Sword drawn from the constellations, poison as its edge.

Chapter 182 The Five Spirits Battle Immortal's Corpse Explodes
Seeing that Ding Chunqiu was about to pass on a new trick, Jiang Mingzhe couldn't help but feel a little expectant.

Then Ding Chunqiu said, "I told you before that internal strength is the foundation, and techniques are the branches and leaves. When the foundation is solid, the branches and leaves will flourish. Now that your internal strength has achieved a certain level, it will be easier for you to learn techniques than before."

He pondered for a moment, then spun around twice with his hands behind his back before slowly saying, "You're going to Shaolin Temple to help Xiao Feng. Shaolin Temple has two main characteristics: first, it has many masters; second, everyone attacks together. The kung fu I'll teach you should be able to help you in one-on-one combat, as well as in group battles..."

Ding Chunqiu stopped and said in a deep voice, "I've got it. The first set of skills I'll pass on to you is called... called... 'Five Elements, Five Elements Immortal Battle Technique'!"

Five Elements Immortal Battle Technique?

Jiang Mingzhe frowned slightly, wondering if this stuttering name was actually made up on the spot.

Unable to resist asking, "Master, I've never heard my senior sister mention this style of kung fu before..."

Ding Chunqiu smiled smugly: "Never heard of it? Hehe, although you haven't heard of it, you've practiced it. The Three Yin Centipede Claw, the Thousand Spider Venomous Hand, the Toad Devouring Heaven Fist, the Crimson Silent Palm, and the Spirit Scorpion Soul-Destroying Finger—these five skills combined are the Five Elements Battle Immortal Technique! Its power is more than ten times greater than when used individually!"

"Oh?" Jiang Mingzhe looked puzzled, wondering if Lao Deng had made this up on the spot.
"Heh, you kid, you don't believe me?"

Ding Chunqiu immediately saw through Jiang Mingzhe's doubts and said sternly, "Hmph, if you hadn't cultivated the Tribulation Crossing Scripture to the Intertwining Radiance Realm, you wouldn't be qualified to learn my skills!"

He had just broken Jiang Mingzhe's Great Vajra Pestle with the Three Yin Claw, forcefully defending the dignity of the Starry Constellation Sect's ultimate technique. In fact, the skill he used was not merely the Three Yin Claw—

The move that allowed Jiang Mingzhe to gracefully retreat while pressing down on his fist was a movement technique from the Spirit Scorpion Soul-Sealing Finger, called "Scorpion Crossing the River," but it was determined that Jiang Mingzhe wouldn't be able to see it.

In fact, he himself knew very well that, in terms of the quality of martial arts itself, the Three Yin Claw was indeed a level below the Great Vajra Pestle, but he would never admit it.

So here's the question: if a complete stranger casually imparts such a unique skill, wouldn't the master worry that his disciple might become disloyal if he didn't demonstrate some genuine expertise?
Therefore, he gritted his teeth and brought out this skill that had been created less than a year ago.

When Ding Chunqiu first joined the Xiaoyao Sect and became a disciple of Wuyazi, he was disliked by Wuyazi because of his frivolous nature and unscrupulous methods. He never learned any of the Xiaoyao Sect's truly powerful skills.

The three top-tier internal skills of the Xiaoyao Sect are Beiming Divine Skill, Xiaowuxiang Skill, and Immortal Longevity Skill. Each of the three disciples, Wuyazi, Li Qiushui, and Tianshan Tonglao, inherited one of them. Ding Chunqiu longed for Wuyazi's Beiming Divine Skill, but it was difficult for him to inherit it.

Later, he helped Li Qiushui take care of her daughter for many years. Seeing that he truly had some fatherly love for Li Qingluo, Li Qiushui passed on the Lesser Formless Skill to him.

The cultivation method that Ding Chunqiu initially practiced was actually the Everlasting Youth and Longevity Technique.

This skill was passed down in part by Tianshan Tonglao to Wuyazi, who then modified it according to his own understanding and passed it on to Ding Chunqiu.

Ding Chunqiu was cunning by nature and naturally guessed his master's intention: to use him as a guinea pig.

Aside from internal energy cultivation, Ding Chunqiu didn't acquire any of Wu Yazi's Cloud-Piercing Sword Technique, Li Qiushui's Netherworld Ghost Claw, White Rainbow Palm Force, and Lingbo Steps, or Tianshan Tonglao's Tianshan Six Yang Palm, Tianshan Plum Blossom Hand, and Life and Death Talisman.

Therefore, when he founded the Xingxiu Sect, he was filled with resentment and vowed to surpass his master and ancestors, to create several martial arts techniques that would shine through the ages and rival the world's top martial arts, to prove that he was more capable than his master, Wuyazi.

