Celestial Ascent: A Tale of Myths and Martial Arts

"The wilds of Yongzhou breed peculiar serpents; black of skin, yet patterned with white, they wither the plants they touch, and their bite offers no defense."

Having penned these words, Liu Zongyuan laid down his brush, sighed, and rose to the window. "The people suffer," he murmured, "the oppressive rule more venomous than any serpent! Since the fourteenth year of Tianbao, the nation has festered, even these monstrous vipers run rampant through our villages!"

It was in the fourteenth year of Tianbao that the August and Sagacious Great Ming Filial Emperor finally succumbed to decadence. The Prince of Dongping raised the banner of rebellion, shattering the grand prosperity of that era. Though the rebellion was quelled, years of warfare left the land fractured, its former splendor irretrievably lost.

Thus, the spirit of evil rose across the land, wicked creatures multiplied, and within the court, treacherous officials held sway, with eunuchs wielding power. Those of noble aspiration, like Liu Zongyuan, found themselves exiled to remote backwaters, their ambitions forever thwarted.

As these thoughts weighed upon him, a sudden black gale howled outside the window. A venomous serpent, its body adorned with alternating black and white bands, emerged from the ditch and slithered onto the street, leaving a trail of rapidly withered plants in its wake.

It was the very serpent he had described, unimaginably venomous.

Yet this serpent was grotesquely large, its length exceeding three zhang. A single sweep of its tail sent houses crashing down; a mere spray of its venomous breath unleashed a miasma of poison.

The street echoed with the wails of fleeing townsfolk.

A plump, innocent-looking pig, caught unawares as it munched on cabbage near a street corner, inhaled the toxic vapor, its limbs stiffened, and it succumbed to its wretched fate.

Suddenly, a youth, clad in tattered garments, surged from behind. His fist shot out, a gust of wind dispelling the toxic cloud.

The serpent, startled, darted away, only to be overtaken by the youth. Forced to turn and fight, the serpent was met with a flying kick to the jaw.

The serpent spun, disoriented, and the youth swiftly followed up, his fingers dancing across the serpent’s spine, pressing down on each vertebrae with blinding speed.

A series of sharp snaps, like a string of firecrackers, echoed through the street as the youth’s fingers dislocated the serpent's joints, rendering it utterly helpless.

The onlookers cheered, “Little Ying! What skill!”

The youth, Xu Ying, possessed a lithe frame and long, slender fingers, his skin tanned from years spent under the sun.

He was a well-known serpent catcher from Lingling County in Yongzhou. At only fourteen, he had mastered extraordinary skill.

He grasped the serpent’s tail, ready to haul it away when Liu Zongyuan hailed him from the doorway. “Xu Ying, for what purpose do you catch this serpent?” he inquired.

The youth halted, recognizing the Yongzhou Administrator, Liu Zongyuan. He bowed, “Administrator Liu, this serpent, when dried, becomes a potent medicinal ingredient, curing wind sickness, contractures, and fistulas, removing dead tissue, and killing parasites. The prefect has decreed that whoever captures such a serpent shall be exempted from tax.”

Liu Zongyuan smiled, “That is indeed good.”

Xu Ying's face clouded over, "My grandfather was a serpent catcher and died in the act, so too my father. I have practiced this craft for six years, fearing that I too will meet my end catching serpents."

Liu Zongyuan felt a surge of sympathy. "I am a friend of the prefect. I will beseech him to release you from this corvée labor and restore your tax obligation."

The great serpent, hearing this, spoke in a human voice, “Administrator Liu speaks well! Xu Ying, I have cultivated myself for many years, please spare me. You pay your tax, and I shall retreat to the mountains and practice my demonic arts!”

Liu Zongyuan was startled, “This is a serpent demon!”

