I tricked you into thinking you had the makings of an emperor, but you actually did it?

"Wandering the Heavens Steps" is a high-grade Earth-level martial art and one of the nine ultimate skills of the Xuantian Sect.

Unlike other martial arts, which are divided into beginner, minor, major, and perfect levels, this one is different.

Instead, there are nine stages: Sky-Wandering Step, Sky-Stepping Step, Heavenly Net Step, Ascending to Heaven Step, Sky-Crossing Step, Wind-Walking Step, Net Smoke Step, Divine Travel Step, and Wind-Riding Step.

Each step has its own intricacies, and there is no particular order to them.

The more steps you master, the greater the power.

The first three steps that Song Shuqing mastered were the Wind Walk Step, the Divine Travel Step, and the Ascend to Heaven Step.

Shen Ming began in this order.

He is exceptionally talented, but he won't forgo the shortcut and choose the long way.

Wind Walk: The heart moves with the wind, leaving no trace. Light as a feather, swift as a swallow. Formless in the wind, impossible for the enemy to detect. Qi flows through both feet, agile and unhindered, moving like the wind, swift as lightning.

Spiritual Journey: Focusing on the source of the mind, form and shadow transform. With a still mind, the spirit roams in all directions. Steps follow the will, blurring the lines between reality and illusion. Thoughts move, and the form follows; the spirit roams between heaven and earth, leaving no trace, each step a phantom.

Ascending to Heaven: The sky is high and the earth is vast, my ambition lies at the summit. Step by step I ascend the clouds, my feet treading the void. My strength permeates heaven and earth, my form is like a flying dragon. With no obstacles in my heart, I come and go as I please, step by step I soar to the heavens, my spirit merging with the sky.

These are empty, grandiose insights concocted by Song Shuqing. Shen Ming summarizes them into three steps of unity: The wind moves across the ground, the shadow follows the form; the spirit wanders without a trace, the mind shifts between reality and illusion. Ascending to heaven is imminent, each step ascends to the clouds. The wind aids the spirit's journey, ascending to heaven is unimpeded. Heart and steps unite, moving without form; breath connects with heaven, roaming freely between heaven and earth. Each step blends seamlessly, moving like flowing water, its momentum like a rainbow.

Song Shuqing verbally expressed his interest, but inwardly he was dismissive.

It sounds like it aligns with martial arts principles, but it's actually wishful thinking and impractical.

Beginners are always like this, clinging to wishful thinking and repeatedly trying and making mistakes, wasting time and energy.

Then, Shen Ming followed the mental cultivation method described above...

Master the Windwalk on the second day!

Master the Divine Walk on the fourth day!

On the sixth day, I mastered the Ascension Steps!

If asked why, Shen Ming would say that the innate sacred body and the Supreme Dao embryo are just like this.

Unlike martial arts techniques, which require daily practice and can be continuously developed based on talent, martial arts are not like cultivation methods.

However, its upper limit and power are limited by one's cultivation level. If Shen Ming wants to master the fourth step, he must break through the sixth barrier.

"Breaking through the barrier is a sure thing. Let's go ask Senior Brother Song for his insights on the fourth step."

Brother Song hasn't reached the fourth step yet, but he must have gained a lot of insights and experiences.

Discussing things with each other is beneficial to both parties.

The following day, Shen Ming arrived at Wanfa Pavilion, exactly one week after his last visit.

Song Shuqing sat in the side hall lecturing, speaking eloquently, as if he wanted to impart his knowledge and skills to others.

Below, five disciples sat drowsy, their heads throbbing, practically saying: "Master, stop reciting."

"If you had focused on your movement techniques, you would have already soared to the heavens."

Song Shuqing's tone was somewhat disappointed.

After the lecture ended, Shen Ming entered the side hall after the other disciples left.

"Junior Brother Shen, you're late." Song Shuqing said with a hint of displeasure.

"Senior brother, I waited until get out of class ended on purpose so as not to take up the other disciples' time," Shen Ming said.

"Oh? You want to ask me for advice alone?" Song Shuqing felt it was necessary to give this junior brother some pointers, as his time was very precious.

"Yes, thanks to my senior brother's explanation, I have mastered the first three steps," Shen Ming said.

“…Junior brother, this isn’t funny,” Song Shuqing said.

"Brother, it's true."

Shen Ming knew that this was indeed an amazing development for others, but it was the truth, and there was no need to hide it.

He performed the first three steps in front of Song Shuqing.

The next second, Song Shuqing's expression turned serious.

With a light step, Shen Ming glided several feet away like a gentle breeze.

Windwalk!

His skill and experience were even higher than his, yet he didn't stir up a single speck of dust.

Shen Ming continued, drifting with the wind, elusive and unpredictable.

Each step lands as if the wind has passed without leaving a trace, giving one the illusion that "it is neither a shadow nor a form."

It's as if one's mind is wandering in the heavens, making it difficult to distinguish between reality and illusion.

"Divine Travel Steps! This is the Divine Travel Steps? This is the true Divine Travel Steps!?"

Song Shuqing's three consecutive questions reveal her inner journey.

Shen Ming gave him no time to react, suddenly exerting his strength, his steps seemingly traversing endless space.

This is the Ascension to Heaven!

"Junior brother! How did you do that?!" Song Shuqing could no longer sit still and suddenly stood up.

“Senior brother, I have an innate holy body and a supreme Dao embryo, so it’s normal for me to be faster at deducing martial arts,” Shen Ming said.

Is this supposed to be a little faster? This is a whole billion times faster!

That's not the point. The point is that these three steps made Song Shuqing feel that this was the essence of "Wandering the Heavens".

"Did you learn these three steps from your last experience, Junior Brother?" Song Shuqing asked him to repeat them, and then wrote them down word for word.

"Although I'm rambling on and on, I wouldn't dare say it's fake or a lie. This Junior Brother Shen has amazing talent. He can see the big picture from small details and deduce the whole picture from them, reaching an even higher level."

"Most importantly, this Junior Brother Shen was completely unaware of my ulterior motives and actually shared such valuable insights with me."

Song Shuqing's mind raced, and the corners of her mouth couldn't help but turn up in a smile.

"Junior brother, don't spread this mental cultivation method. Let me deduce it again," Song Shuqing said.

"As it should be."

Shen Ming didn't think much of it, but his senior brother was so focused on the cultivation method that he didn't have a chance to ask him about the fourth step.

Song Shuqing returned to his cave and began to deduce Shen Ming's mental cultivation method.

He used to discard it like trash, but now he cherishes it like a treasure.

Because I personally witnessed Shen Ming's successful execution.

However, can others truly master the cultivation method that Shen Ming obtained through a fake cultivation technique?

At first, it might have been a psychological effect, or perhaps the mental techniques were truly effective.

Song Shuqing found that his "Wandering in the Sky" had improved a lot.

He was simply in a state of frenzy, like a test subject of the Myriad Laws Pavilion.

He was usually gentle and refined, so this stark contrast immediately caught the attention of his close disciples in the cave.

"You don't understand, you don't understand at all! This is what true physical technique is, this is what true mental technique is."

When questioned by his close disciples, Song Shuqing displayed an unprecedented level of stubbornness.

Completely ignoring the reactions of others, they became so engrossed in it that they couldn't extricate themselves, and didn't even care about their own image.

For several days in a row, Song Shuqing ran through the mountains with disheveled hair.

"I got it! I got it!!!"

Song Shuqing shouted excitedly. He had not only improved his level in the first three steps, but had finally reached the threshold of the fourth step.

His fourth step was the Skywalk, which is also the essence of the Skywalk.

The fourth step is to select this option, which serves as a bridge between the previous and subsequent steps.

It was a senior elder who told him this, and he had always kept it a secret deep in his heart.

Because it is the essence, this step is very difficult, and Song Shuqing has never been able to find the right method.

Now, he has made a breakthrough from Shen Ming's mental cultivation method.

Wandering in the Heavens: The mind roams the heavens and the earth, soaring through the nine heavens.

The key is in the swim!

Be like a fish, swimming freely in the sky!

Fish don't wear clothes.

Song Shuqing stripped himself naked and ran freely through the Xuantian Sect.

Each time it leaps into the air, it sways its body like a fish.

"...Fuck you!"

The first Xuan Tian Sect disciple who encountered it thought it was some pervert, and the disgusting scene made him wish he could gouge out his own eyes.

"Senior Brother Song Shuqing is so young."

Some disciples have rather unusual focuses.

Finally, the unrest grew increasingly larger.

"No one who practices martial arts can avoid going crazy."

Some people guessed that Song Shuqing had gone mad from practicing his martial arts, and even if he wasn't the one testing the skills, there was still such a risk.

But what kind of method could lead someone to such an obsessive state that they would wander the mountains with their birds?