However, while ideals are lofty, reality is tough. In terms of internal strength, Lao Ding had a special encounter and obtained the treasure of the Divine Wood King Cauldron. Therefore, he painstakingly cultivated it, using the incomplete version of the Everlasting Spring Skill as a foundation, plus a few lines of the Northern Darkness Divine Skill incantation that he had stolen, and forcibly created a side path of refining poison as a means of cultivation, which he named the Dissolving Power Technique.

However, in terms of fist and foot techniques, they could not create any top-level martial arts, only producing works such as Centipede Claw and Ten Thousand Poison Hand.

But as the saying goes: aim high and you'll only achieve the middle; aim for the middle and you'll only achieve the lowest.

Ding Chunqiu aimed high, and although he only created a few mid-level martial arts techniques, the underlying logic of these techniques was quite consistent.

It can be seen as Lao Ding wanting to write a magnificent article, but unfortunately his skills were limited at the time, and despite his painstaking efforts, he only managed to write a few short chapters.

These few chapters may seem unrelated to outsiders, but experts can see their inherent connection.

Later, as Ding Chunqiu's martial arts skills deepened, especially as he gradually mastered the Lesser Formless Skill, his understanding and knowledge improved significantly. He then began to refine these mid-grade martial arts, fixing their shortcomings and making up for their deficiencies. In the end, he finally completed the magnificent article he had originally intended to write.

However, this martial art was less than a year old and was already like a draft, with many aspects still needing to be polished and optimized.

Ding Chunqiu had no intention of passing on this unique skill to any disciple, feeling that he had plenty of time to perfect it, so he didn't even give it a name.

until today.

First, he received a great opportunity to achieve enlightenment through incense offerings, then he witnessed how generous others were to their disciples, and Jiang Mingzhe's martial arts progress was indeed astonishing.

In a moment of impulsiveness, Ding Chunqiu decided to pass on this skill and immediately came up with a name for it: the Five Elements Immortal-Fighting Technique.

According to him, "This martial art is a perfect match for our sect's Tribulation Crossing Scripture. The two complement each other. If you cultivate it to the Circulation Realm, the Five Elements Internal Force will be continuous. Then the Five Poisons will no longer be the Five Poisons, but the Five Spirits. Even if all 72 Shaolin Arts are used, we men will definitely defeat him in one fell swoop!"

"So amazing!" Jiang Mingzhe exclaimed in surprise, feigning great delight.

Ding Chunqiu smiled arrogantly and got into a fighting stance: "Kid, watch closely!" He first demonstrated the Three Yin Centipede Claw, Thousand Spider Poison Hand, Toad Swallowing Heaven Fist, Crimson Refining Silent Palm, and Spirit Scorpion Soul-Destroying Finger one by one. Then he broke down the skills and taught them to Jiang Mingzhe separately.

Then, from the perspective of the five elements' generation and transformation, it demonstrates how the five martial arts styles can be integrated into one.

For example, how to use internal energy, how to change moves, how to coordinate and cooperate... By the time he finished speaking, more than an hour had passed.

Jiang Mingzhe started as a complete novice, and it only took him a few days to master the Three Yin Centipede Claw. Now, his skill is profound, his knowledge has broadened, and these other martial arts resonate with the Three Yin Centipede Claw, making it doubly easy for him to learn them.

After Ding Chunqiu finished speaking, he had almost fully understood it, but he still needed time to practice and familiarize himself with it, and further comprehend the subtle changes.

During the rehearsal, Ding Chunqiu would occasionally make adjustments. After two rounds of adjustments, he exclaimed, "Your talent is just like mine! Alright, let's go through a few more moves!"

After saying that, he stretched out his body and attacked with the Battle Immortal Technique. Jiang Mingzhe also used the same technique to fight back. The two exchanged blows, punches and kicks, making for a very lively fight.

Ding Chunqiu offered guidance from time to time, and Jiang Mingzhe made constant adjustments. It was clear that he was gradually mastering the Five Elements Battle Immortal Technique.

As dusk fell, Li Qingluo sent a maid to invite the master and disciple to rest and have a meal.

Ding Chunqiu led Jiang Mingzhe to the living room, where they sat down. Ding Chunqiu said, "Young Jiang, I just taught you this divine skill. When you master it, you can touch anyone in the world. However, relying solely on this skill might not be enough to deal with the combined attacks of the Shaolin Temple! I'm in high spirits today, so I'll teach you two more earth-shattering techniques!"

"The Three Laughs of Leisure!"

"A chain of corpse poison!"