The great serpent cried out, “My grandfather was a serpent demon, killed by a serpent catcher. My parents were also serpent demons, killed by serpent catchers. Now, at one hundred and twenty years old, I thought I could escape this fate and become a dragon, to devour all these bastards, and yet I will die by a serpent catcher’s hand…”

Xu Ying reached forward and with a single movement, dislocated the serpent's jaw, silencing it.

Tears welled up in Xu Ying's eyes. “Administrator Liu, if I catch serpents, I can survive. If I pay taxes, I will surely starve. If not for necessity, who would willingly risk their life to hunt these demons?”

He dragged the serpent away, his shoulders slumped in despair.

Liu Zongyuan, unable to contain his grief, lamented, “Who could have known that the poison of levies would be worse than that of the serpent! The serpent is venomous, but more venomous still is the predatory tax!”

Returning to his chamber, he wrote with a flourish, the timeless essay “The Serpent Catcher.”

Xu Ying dragged the serpent demon home and tossed it into a large vat. The day was waning; he was unable to deliver his catch to the authorities. He would have to wait till dawn.

Xu Ying hastily prepared and consumed a meal before falling into a deep sleep.

Within the vat, the serpent thrashed about, attempting to reset its dislocated bones. By the middle of the night, harsh government officials, like bandits, stormed through the village, smashing, looting, and shouting for taxes.

Startled awake, Xu Ying lit a lamp and checked the vat. Relieved to see the serpent demon still there, he lay back down and slept.

The serpent demon continued its efforts to repair its bones. Finally, it managed to reset its jaw, only to hear the sounds of Xu Ying stirring.

The serpent demon sank into despair.

Xu Ying dressed, and again approached the vat, casting a glance at the serpent demon. Still motionless, the serpent demon thought, “Once I reset the bones at the back of my head, I'll abruptly rise and bite him, sending him to meet his grandfather and parents!”

Xu Ying turned to face the rising sun, and began to practice the Taiyi Guidance Technique.

With each breath, the sunlight upon his face seemed to intensify, and tiny particles of light danced in the air, flowing into his body.

A rumble arose from deep within his abdomen, rising to his throat, his nasal cavity, then descending back to his dantian.

Soon, steam rose from his body, a plume of white vapor.

His skills had not come from his father or grandfather.

He was not his father’s biological son, but was taken in by his grandfather.

His father and grandfather were surnamed Jiang, while he was surnamed Xu. Seven years ago, the great fire at Xu family village led to his rescue by his grandfather, and they settled here.

His memories of the fire were fragmentary, but he retained a faint recollection of a breathing technique - the Taiyi Guidance Technique.

In his spare time, Xu Ying diligently practiced the Taiyi Guidance Technique, and had done so for seven years.

He had no idea what the point of the exercise was, but it did not require much time.

He came to the conclusion, the sole purpose of the technique was to enhance his blood circulation.

“This thing is useless, it only makes me pee far,” Xu Ying once scoffed at it.

It was only after growing older, and accompanying his father and grandfather to catch serpents, that he realized the Taiyi Guidance Technique was more than just a tool to pee far.

He passed the technique on to his father and grandfather, but their progress was slow, and they ultimately succumbed during their serpent hunts.

Now, Xu Ying was the only one left.

Three years ago, he had brought the Taiyi Guidance Technique to its peak, his blood coursing like thunder.

He could sense that there was still a path to follow, further changes to his blood flow, but the subsequent methods were shrouded in mystery.

Behind him, the serpent demon peeked out of the vat, his face pale.

Xu Ying devoured the essence of the sun, tempering his blood. His pace exceeded his own, and his capacity to refine solar essence, was far beyond absorbing the rays of the sun - like a monster, devouring the mysterious workings of the dawn.

“He's practicing a demonic technique of our kind!” The serpent demon's eyes widened in confusion. “He is a human, how can he practice my demon clan's technique?”

As the sun climbed higher, Xu Ying gradually ceased his breathing exercise, and the serpent demon quickly withdrew.

As the sun rose, the fire element in the sunlight became exceedingly intense. If he were to continue the guidance technique at this point, he would find his blood growing ever hotter, verging on spontaneous combustion.

