Chapter 601: Mysterious

Li Pin calmed his mind.

He didn't believe that Clairvoyance was inferior to True Spirit.

Even if it were... he would never admit defeat. If Baili Qingfeng could comprehend the Transcendent path from these martial arts scriptures, then Li Pin believed he could do the same.

Unless... something crucial was missing.

With that thought, Li Pin decided to go over these scriptures once more, analyzing every detail, word by word.

***

A month later, Li Pin set down a Daoist scripture.

By now, he was certain that the Transcendent path was not hidden within these techniques. This confidence came from his own deep martial arts knowledge and keen perception. The fact that he was able to grasp the direction of the Transcendent path by sheer coincidence in the Mara Divine Treasure World was itself proof of his talent.

He could perceive the Transcendent path even from nothingness. If these scriptures truly contained the mysteries of the Transcendent, he would have sensed it by now.

Li Pin muttered, "Looks like I'll have to wait until Baili Qingfeng comprehends the Transcendent path and then ask him directly."

However, he had to admit that the True Spirit was profound. The more he got to know Baili Qingfeng, the more he realized how powerful the True Spirit Realm's ability to foresee fortune and avoid disaster was.

Given Baili Qingfeng's personality, Li Pin was certain Baili Qingfeng would answer him truthfully if he directly asked him about the Transcendent path. However, the True Spirit's ability to seek fortune and evade misfortune could lead Baili Qingfeng to give an answer that completely missed the point.

And the worst part—Li Pin had no way of telling whether Baili Qingfeng's answer was right or wrong. If he were misled, he'd be thrown completely off track, wasting years of effort. In the worst-case scenario, he might even head straight into reincarnation.

After considering this, Li Pin shifted his focus back. "Every martial artist, especially those who have cultivated inner spirit, possesses an unshakable self-confidence. Sometimes, this confidence even turns into bias. I am no exception..."

With a calm and objective mindset, he examined himself while also reviewing the various cultivation systems Zhou Guang sent over.

"Among the feasible systems, only the mental spirit system and the martial arts system hold real potential..."

With this confirmation, Li Pin took out his communication wristband and sent a message to Zhou Guang.

Li Pin: I need the top ten practitioners in both the mental spirit and martial arts paths. Gather them by rank. I want ten for each category.

The office handling his requests responded quickly.

Zhou Guang: We can arrange for the martial artists to be sent over soon. However, the top-ranked mental spirit cultivators are usually elite mech fighters, most of whom are currently on missions. Some have even infiltrated the Twin Moon Domain. Gathering the top ten would take some time.

Li Pin: I'll give you three days.

With that, Li Pin ended the transmission.

***

Over the past two months, despite Li Pin's seemingly harmless demeanor, the Federation government had not dared to slack off in handling his requests.

By afternoon, top experts of the martial arts system had arrived.

The Vitality, Qi, and Spirit were interconnected, and the mental spirit system significantly enhanced physical strength. As such, every martial artist ranked in the top ten was, without exception, a Martial Saint.

Among them, two had even shattered the Void and glimpsed True Divinity.

Such strength, if placed in the Celestial Barren or the Twin Moon Domain, would likely rival tier seven or eight martial artists. The ten Martial Saints had already been briefed on Li Pin's identity before their arrival.

Though each of them stood at the pinnacle of the martial world, none displayed even the slightest arrogance in his presence.

Li Pin gestured with his hand and said, "Come, let me see your strength."

The ten exchanged glances, but none of them called him arrogant.

After all, the man before them was rumored to be a True God at the sixteenth tier. Even if a hundred, no, a thousand of them joined forces, they likely wouldn't survive a single blow from him.

At that moment, a woman in her early fifties stepped forward. She appeared to be the leader in the group.

She cupped her fists and spoke solemnly. "Pardon my offense."

She was Nancy, the world's number one martial artist.

With that, she unleashed her qi and blood, launching an attack.

The others similarly pushed their qi and blood to the limit and jumped into the fray.

Li Pin kept his power suppressed at the Martial Saint level throughout the spar, carefully observing how they channeled their Force, along with their qi and blood. Yet, even at the same power level, he effortlessly handled all ten of them at once. The exchange felt almost effortless, like a grown man toying with pre-school children.

The sight left the leading Martial Saints shaken. They knew Li Pin was powerful, but never imagined he would be this overwhelming. Even using the same strength, he crushed them with ease despite facing ten opponents.

"So... this is all you've got?" remarked Li Pin, his gaze falling on Nancy. "The number one in the martial arts world? Has age caught up with you, draining your qi and blood?"