Ding Chunqiu shouted out two names in succession, arrogantly declaring, "My Xingxiu Sect is renowned throughout the world. No martial artist is unafraid of our 'Dissolving Power Technique,' yet they are unaware that the Xingxiu Sect's true strength lies in its poison techniques. As you know, our sect possesses countless hidden weapons and poisons, but these two are truly the pinnacle!"

He took out two porcelain bottles from his pocket and pushed them in front of Jiang Mingzhe: "The powder in this red bottle is the Three Laughs Powder of Freedom. When it hits a person, it penetrates the skin and enters the body without the victim noticing. After laughing three times, the victim will immediately die. However, when using it, you must be careful that the opponent's internal energy protects them and triggers the poison powder. If you encounter someone with such high internal energy, first engage in a skirmish with them to deplete their internal energy before making your move. This will ensure that you are absolutely safe."

Jiang Mingzhe looked on with awe and pointed to another bottle, saying, "Master, is the antidote in this green bottle?"

Ding Chunqiu said arrogantly, "There is no cure for this poison! This is not an antidote, but an oil to prevent poisoning. When you use this poison, you must first apply the medicine to your fingertips, otherwise the powder will poison you to death first."

Jiang Mingzhe was horrified upon hearing this, thinking that the medicine must be extremely poisonous to be administered with such care.

Ding Chunqiu then had someone bring a bowl of flour and said, "Back then, I was obsessed with poisons and researched countless poisons and methods of poisoning. Later, I realized that if you want to kill someone, why make it so complicated? I will only teach you three techniques. Once you learn them, you will be able to roam the world freely."

He then took some flour and taught Jiang Mingzhe three techniques. The first technique was to hide the poison in his sleeve, and with a flick of his sleeve, he would release the poison.

The second trick is to hide poison under the fingernail and flick the finger to release the powder, a very subtle method.

The third method involves using a whistle containing poison powder. When used, blowing the whistle causes the poison powder to spill out. With a flick of a fan, the powder kills the victim. The enemy, unaware of the mystery, assumes that the whistle is being used to kill, and thus treats the victim with extreme awe.

Ding Chunqiu explained clearly: "Actually, if you want to fight, a flick of the sleeve and a snap of the fingers is enough. But since you have learned the Azure Dragon Fan, it is clear that you want to learn from me and use the fan as a weapon. So I will teach you this move. Hehe, although it is not very useful, it is still impressive and enough to deter villains."

These methods of poisoning involve two aspects: technique and strength. Jiang Mingzhe learned them without much effort, but Ding Chunqiu specifically instructed him to practice them extensively and not to make the slightest mistake.

He was afraid that Ding Chunqiu would recognize the Seven Swords, so he didn't bring even a replica of it.

He asked Murong Fu for a fan with an ironwood and silk surface to carry with him. When Ding Chunqiu saw him practicing waving the fan to send sounds, he suddenly got excited, asked for the fan, and taught him the Xingxiu Sect's Free and Easy Fan Technique.

Jiang Mingzhe was secretly shocked when he saw him make a move. It turned out that every move of the Free and Easy Fan Technique was derived from the Hanging Cloud Sword Technique. Others might not be able to see it, but he had now mastered the Hanging Cloud Sword Technique so well that he could not be wrong.

He guessed that Ding Chunqiu had probably seen Wu Yazi use a sword and secretly learned a few moves, but he didn't know the inner workings and couldn't use them. So he used those moves as a basis to create this Free and Easy Fan technique.

Although the power of the Free and Easy Fan is far inferior to that of the Hanging Cloud Sword, it is much more advanced than the Azure Dragon Fan Technique. Recalling what A Zi had said about the Starry Sky Sect's various weapons and skills, the Free and Easy Fan Technique was the best, he couldn't help but nod in agreement. He thought that this fan technique, in terms of moves alone, was no less than the Duan Family Sword or the Murong Sword, and could be considered an extremely extraordinary skill.

With the Chuiyun Sword Technique as a foundation, learning the Xiaoyao Fan Technique was naturally a breeze for him.

Jiang Mingzhe learned the fan technique and continued to practice poisoning with flour. After finishing a bowl of flour, he had roughly mastered several techniques.

Ding Chunqiu only gave him this bottle of poison powder, but kept silent about the formula, and went straight to the next topic, carefully teaching Jiang Yunzhe the skills of making corpse poison.

The Corpse Poison technique isn't particularly mysterious. Once you've mastered the art of poison, you can first grab the enemy and kill them, then quickly channel your inner energy to spread the poison throughout their body, turning them into a poisonous corpse, which you can then throw to injure them.

According to Ding Chunqiu, this skill is not effective against highly skilled opponents, but it is extremely useful for fighting against superior numbers, breaking through enemy lines, and charging into enemy formations.

(End of this chapter)