Over-practicing would do harm to the body. If one was to push too far, the excessive fire element, would require the lunar essence from a full moon, to balance it out.

Xu Ying approached the vat, grabbed the serpent demon by the neck, and pulled it out. His face was gentle as he said, “I am not a lover of slaughter. I shall ask questions, you shall answer, else you die. Do you understand?”

The serpent demon nodded vigorously.

Xu Ying set it down. “How did you become a demon?” he asked.

The serpent demon, eager to please, said “My grandfather was once an ordinary venomous snake. One day, he wandered into the Qin Rock Cave. The cave suddenly collapsed, revealing a scripture and a gourd of pills. My grandfather consumed the pills and his mind grew sharp, he could now speak, read, and write. Then he practiced the scripture and became a demon. My grandfather passed the scripture on to my parents and then they to me. A proper lineage, with a heritage to boot.”

Xu Ying nodded thoughtfully. "Bring me your scripture, let me see it.”

The serpent demon hesitated.

Xu Ying picked up a fist-sized stone from the edge of the well and squeezed it hard. Water droplets seeped from it.

He loosened his grip, and the stone crumbled into dust. "How are you compared to this stone?" he asked.

The serpent demon immediately opened its mouth and spat out a scripture.

Xu Ying unfurled the scripture. It detailed the Great Sun Guidance Technique and the Martial Art, the Elephant-Force Demon Bull Fist.

"You, a serpent, with no arms or legs, how could you practice the Elephant-Force Demon Bull Fist?"

Xu Ying laughed, "This is a martial art for a bull or an elephant demon, is it not?"

The serpent demon twitched, thinking to itself, "It's good enough to practice, who am I to complain? Aren’t you practicing my demon clans' guidance technique?"

Xu Ying read on. The Great Sun Guidance Technique was similar to his Taiyi Guidance Technique, but after a moment of contemplation, he realised that the Great Sun Guidance Technique was inferior in terms of absorbing solar essence.

The scripture defined their current state as the Qi Gathering Phase.

Qi Gathering involved the absorption of solar essence – light particles – to strengthen the body and enhance blood circulation.

Xu Ying frowned. Like his Taiyi Guidance Technique, the Great Sun Guidance Technique ended abruptly after the Qi Gathering Phase, with no subsequent teachings.

"Do you feel like, after reaching the peak of Qi Gathering, there is a way forward?" Xu Ying asked.

The serpent demon cautiously replied, "At my peak, I only felt a surge of energy, a great force, as if trying to break through a barrier, but I know not where the barrier is."

Xu Ying frowned. He rose and walked into the hall, and brought out a book basket.

He poured the contents onto the floor.

The serpent demon was startled. These scriptures described all manner of different guidance techniques, totaling dozens!

Over the years, Xu Ying had captured not only serpent demons, but also other demons, from within a radius of dozens of miles!

These demons had their own unique opportunities, either stumbling upon ancient caverns, listening to scriptures etched in stone, or discovering paradises under water, and thus became demons.

Yet, their techniques, all of them, were only able to reach the Qi Gathering Phase, with no subsequent methods!

Xu Ying’s Taiyi Guidance Technique was the same. He could continue to enhance his blood, but the way forward was vague, leading nowhere.

"Why do all of the techniques break off at the Qi Gathering Phase?" Xu Ying muttered to himself.

The serpent demon, indignant, declared, “I feel someone is targeting my demon clan, destroying all our subsequent methods, leaving us only with the Qi Gathering Phase! This must be the plot of the human elders!”

Xu Ying shook his head, “If they had the ability to destroy the subsequent methods, why not destroy them all entirely? There must be other reasons.”

He flipped through the Elephant-Force Demon Bull Fist scripture and his expression shifted.

This martial art did not require the practitioner to be a bull or an elephant. Any race could practice this martial art, but a serpent demon would have to transform into human form, to make it easier to practice.

