Wu Pifu discovered a characteristic of the Tiger Demon Technique: in the thin line between life and death, his Not-Sleeping Spiritual Awareness would rapidly expand, allowing him to absorb and suppress more chaotic thoughts and demonic notions.
His breakthrough into the basics of the Tiger Demon Technique and the initial attainment of Not-Sleeping Spiritual Awareness occurred during a life-and-death struggle with the Mud Buddha Yaksha.
At that moment, with life and death hanging in the balance, his Not-Sleeping Spiritual Awareness grew once more, suppressing the various negative thoughts that surged from the depths of his heart.
Even when facing that twisted, gigantic humanoid figure, he remained clear-headed.
However, the Tiger Demon Technique did not grant immunity to negativity or illusions; rather, it allowed one to maintain clarity amidst a surge of chaotic thoughts.
As he drew closer to the twisted giant, countless illusions began to manifest in his mind.
Faintly, Wu Pifu saw an enormous, unmatched mountain.
Even a mere glimpse, even the slightest illusion, gave him a sense of vastness, as if the word "great" was created specifically for this mountain.
Even gazing at the starry sky could not compare to the overwhelming feeling of enormity that this mountain imparted.
He saw that this mountain was divided into four layers, with structures atop the peak, though he could not see them clearly.
On this mountain lived countless beings, innumerable wise lives, each residing peacefully.
Suddenly, something descended, and Wu Pifu saw those countless beings begin to mutate.
Some transformed into earth-like substances, some sprouted numerous distorted organs, some had their flesh drawn out into threads, while others fused together into a mass...
At that moment, a goddess transformed into five lotus flowers, colored blue, gold, red, black, and yellow, arranged in five directions, wrapping a corner of the giant mountain and vanishing into the surrounding void.
In Wu Pifu's sea of consciousness, that spark of Not-Sleeping Spiritual Awareness shone brightly.
The next moment, reality returned to his eyes, and he found himself only two or three meters away from the circular hole beneath the twisted humanoid figure.
At this moment, Wu Pifu's focus was incredibly intense.
Even though countless chaotic thoughts surged in his mind—such as a sudden itch in his body, what he had eaten yesterday, a pain in his palm, or how dark the sky was—at this moment, they were all suppressed by his Not-Sleeping Spiritual Awareness.
In his eyes, even the twisted humanoid figure vanished, and in the world, only he and that circular hole existed.
Everything around him fell silent, as if time itself had stopped at that moment.
Only Wu Pifu's Not-Sleeping Spiritual Awareness continued to circulate, and his body made slight adjustments.
Countless pieces of information flowed through the depths of his consciousness at that moment.
"The Sitting Lotus Technique is a virtual Dan Technique..."
"My experience is visualization; visualize a lotus flower at the Dantian..."
"Test little by little, gather a bit, and concentrate the qi and blood power at the visualized lotus..."
In this moment of stillness, Wu Pifu's mind echoed with Lin Heier's explanations of the key points of the Sitting Lotus Technique, as well as the simulated Dan Technique points.
Then, under the onslaught of countless chaotic thoughts and demonic notions, illuminated by a spark of Not-Sleeping Spiritual Awareness, he suddenly uttered a word.
"Void."
"Not visualizing the lotus flower, but void..."
Wu Pifu was only about a meter away from the circular hole, and countless threads rushed towards him.
In that instant, he surprisingly abandoned the crossed-legged sitting position and instead squatted slightly.
The movement was not large, but at that moment, his entire body’s qi and blood surged downward, gathering at a point in the Dantian that was between existence and non-existence...
Then, in the next moment, Wu Pifu thrust both palms forward, unleashing the flames that burned throughout his body directly onto the circular hole.
Moreover, it was not just that; his Not-Sleeping Spiritual Awareness seemed to follow the full-force attack of all his qi and blood power, crashing into the circular hole as well!
"... End all bindings, attain freedom of heart..." "... All shall not retreat from Anouto Luo Sanmiao San Bodhi, all shall attain Dharani..."
