yu Ding continued, "You will die young!"

Zhou Wu: ∑(Д)?

Yu Ding said calmly, "Besides, even if you cultivate diligently for three years, you will still only catch up with Yu'er today."

"Does that mean I'll never be able to catch up with him?"

Zhou Wu slumped to the ground and said, "Then what's the point of you teaching me, Master? You might as well have him chop me up right now."

"You really think so?"

Yu Ding glanced at him indifferently: "Would you be content to die like this?"

Zhou Wu's expression tightened, and he chuckled, "Of course I'm not willing to accept this, but my senior brother was born earlier than me, and my mother gave birth to me later. What can I do?"
If I were to die in a duel at the same starting point, I would accept defeat because I was simply outmatched, but now… I just can't accept it!

Yu Ding pondered for a moment, glanced at him, and said, "This matter is difficult in some ways, but simple in others... it is also simple."

What this kid said makes sense; being born late and starting cultivation late are indeed disadvantages that are difficult to overcome.

Undoubtedly, it would have been best for him to take on disciples before either of them began cultivating. Unfortunately, he was busy somewhere at the time and had no idea that he would become the founder of the Ghost Valley School.

The rules for internal competition among disciples have been established, but the two disciples are now vastly different in strength. I'm afraid Zhou Wu will have a hard time surviving the battle when he leaves the valley.

"Can you... endure hardship?" Yu Ding stared at Zhou Wu.

He can help this kid improve his strength, but definitely not by giving him pills. Huang Yu's strength is earned through hard work, and this kid should do the same if he wants to catch up.

"One year?"

Zhou Wu hurriedly replied, "I can eat. As long as I can catch up with my senior brother, I can endure any hardship."

To be honest, although he was talented, he had never been competitive before. It wasn't until he came here and met that senior brother that his long-lost competitive spirit was rekindled.

Their master was right; he could sense that they were truly each other's greatest rivals in life.

He believed that his senior classmate must have felt the same way.

So no matter what hardships he had to endure, he was determined to become stronger, just to have a worthy opponent in his senior brother's battle.

"Okay! You go first!"

Yu Ding waved his hand. Shouldn't he make some kind of compensation to Huang Yu in another way? Hmm, besides cultivation... Right, didn't Huang Yu come with some questions?
Zhou Wu bowed and retreated with a pleased expression.

In the forest above Ghost Valley, Huang Yu sat cross-legged with his eyes closed, his hands forming a mudra on his knees, circulating his breathing technique and inhaling wisps of pale blue light. His expression looked somewhat pained.

"Hoo..." But he couldn't hold on for long and exhaled.

"Don't rush. Cultivation is no small matter. At any time, being impatient for quick success is a major taboo," Yu Ding said calmly.

Huang Yu glanced at him and said, "Yes!"

Yu Ding looked into the distance and said softly, "It's time for your master to begin special training for Xiao Wu."

Huang Yu paused for a moment, then nodded and said, "Disciple understands. His strength is far inferior to mine. He is indeed no match for me, let alone able to fulfill Master's request for us to decide the fate of the world."

"It would be best if you could understand. As your teacher, I have created two paths, which require two equally skilled disciples to carry on."

Yu Ding sighed and said, "You two are the cream of the crop, one in a million. The winner will be decided by you, and that is your destiny."

"Master didn't need to come all this way to explain."

Huang Yu said softly, "I chose this path myself. If I hadn't come here, Master would still have passed these things on to Junior Brother. Wouldn't that have made things even more difficult for me then?"

Yu Ding raised an eyebrow, his gaze deep and unfathomable. He sighed inwardly, "If you hadn't come, perhaps that kid wouldn't have come either."

“My master taught me the art of breathing and breathing techniques, which is a great kindness to me. I know that enough.”

Huang Yu calmly said, "Master wants to find the most outstanding among us to inherit Ghost Valley and decide the fate of the world, not to have his disciple kill someone who is not good enough to be my opponent. Otherwise, what is the point of Master doing all this?"
Moreover… I can sense that he is indeed my destined nemesis, but if he is too weak, what's the point of defeating and killing him?!

"Alright!" Yu Ding gave him a deep look: "If you have any doubts, I will answer them clearly for you when you leave the mountain."

Upon hearing this, Huang Yu suddenly opened his eyes, his eyes filled with joy: "Thank you, Master!"

He didn't forget that this was his original purpose for going up the mountain.

(End of this chapter)