From the Qin Dynasty onwards, he eked out a living among the heavens.

In Xinzheng, the capital of Han, late spring night falls. The evening breeze sweeps across the willow-lined banks of the city moat, brushing against the rows of vermilion buildings and high courtyards.

On the willow-lined embankment along the Wei River, the night was quiet and deserted. A robust figure stood beneath the embankment, tall and broad-shouldered, his frame sturdy and strong, his stance as firm as an old tree rooted to the ground. His simple blue cloth robe concealed his taut, strong flesh.

He was born with sharp, angular features, his eyebrows and eyes possessing a clean and pleasing appearance. He had an understated, refined handsomeness that only became apparent upon closer inspection; he wasn't striking at first glance, and he wouldn't stand out in a crowd. No one knew that this mortal body had already traversed the heavens three times.

His name was Xu Huang. Xu Huang was originally just an ordinary person in the mortal world of Earth, with mediocre talent and ordinary endowment, without any extraordinary talent or extraordinary background.

In his youth, an unexpected spatial-temporal upheaval swept through the mortal realm. A nascent spiritual substance, slowly developing in a corner of the heavens, was swept away by the spatial-temporal anomaly and, by chance, took refuge within his physical body and soul. This wisp of spiritual substance was called the Innate Undying Spiritual Light. It was pure in nature and without flaws, but it carried within it the rudimentary form of a small world that was not yet fully developed.

The spiritual light spontaneously nourished his physical body and soul year-round, cleansing his muscles and internal organs, gradually shedding the shackles of mortal existence. It was precisely because of this daily, innate nourishment that Xu Huang transcended the cycle of birth, aging, sickness, and death of ordinary people; his body remained perpetually robust, never aging prematurely, nor dying of old age. At the same time, this wisp of spiritual light granted him the ability to traverse countless realms, allowing him to embark on entirely different paths of martial arts.

Xu Huang knew that he was of mediocre talent, without any extraordinary gifts or geniuses in the Dao. If he wanted to reach the peak of martial arts, there was no shortcut but to endure hardship, persevere, and cultivate relentlessly day after day.

He has always been drawn to the elegance and beauty of the world, enjoying the gentle breeze and the exquisite charm. However, he knows that the path of martial arts is most vulnerable to distractions and desires. He himself started late and was not naturally gifted. If he were to indulge in worldly pleasures, he would never have a chance to reach the pinnacle in this life.

Therefore, throughout his two lifetimes of martial arts, he suppressed his true desires and interests, cut off his leisure time, eliminated distractions, and endured for decades with great perseverance, focusing solely on martial arts, just to climb step by step and approach the ultimate in martial arts.

His first life in the martial arts world was spent in the world of The Legend of the Condor Heroes. Upon entering this world, Xu Huang knew that he had no master, no talent, and no fortuitous encounters, so he completely abandoned all fancy skills and shortcuts in martial arts, and focused on the most clumsy and down-to-earth path of arduous cultivation.

Throughout one's life, one should only cultivate the complete and fundamental internal cultivation method, "Golden Gate Jade Lock Technique." This method is simple and unadorned, not good at killing or brute force. The cultivation process is tedious and lengthy. Its only use is to calm the mind and lock the qi, preserve the essence and blood, and nourish the dantian to solidify the foundation of internal cultivation.

The five external martial arts specializations are rudimentary forms of hard, external training: Iron Arm Skill, Iron Leg Skill, Iron Sand Palm, Iron Shirt, and Iron Chain Across the River. These five skills are easy to learn but extremely difficult to master. Ordinary martial artists may spend their entire lives trying to reach the pinnacle of their skills, but the repetitive practice day after day is incredibly tedious and offers no sense of satisfaction.

Xu Huang cultivated diligently in the world of The Legend of the Condor Heroes for over sixty years. For over sixty years, he persevered day and night, honing his flesh, tempering his bones, and cultivating his inner energy. He endured solitude, suppressed restlessness, and banished all worldly desires, relentlessly refining the five rudimentary external martial arts techniques to perfection, and perfecting the Golden Gate Jade Lock Technique to a profound and concentrated state, ensuring no leakage of qi or blood. He did not seek exquisite techniques, but only a solid physical body. His arms were like forged iron, his legs like stone pillars, his flesh like an iron armor, his bones tightly locking in his strength. His external martial arts were heavy, robust, and resilient, his brute force solid and powerful, forging an impeccable foundation in martial arts.

For over sixty years, he endured hardship and arduous training, living an anonymous and uneventful life, accumulating only a solid foundation in mortal martial arts. As the years of "The Legend of the Condor Heroes" came to an end, his innate, indestructible spiritual light activated the passages of the heavens, carrying his eternally nourished, ageless body into the second world, "The Legend of the Dragon and the Snake." This world is a realm of pure, physical martial arts, where the physical body reaches its ultimate perfection.

Xu Huang has devoted himself to rigorous training in this world for over thirty years. Based on his sixty years of rigorous training in The Legend of the Condor Heroes, he shed the crude and brute force of his martial arts, followed the orthodox path of Chinese martial arts to refine his muscles, harmonize his qi and blood, and strengthen his bones and tendons, gradually transforming clumsiness into purity and roughness into refinement.

After more than thirty years of refinement, he internalized his heavy brute strength, honing his flesh, bones, qi and blood to the ultimate peak of a mortal body. He became calm and composed in both movement and stillness, controlling his movements at will, and his martial arts foundation became increasingly condensed and profound.

Through years of honing his skills and tempering his body, he gradually came to understand the true nature of martial arts and condensed his own unique fist intent. Unlike the sharp sword intent and the cold blade intent, Xu Huang's fist intent was profound and all-encompassing, taking shape in an instant, creating a landscape of breathtaking beauty.

Countless punches and kicks honed his skills, his flesh and blood imbued with the essence of martial arts, encompassing the picturesque landscape. With a steady fist, the mountains and rivers are stable; with his body, he stands firm between heaven and earth. After thirty years of cultivation in the world of dragons and snakes came to an end, and ninety years of arduous practice had been refined, his fist intent was completely perfected, and his martial arts mindset was clear and flawless.

The innate, indestructible spiritual light that had accompanied him all year round was originally formless and intangible. At this moment, guided by his perfect Jiangshan Ruhua Fist intent, and in line with his lifelong pursuit of martial arts and his desire to incorporate mountains and rivers into his fist, it condensed and took shape on its own, transforming into a scroll with ancient charm that encompassed all things in heaven and earth.

Following this form and in accordance with his own fist intent, Xu Huang officially named this spiritual treasure "Map of Mountains and Rivers". The scroll was hidden deep within his soul, neither visible nor hidden, silent and unnoticed. The small world that was originally within the spiritual light was also safely sealed within the scroll.

The Mountain and River Map continues its spiritual origin, absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, the energy of mountains and rivers, the essence of all things, and the subtle breath of time and space day and night, slowly nourishing its innate spiritual quality and gradually cultivating its inner world, accumulating bit by bit and growing steadily. Through two lifetimes of martial arts cultivation, spanning over ninety years, Xu Huang, with mediocre talent, relied on forbearance and perseverance to climb step by step, pushing his mortal body to its limits.

The world of dragons and snakes has come to an end, and the Map of Mountains and Rivers once again activates the passages to the heavens. Xu Huang, with his simple and unadorned martial arts mortal body, travels through the heavens for the third time, landing in the Warring States period of the pre-Qin era, a chaotic world of the Nine Songs of the Heavenly Journey.

A gentle evening breeze caressed my clothes, and the night air was slightly cool.

After ninety years of ascetic training and quiet contemplation, his martial arts foundation is now solid, his fist intent perfected, and his mind calm and composed. He no longer needs to be as extreme in his self-discipline and force himself to endure as before. He remains polite and upright, discreet and unassuming, avoiding conflict and fame, maintaining his integrity and standing firm. However, when he encounters stunning beauty and extraordinary charm amidst chaos, he no longer needs to deliberately avoid them. He appreciates them without harboring any delusions, enjoys the beauty of nature but remains prudent, loves beauty but does not overstep boundaries, understands its subtleties but retains his true nature, observes with elegance and tranquility, and remains open and self-possessed.

After a long silence, Xu Huang spoke softly.

"Xinzheng has many beauties, and troubled times have produced many beautiful women."

He spent his life shooting eagles, endured sixty years of hardship, strengthened his body with clumsy martial arts, built a foundation with external martial arts, and locked his qi to nourish his vital energy;

The second generation of dragons and snakes, after thirty years of stagnation, transformed their clumsiness into the Tao, their fists contained mountains and rivers, and their spiritual light transformed into scrolls;

Having traversed countless heavens and experienced the Warring States period, I have just begun to master martial arts and uphold righteousness according to my heart.

Ninety years of arduous study under the cold lamp, a lifetime of clumsy skill climbing to the peak, a heart filled with half a touch of romance, in the chaotic world of Nine Songs, I established myself from then on.