Rhythmic tones echoed in Wu Pifu's ears.
Each of these tones was not composed of syllables but rather of countless wails, curses, cries of pain, and some indescribable sounds.
It seemed like one word after another, yet in Wu Pifu's consciousness, they exploded, each syllable transforming into a living entity, merging with his physical body on an imperceptible level, beginning to alter his genes...
Suddenly, at that moment, a small amount of mud surged from the arm he had previously fused with the Mud Buddha.
This mud flowed throughout his body, extinguishing the changes triggered by the bizarre sounds.
At the same time, the circular hole began to crack inch by inch, and the twisted giant figure slowly dissipated amidst the inexplicable sounds, along with the hundreds of dangling threads that vanished as well.
In an instant, the world became clear, and the terrifying atmosphere that had previously enveloped him abruptly disappeared.
Wu Pifu felt refreshed, even though he was actually gravely injured.
Not only were both palms of his arms nearly incapacitated, but his entire body's meridians were in disarray, and his internal organs were severely damaged.
At that moment, he was worse off than an ordinary person who had been hit by a large truck.
Fortunately, he was a master of national martial arts, and at this moment, he had gained insight into half a step of the void amidst the incredible circumstances.
This was a step further than the simulated Dan Technique of the Sitting Lotus Technique.
His entire body’s qi was transparent, gathering everything at that point in the Dantian that was between existence and non-existence.
At this very moment, his control over his qi and blood power even surpassed that of a Transformation Master, and calling it half a step to the Golden Core would not be an exaggeration!
He was seen silently rising in mid-air, then began to descend rapidly.
Falling from dozens of meters high, his body naturally relaxed and emptied.
However, if one had strong enough vision, they would see that every part of his body was trembling continuously, adjusting to the downward wind.
Then, at the moment of contact with the ground, he stood on his toes, slanting down toward the ground, and then both feet pushed forward like the webbed feet of a duck or goose.
Wu Pifu transformed from a straight fall into a slanted glide, and on the ground, two pits were created by his toes.
He slid forward for over twenty meters, transitioning from gliding in mid-air to running on his feet, and finally to a slow jog.
When he came to a stop, a thick, faint red mist rose from his body, and beads of blood seeped from the surface of his skin, making him look terrifying.
Yet his eyes sparkled as if they were glowing.
Lin Heier watched Wu Pifu descend from the sky, completely unharmed.
Her heart, which had nearly leapt from her chest, gradually calmed down.
When Wu Pifu turned to look at her and the Half-Paper Man, her heart jolted, and she nearly cried out, "Electricity in a Void Room!?"
It was said that when a master of national martial arts advanced further, transitioning from external to internal power, and sat upon the Golden Core, their life transformed from mortal to transcendent.
In a dark, lightless room, one could even see their eyes shining, a phenomenon known as "Electricity in a Void Room."
However, this was merely a legend.
Lin Heier had never witnessed it, and even among the three masters she had encountered, her own teacher, and those recorded in her sect, no one had ever seen it with their own eyes.
Yet at this moment, she felt as if she were witnessing this mythical phenomenon!
Wu Pifu offered no response.
He merely glanced at Lin Heier and the Half-Paper Man, then unexpectedly began to assume a stance right there, throwing a punch, a kick, a palm strike, and a claw, slowly practicing.
Seeing this scene, Lin Heier understood that Wu Pifu had gained some great opportunity, akin to an epiphany.
She felt an intense envy in her heart, but she immediately raised the torch, forcing herself to endure the intense pain as she stood between the Half-Paper Man and Wu Pifu.
As the celestial phenomenon faded, the flying flesh, paper fragments, mist, and wraiths all vanished completely.
Only the Half-Paper Man remained, and its body’s flames gradually extinguished, becoming the target of Lin Heier's full vigilance.
However, contrary to her expectations, the Half-Paper Man showed no signs of movement.
It merely gazed blankly at Wu Pifu's practice, observing each move closely.