The Elephant-Force Demon Bull Fist was unique in that it allowed the practitioner to drastically increase their blood flow, instantly unleashing the power of an elephant. It was thus named the Divine Elephant Power.

The “Demon Bull” part meant that, during the execution of the fist technique, the practitioner was liable to lose their rationality, due to the speed of the blood flow, going into a berserk state. It was thus named, the Demon Bull.

Aside from this, the martial art could make one's body swell in size, growing several cun or even a chi taller!

His arms and legs would grow in size too!

Xu Ying became interested. Before, he had only relied on brute force to subdue demons. He was not skilled in unarmed combat. With the Elephant-Force Demon Bull Fist, his strength would greatly increase!

Just then, voices from outside called, “Ah Ying, time to worship the gods!”

Xu Ying tucked the scriptures into his robes and gently squeezed the serpent demon’s nape. “I’m going to worship the gods. If you are still here when I return, I will dry you out and hand you over. And do not harm anyone.”

The serpent demon, feeling his neck reset, was surprised and delighted.

Xu Ying walked out of the courtyard to the Jiang Family Ancestral Hall. The villagers had gaunt faces, and their clothes were tattered and worn. The hall, however, was magnificent and grand.

The villagers, rich and poor, made offerings of cooked fowl and large candles, whilst others offered rice and fruit, all holding three sticks of incense. One after the other, they headed to the hall.

Those who had nothing, like Xu Ying, arrived empty-handed.

Xu Ying followed the villagers into the ancestral hall. Incense smoke rose in swirling clouds. Behind the altar was a towering wooden statue, about a zhang and six chi tall, with red skin, a green robe and a ferocious visage.

The smoke drifted into the statue's nostrils.

The statue's chest suddenly swelled, drawing in the incense smoke from the villagers.

The wooden statue slowly turned into flesh and blood, and climbed off the altar, picking up the villagers' offerings, eating them with gusto, as well as chewing on the incense candles.

It was the first day of the month, a day of worship. The ancestral halls of nearby villages were also bustling.

Wooden, mud, bronze, and iron statues, each awakened within the smoke, turning into flesh and blood, and feasting upon the offerings of the common people.

Throughout the mountains, the temples of mountain gods, the dragon kings, the city, the gods of the earth, and all across the land, were enveloped in a hazy mist. The gods awoke, enjoying the sacrifices of the people, all seeming to be a part of a grand, prosperous era.

However, ever since the August and Sagacious Great Ming Filial Emperor became a tyrant, causing chaos and destroying that grand era, the power of the empire faltered. The once glorious state of the gods was now fading, and in decline.

“Xu Ying! Jiang Shu! Jiang Lu! All of you paupers, offering me nothing, not even a candle!"

The deity of the Jiang Family Ancestral Hall roared, “I only feast twice a month, the food you offer does not even satisfy my hunger! Do you, the villagers of Jiang Family, not wish for favorable weather, a bountiful harvest? If you anger the divine, do not be surprised when I bring calamity upon you!”

[End of Chapter]

In a desolate village oppressed by celestial neglect, Xu Ying, resigned to his fate, offered but a cursory nod to the deity in emerald garb, his gestures devoid of the customary incense, candles, and fruits. Starved of even basic sustenance himself, how could he afford offerings to the divine?

The deity's other chosen villagers, their faces ashen with dread, stood in stark contrast to Xu Ying's indifference. Among them was Jiang Lu, a man in his forties, yet worn to the semblance of an octogenarian by hardship. His face was creased with wrinkles, his body stooped and trembling. "Great Spirit," he implored, "I have not even a morsel to eat. Last night, I gnawed only on bark, and the tax collectors bleed me dry. What could I possibly offer you?"

The deity in green, with a glance and a sneer, retorted, "You appease the taxmen but not me? Am I lesser to you than them?" Jiang Lu, petrified, remained silent.

The deity's eyes,