The next moment, Li Pin reached out, grasping her wrist. A surge of immense mental spirit instantly seeped into her body.

Using his Clairvoyance, he quickly discerned every hidden ailment within her.

With his immense mental strength, he was even able to peer into her genetic makeup, carrying out a series of optimizations at the genetic level.

Within moments, the woman, who, in reality, was eighty-two years old, became young again at a visible rate. Her gray hair turned jet black, and she looked no older than her thirties or forties.

"I... I..." Nancy felt the vitality coursing through her rejuvenated body. Her eyes filled with disbelief. "Unbelievable... This... this is simply unbelievable..."

Li Pin spoke calmly. "Come, show me how far you've pushed the concept of Void Pulverizer."

Although his genetic optimization didn't directly break her biological limits, it restored her genes to their peak condition.

Theoretically, humans could live up to around 160 years, and now she had reached that potential. That's why, despite being eighty-two, she looked no older than a woman in her thirties or forties.

"Yes," Nancy responded and launched another attack.

But her strength hadn't changed just because she regained her youth. Her mastery of Force at the "Glimpsed the True Divinity" realm might have given her a faint grasp of Absolute Control, she was still far from reaching the Perfect State.

Moments later, the so-called number one in the martial arts world was sent flying.

Regaining her footing, Nancy looked shaken as she murmured, "The gap... is too vast..."

She bowed respectfully. "God King Li, you are worthy of the title of a true Martial God."

Li Pin shook his head.

So, this "Breaking the Void to glimpse the True Divinity" was nothing more than pushing the human body's potential to its limit.

At that moment, something clicked in Li Pin's mind, and he asked, "A true Martial God? What do you mean by that?"

Nancy hesitated before cautiously replying, "I'm not sure if it's true or not...."

Li Pin responded, "Feel free to say what's on your mind."

Nancy's voice carried uncertainty, "A true Martial God refers to a Martial Dao True God. It's said that, a hundred years ago, before the gods invaded, there was an unparalleled martial artist. He supposedly reached the true Vacuum Pulverizer Realm and was revered by the world as the one and only Martial God..."

Li Pin paused at the term. "Vacuum Pulverizer!?"

Is that just a coincidence, or...?

"Vacuum Pulverizer... or the Void Pulverizer?" asked Li Pin.

"Vacuum Pulverizer!" Nancy explained slowly. "It is on a completely different level compared to Void Pulverizer..."

She hesitated, then continued, "But... that person's existence feels like a fleeting dream of the Martial Dao's golden era. I searched extensively for information about him afterward, yet he seemed to have vanished completely.

"It's as if my memory of him is an illusion... Even when I scoured historical records, there was nothing left behind. And yet... I have this vague but persistent feeling that he once existed."

She lowered her head, guilt evident on her face. "That's why I blurted it out earlier."

"Vanished?" Li Pin fixed his gaze on her. "A hundred years ago? What was his name?"

"I..."

Nancy opened her mouth but froze, as if her mind had hit a wall. She couldn't recall a single thing.

Yet standing before Li Pin, the being who had subdued the entire Blue Planet's civilization, she dared not lie. The more she tried to remember, the more anxious she became. And the more anxious she was, the harder it was to recall. Cold sweat broke out on her forehead.

"I... I don't know."

"You don't know?"

"M-Maybe... Maybe my memory is failing me because of my age, and I imagined him..." Nancy quickly added. "I apologize, God King Li..."

Li Pin turned to the other Martial Saints.

They exchanged glances before hastily responding.

"We've never heard of any such Martial God."

"The records mention that shattering the Void allows one to glimpse divinity, but shattering the Vacuum? A Martial God? We've never encountered such a concept."

"An expert from a century ago? If someone like that had existed, there would be records left behind."

One after another, they voiced their doubts.

Li Pin listened for a moment before turning back to Nancy. Using his Clairvoyance, he studied her carefully. She wasn't lying. In her mind, this person had truly existed.

When she spoke of the Martial God, the words came naturally, as if they were undeniable. Yet when questioned about the details, everything became shrouded in an inexplicable fog.

Some unseen force had erased this person, along with all traces of his existence.

Only a hundred years had passed since his disappearance, yet not one had any recollection of him.

Nancy's expression turned uneasy. "God King..."

She had spoken of something that likely resulted from a memory lapse, an event and person that never truly existed. She was afraid Li Pin might mistake her words as an attempt to deceive him. The last thing she wanted was to incite the displeasure of such an existence.

Li Pin looked at her. "No need to panic."

His voice was calm, soothing her mind. "Forget about whether he exists or not. Think carefully, recall everything you can about him, then tell me everything."