Lin Heier knew this was a rare opportunity, and she focused most of her attention on Wu Pifu, turning to the side to watch him practice.
After about two or three minutes of swinging, Wu Pifu stopped his movements and stood still, then sighed deeply, "The accumulation is too thin; this is where it ends... Such a great opportunity, truly wasted by me."
At this point, the sense of emptiness, the taste of half a step of Dan Technique, and the feeling of being between existence and non-existence in the Dantian all vanished, as if he had just had a dream, with the memories of that dream quickly fading upon waking.
Perhaps in the future, he could enter this realm again, but it would not be a similar opportunity; it would be achieved step by step through hard practice.
Even so, Wu Pifu felt that just practicing for two or three minutes had yielded results comparable to three to five years of hard training in martial arts.
The initial awkwardness of entering the Dark Strength had completely disappeared, and he had even progressed further, faintly touching upon the understanding of spreading qi and blood power throughout his body.
Only then did Wu Pifu turn his attention to Lin Heier, then to the Half-Paper Man about ten meters away, and the distant Xu Rongyu lying down, as well as the life-and-death uncertain Yamada and Xu Shilan.
Wu Pifu walked towards the Half-Paper Man, which appeared pitiful, its flesh burned and the paper part beginning to fade and disappear, looking as if it was about to disintegrate.
At that moment, the Half-Paper Man did not launch any attack.
It looked up at the sky, then glanced at Xu Rongyu, before clasping its fists towards Wu Pifu and saying, "Smasher of Monuments, Xu Zhenshan... I have met you."
Wu Pifu was taken aback.
He looked at the Half-Paper Man's state and solemnly clasped his fists in return, saying, "Tiger Demon Technique, Wu Pifu, I have met you as well."
The Half-Paper Man laughed heartily, and as it laughed, its body dissipated, limbs and head falling to the ground, turning into a corpse.
Once the Half-Paper Man completely died, Wu Pifu spat a mouthful of fresh blood from the broken rib in his chest, which surged up his throat and was forcefully expelled.
After spitting out a mouthful of blood, Wu Pifu's face turned pale, and Lin Heier wanted to step forward to support him but also collapsed weakly to the ground.
At this moment, Wu Pifu did not pause.
He quickly ran to where Yamada and Xu Shilan had fallen, carefully checking their pulses and conditions, his expression growing grave.
Yamada's spine was bent, and his breathing was extremely weak, teetering on the brink of life and death.
Yet he surprisingly remained conscious, offering Wu Pifu a smile that was more painful than crying.
As for Xu Shilan, her chest was caved in, her throat misaligned, and she had stopped breathing.
However, she had only been dead for a moment... or rather, her heart had only stopped beating for a few minutes.
Wu Pifu immediately stood up and called out to Xu Rongyu, "Xu Rongyu, who owns this charity cemetery!? I want to buy it!"
At this moment, Xu Rongyu was holding onto a leg, wailing, and witnessing his father’s death, he was sobbing uncontrollably.
Upon hearing Wu Pifu's words, he was momentarily stunned but still intimidated by Wu Pifu's presence and quickly replied, "Since the family has perished, this place is considered ownerless, but it still requires official approval. Just bring some silver, my father has connections in Xuancheng, my father..."
"Alright!" Wu Pifu shouted loudly, "I want to buy this charity cemetery!"
This was not only for Xu Rongyu to hear but also for the mainframe.
Wu Pifu did not know if it would work, but he could only treat a dead horse as a live one.
He had to return to Gaia in the shortest time possible, put Yamada and Xu Shilan into suspended animation, and then revive them when the carbon-based nanounits were sufficient!
As for leaving a historical legacy or establishing a force, he could not care less; he could only choose the fastest and simplest way to purchase the building.
As soon as he finished speaking, the mainframe's voice echoed in Wu Pifu's mind, like a heavenly melody.
"Building purchase confirmed, force establishment criteria met, event criteria met, judging..."
"Judgment completed."
"Special shelter confirmed established, reward criteria upgraded."
(End of Chapter)