The Vajra Divine Art is a secret art unique to the Buddhists. How could the alliance leader have learnt it? If he’s cultivated the Vajra Divine Art, then this would be trouble… This… this sensation feels familiar…
Could it be… The always steady and mature Yang Cuixue suddenly felt a surge of excitement, and exclaimed,
“Alliance leader, is this— Silver Gong Xu’s essence blood?”
He hit the nail on the head.
Cao Qingyang tore off his tattered robe, stood up in front of the stone door, and slowly twisted his neck, saying,
“It is his essence blood.”
The essence blood of a third-rank warrior could be considered a diluted form of a Blood Pill, with the duration depending on the cultivation of the donor.
But even a diluted Blood Pill was not something an ordinary fourth-rank martial artist could withstand. Only someone like Cao Qingyang, whose cells had already begun to transform and whose vitality had gradually transcended the mortal, a half-step third-rank, could bear the impact of this essence blood.
An ordinary fourth-rank martial artist, even one at the peak of fourth rank, would collapse and die if they consumed a drop of third-rank essence blood.
Some of them wore expressions of “just as expected,” while others suddenly saw the light, and upon hearing the words “Silver Gong Xu,” were filled with uncontainable joy.
“Hahaha…”
Fu Jingmen was overjoyed, crashing his fists together and saying,
“At last, we can strike back. Damn it, I’ve held in my anger for so long I was about to burst my lungs.”
Yang Cuixue, Xiao Yuenu, Dai Zong, and the others, greatly relieved, also broke into smiles.
No one had spoken before this, but in fact everyone wanted to ask:
Why hadn’t help arrived yet?
With the old alliance leader still in seclusion, the Wulin Alliance found it hard to counter a beyond-mortal expert, so they had all been anxious, lacking confidence in their hearts.
But now, having truly seen Silver Gong Xu take action and observed that he had been in contact with the alliance leader all along, their anxious hearts were finally set at ease, and hope appeared before them.
Liu Hongmian, Qihuan Danxiang, and White Tiger all instinctively felt a surge of fear and their faces turned ugly upon hearing the words “Silver Gong Xu.”
The warrior monks Jingyuan and Jingxin exchanged glances, grave and solemn.
The latter in particular, his face twitched, and he could not help but clasp his hands together to calm the anger in his heart.
Hmm, they seem particularly afraid of Silver Gong Xu… Xiao Yuenu, perceptive as ever, keenly noticed this.
Including her junior Liu Hongmian, all of these people responded to Silver Gong Xu as if they had suffered great losses at his hands before.
Although burning with curiosity, she could not possibly ask about it now, so she calmed herself and focused her attention back on Cao Qingyang.
At this moment, Cao Qingyang had already stabilised his condition.
His aura was at the level of having just entered the third rank, not much different from the Azure Dragon Seven Constellations, perhaps even slightly inferior.
Third rank feels wonderful… Cao Qingyang clenched his fist, and in his calm and determined gaze, there was a glimmer of fighting spirit.
He raised his hand.
Yang Cuixue and the others got the message and quickly withdrew, moving to a distant spot.
This was no longer a battlefield for them to intervene in.
In tacit agreement, Liu Hongmian and the rest also withdrew rapidly, moving in the opposite direction from the Wulin Alliance’s fourth-ranks.
East and west, the two groups faced off at a distance, with Cao Qingyang and the Azure Dragon Seven Constellations in the middle.
…
“Cao Qingyang is able to absorb third rank essense blood, temporarily stepping into the beyond-mortal realm. This is the foundation of a half-step third rank expert!”
On the Wind-riding Boat, Ji Xuan looked down at the scene and, hearing Vajra Du’nan’s explanation, suddenly understood.
When Cao Qingyang released his third-rank aura, it had given him quite the shock. He was too far away to hear what was being said below and had once assumed Cao Qingyang had made a breakthrough on the spot and risen to the third rank.
“The Wulin Alliance is as old as the nation, but in hundreds of years, it has never produced a beyond-mortal. Cao Qingyang’s talent is truly enviable.”
Ji Xuan sighed, looked to the tall, burly, bronze-skinned Vajra Du’nan at his side, and asked,
“Vajra Du’nan, is this the reason your skin and blood turn gold?”
This question came abruptly, but Vajra Du’nan understood at once, and nodded,
“After cultivating the Vajra Divine Art and advancing beyond-mortal, one’s essence blood naturally possesses the divine might of the Vajra Divine Art, and hence the blood and skin turn gold. Since Cao Qingyang absorbed Xu Qi’an’s essence blood, he also temporarily possesses the power of the Vajra Divine Art.”
At that moment, Dongfang Wanrong suddenly said,
“Teacher said, the terrain of Quanrong Mountain does not seem right.”
…
Cao Qingyang bent forward slightly, and after a short buildup, charged at the Azure Dragon Seven Constellations like a furious bull.
The eight cloaked men separated, deliberately opening a gap for Cao Qingyang to enter their formation, then “closed in,” surrounding him.
Sssssss… Eight long sabres condensed blade auras, radiating scorching heat as they hacked simultaneously at Cao Qingyang’s chest, head, and back, producing a sharp, metallic clang.
Cao Qingyang’s expression did not change. He reached out with his right hand, surrounded by a faint golden light, to grab the nearest cloaked man.
That man’s aura suddenly surged, and he struck unflinchingly with his palm to clash head-on with Cao Qingyang.
Yet, Cao Qingyang suddenly withdrew his hand mid-way, the true target was the cloaked man attacking from behind with a sabre.
The flow of qi amongst the eight was like breathing, when one rose, another fell. The one who faced Cao Qingyang head-on saw his aura drop, while the true target’s aura surged.
Bang!
Their palms clashed, evenly matched.
But in that instant, Cao Qingyang was struck in various places by the other seven sabres.
Thus, Cao Qingyang fell into a bitter struggle. Battles between martial artists seemingly were fated to be a struggle.
The power amongst them circulates endlessly. There’s zero pause as it changes. This means that whichever one I target, any of them can be third-rank.
And while I’m locked with a ‘third rank,’ the other seven attack in coordination, wearing down my defences…
Unless I can control two of them at once and force them to make a choice, I’ll never crack their combined attack. But these eight’s teamwork is flawless, they’ll never give me the chance.
The effect of Xu Qi’an’s essence blood will last only a quarter of an hour. If I don’t defeat them in that time, I’ll definitely lose…
Cao Qingyang stayed calm as he fought, his mind racing.
On both sides, the fourth ranks held their breath, watching intently.
Jingxin, Jingyuan, and the others, knowing the effect of the third-rank essence blood would not last, and with two Vajras and a Master of Rain backing them up, felt much more at ease.
But for Yang Cuixue, Fu Jingmen, and the other Wulin Alliance fourth-ranks, their tension only grew.
If Alliance Leader Cao could not defeat the eight cloaked men before his cultivation fell, they could only place their hopes on Xu Qi’an.
Within the encirclement, Cao Qingyang swept his gaze over them, locked onto the cloaked man to his left, feigned an attack, and midway, abruptly changed target, lunging at Azure Dragon.
“Tsk!”
Azure Dragon’s disdainful sneer came from within the cloak, before his aura immediately surged as he struck out at Cao Qingyang with his sabre.
During the exchange, his seven companions brandished their sabres, attacking their enemy in seamless cooperation.
Clang!
Eight sharp battle sabres landed on Cao Qingyang at the same time, but Azure Dragon hesitated, surprised that the man named Cao had not dodged.
Bang!
At nearly the same moment, Cao Qingyang’s fist landed on Azure Dragon’s chest.
Bang, bang!
Two more punches followed, and in the same space of time, Cao Qingyang endured even more slashes.
Azure Dragon frowned and quickly pulled back, summoning his seven comrades to regroup.
“Come back.”
Cao Qingyang spread his right hand, his qi swirling into a vortex, pulling Azure Dragon back towards him.
Furious at being dragged back, Azure Dragon unleashed a flurry of punches on Cao Qingyang. In pure unarmed combat, as a Transforming Force martial artist, he was not inferior to Cao Qingyang.
But…
“Your weakness are your magical artefacts,” Cao Qingyang said steadily, his words slow and measured.
“The magical artefacts made you what you are. But as it made you, so too will it break you. I just need to destroy it, and your group formation will be finished.
“And this isn’t difficult, because since you are not true third-rank martial artists, your defence is far inferior to mine. Only peerless divine weapons could surpass the toughness of a third-rank martial artist’s defences.”
But across the whole of Jiuzhou, no force could produce eight peerless divine weapons.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Cao Qingyang’s fist intent erupted, sharp cracks ringing out like bombs, as blow after blow pummelled Azure Dragon’s chest.
Azure Dragon fought back with all his might. Visually, it seemed like eight people were hacking at Cao Qingyang with sabres, battering him without resistance, while he could only counterattack feebly at one of them.
But as Cao Qingyang had said, their physical defences were simply not on the same level.
Having absorbed Xu Qi’an’s blood, he was a genuine third-rank, and with the Vajra Divine Art for protection.
Whereas the Azure Dragon Seven Constellations neither had the regenerative abilities of a third rank, nor their invincible body.
Clang clang clang…
Waves of energy exploded on Azure Dragon’s chest. Suddenly, amid a grating metallic screech, the auras of the eight cloaked figures drastically weakened.
Their cloaks tore, revealing Azure Dragon’s body encased in armour.
The armour was etched with complex, arcane formation patterns. Its pitch-black, sombre metal was clearly refined through alchemy, to be a quality far above common iron.
Now, the armour was deeply dented, its formation markings badly damaged.
Clang!
Cao Qingyang unleashed another punch, and as the shockwave spread, Azure Dragon was sent flying, crashing heavily into the stone gate. The cliff wall shook with a boom, scattering chunks of rock.
“Ugh… ugh…”
Unconscious sounds escaped Azure Dragon’s mouth as fresh blood trickled from the chest of his armour.
His hooded head moved, as if he wanted to look up, but soon fell still, all signs of life fading away.
Cao Qingyang clenched his right fist tightly.
Bang, bang, bang… Amid the sound of shattering bones, bloody mist burst from the chests of the seven cloaked figures, tearing through their hearts.
Without the support of the magical artefacts, they were pathetically vulnerable before a third-rank martial artist.
We won!
Alliance Leader Cao slew a third-rank foe!
On the Wulin Alliance’s side, there was a brief outburst of cheers, but calm was quickly restored. The leaders all maintained their composure as befit their status.
Still, every face was lit with joy, Fu Jingmen who laughed boisterously, Yang Cuixue who smiled, Xiao Yuenu with her eyes curved in delight, and You Shi revelling in satisfaction…
On the other hand, Jingxin and Jingyuan looked somewhat disappointed, while White Tiger, Liu Hongmian and the others from Qianlong City appeared furious and frustrated.
The Azure Dragon Seven Constellations were their comrades, and also Ji Xuan’s greatest asset in the jianghu.
Now that they had lost the Azure Dragon Seven Constellations, regardless of the outcome against the Wulin Alliance, they would be recalled to Qianlong City to end their travels, or perhaps be forcibly ordered to remain and continue collecting Dragon Qi.
Neither option was a good one.
…
“Not bad at all.”
In the dense forest, witnessing the scene through the Huntian Divine Mirror, Xu Qi’an nodded in satisfaction.
“A third-rank martial artist is truly this terrifying…”
Miao Youfang, who had crowded beside him, had watched the entire exchange.
“This was nothing. Both sides are amateurs; a real beyond-mortal battle is something you can’t even imagine.”
As Xu Qi’an spoke, he recalled the battle in Chuzhou City, when half the city had been razed in a beyond-mortal melee. Including himself, there had been seven beyond-mortal experts fighting.
They’d levelled the capital city of a whole province.
Not even the later battles, such as executing Zhende, or facing Xu Pingfeng, had been as fearsome as that one.
“Don’t celebrate too soon. The real show is just beginning,” Xu Qi’an said softly, gazing into the Huntian Divine Mirror.
It was impossible to say if he was speaking to Miao Youfang, or to the people of the Wulin Alliance in the mirror.
…
The Wind-riding Boat.
Ji Xuan sighed. “Relying on external aids will never be the true way. Qianlong City lacks beyond-mortal experts far too sorely.”
Amongst the hundreds of millions of lives in Jiuzhou, those who achieved the beyond-mortal rank were truly rare.
Over five hundred years, his royal lineage had produced only one third-rank expert.
That martial artist had fallen in an accident, without even leaving behind a blood pill.
The blood pill Ji Xuan possessed had come from a compatriot who died during Wuzong’s uprising five hundred years ago.
“May I trouble the two Vajras,” