Teacher Zhong didn’t offer the high-end Wave-Swallowing Technique Battle Technique without a scheme of his own. His ultimate goal was still Cyan Treasure’s Foundation Establishment Evolution Method.

To learn the true essence of the Foundation Establishment Method, he had to offer something genuinely high-end to show his sincerity. This was how he hoped to impress Gu Ming and, in exchange, gain inspiration on how to construct a Great Dao Foundation within the Dantian.

"Gu Ming, what do you think?" Teacher Zhong asked.

The scent of ink mixed with the sea breeze wafted from the scroll of the Combat Technique known as the Wave-Swallowing Technique.

On the cover, a hundred-zhang Giant Whale raised its head, swallowing the sky and devouring the waves.

The surging waves transformed into a sky full of stars, all being swept into the whale’s belly.

Its power was immense, like the sea embracing all rivers. It seemed capable of devouring even the most monstrous waves in a single gulp.

Gu Ming’s mind raced, and without a moment’s hesitation, he nodded.

His intuition told him that this book was tailor-made for an Exotic Beast like the Kunpeng.

Although Ah Kun wasn’t a real Kunpeng—just an ordinary Grouper Fish—with the Old Deng system, mastering this technique wasn’t impossible.

After all, in the system’s eyes, the menopausal creature was a Juvenile Kunpeng, right in the prime of its youth.

Next, it was time for Ah Kun to learn the Wave-Swallowing Technique.

Gu Ming didn’t stop it, instead watching with great interest as the system’s narrative updated:

The strong-willed Mr. Zhong has been unable to forget Ma Tianba since seeing him that one time. He has once again brought out a high-end Combat Technique, hoping to trade it for another chance to see Ma Tianba.

This high-end Combat Technique is suitable for high-end bloodline Pet Beasts like the Kunpeng. Named the Wave-Swallowing Technique, it was created in the year 487. It went through many waves of innovation and was revised several times, but in the end, it was changed back to the original version, returning to its purest form.

Teacher Zhong, adhering to the new era’s philosophy on Cultivation Techniques, has proposed using a few ideas from Arrays to assist in Cultivation, leaving the core Daoist Skill and its moves unchanged.

Ah Kun has begun learning the Wave-Swallowing Technique. EXP +1.

The narrative paused there.

Gu Ming was a little surprised. This time, the system didn’t use its usual exaggerated narrative. Instead, it was fixated on connecting Teacher Zhong with Ma Tianba.

Once would have been one thing, but it happened several more times.

’Was there a clue in all this that I’ve overlooked?’

Back home, although Ma Tianba and Teacher Zhong had met once, they hadn’t even exchanged a single word.

Teacher Zhong knew how to read a room. He could sense that Ma Tianba wasn’t interested in him, so he naturally wouldn’t risk disturbing a Six-star Level wild Spirit Beast.

But in the system’s description, the two were clearly connected.

And it seemed that Teacher Zhong, who was nearly sixty, wanted something from Ma Tianba.

’What could be the reason for this?’

For a moment, Gu Ming couldn’t make heads or tails of it.

The only way to find out the truth would be to exploit a "bug" to get more answers.

After thinking it over and over, Gu Ming’s curiosity got the better of him.

During a break in the afternoon, he asked Teacher Zhong:

"What do you think of Ma Tianba?"

Teacher Zhong was confused, not understanding why Gu Ming would ask about something completely unrelated while training Ah Kun.

He was taken aback for a moment, then said:

"It has very high potential. And since it’s a wild Spirit Beast, forming a contract is probably impossible, but it’s worth befriending.

"But why do you ask?"

Gu Ming’s question came out of the blue. Anyone would have found it strange.

Gu Ming feigned a look of sudden understanding, nodding and then waving his hand. "Oh, it’s nothing. I just asked on a whim. I remembered it also got a Dragon Pattern Tripod and was wondering what it might be up to."

This nonsensical chat had barely begun before Gu Ming brought it to an abrupt halt, not continuing the conversation.

Teacher Zhong waited a long time for a follow-up, but nothing came. Seeing that Gu Ming had already gone back to interacting with Ah Kun, he was left speechless.

This greatly annoyed Teacher Zhong, whose curiosity had been thoroughly piqued.

’What on earth did he want to ask?’

A million questions raced through Teacher Zhong’s mind, but he couldn’t guess Gu Ming’s intentions.

Secretary Zhong recalled his interaction with Ma Tianba. As far as he could remember, the two of them had no connection.

As a Five-star Beastmaster, he wouldn’t be so awestruck as to worship it.

On Gu Ming’s end, however, what looked like a failed attempt at small talk was a "fluke" in the system’s eyes. He had successfully fished out the reason Mr. Zhong was pursuing Ma Tianba:

You chatted idly with Mr. Zhong, asking him why he was so insistent on meeting Ma Tianba.

He gave his answer:

During the war against the Demon Fiend invasion many years ago, Ma Tianba was a key founder of the Life System.

Any High-star Beastmasters who dabbled in the Grass Element marveled at the Miracle Power that came from the Life System.

It was with this Miracle Power that Ma Tianba made a name for himself in the great forbidden area war Within Great Zhou, capturing the nation’s attention.

Nowadays, forbidden areas are everywhere, so the title of Forbidden Area Dominator is not as illustrious as it once was.

But as someone who lived through that era, he is very nostalgic and wants to chase after old memories.

Gu Ming blinked. He hadn’t expected a simple chat to reveal a major future event like the "Forbidden Area War."

From these snippets of information, it was clear that the future Life System would feature "Miracle Power."

This was a more advanced path of comprehension for Daoist Skills. As for how to grasp it, Gu Ming would have to figure out a way to trigger a "bug" and wrench some clues out of the system.

Back to the matter at hand—the Wave-Swallowing Technique lesson.

After studying for the better part of a day, Gu Ming gradually began to understand the framework of the Combat Technique.

To put it simply, the Wave-Swallowing Technique Battle Technique was divided into three steps.

This Combat Technique was originally created by a Five-star Beastmaster, a Jing Beast Tamer. He found his Daoist Skill inspiration after observing a Giant Whale Beast, corrupted by Demon Fiends, as it swallowed rivers, overturned seas, and flooded the Demon King Pass.

Afterward, the Whale Master and his own Pet Beast, a Giant Whale, researched together to create the Wave Devouring Dao.

In the book, this technique was broken down into a Triple Realm.

The first Realm is "Abyssal Stop: Gathering Power into a Vortex," which is also the first step.

It involves using stillness to overcome motion, nurturing one’s Devouring Power, and secretly aligning with the Dao of "Abyssal Stop Mountain Stand."

The second Realm, "Whale Soaring and Heaven-Devouring-star Transformation," is the beginning of the second step.

The Giant Whale performs a Fish Leap, jumping out of the water. It opens its mouth to the sky, swallowing the heavens and the moon, biting off a huge chunk of the starry night.

Upon mastering this step, the Giant Whale would already be at the Seven-star Level, earning the fearsome reputation of "Star-Swallowing Whale."

The third Realm is "Returning to the Ruins and Returning to Truth."

With a single breath, it could embrace all rivers, extinguishing all Power beneath the waves. Everything would be returned to the ruins, reverting to the world’s purest form. It was a state of dust to dust, ashes to ashes—complete annihilation.

Teacher Zhong explained, "These three steps use a beast’s body to manifest the Celestial Dao. It may look like it’s swallowing great waves, but what it’s really swallowing is the sky and the sea, annihilating everything."

"The Triple Realm is called ’the three steps’ because for the Whale Master who created it, completing them meant advancing from a Five-star to an Eight-star Beastmaster."

"With each step it completed, his beast evolved by one Star Level."

"By completing all three, the beast evolved three consecutive Star Levels, which in turn vaulted the Whale Master from a Five-star to an Eight-star. This is the high-end Combat Technique that appeared thirty-one years ago." 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Teacher Zhong lectured from the shore, his words flowing elegantly. The true meaning of the Great Dao was hidden within his speech, seeping like water into the minds of both Ah Kun and Gu Ming.

Meanwhile, Cyan Treasure and Mouse Treasure, to whom this Water Element Combat Skill was irrelevant, also pricked up their ears and listened quietly.

Even though it had nothing to do with them, learning about a high-end Combat Technique and grasping its insights into the Dao and its laws was still extremely beneficial.

Gu Ming listened to the lesson, bobbing his head contentedly, a flicker of joy on his face.

He could feel the Array Diagram that the system had shoved into his mind growing clearer and clearer.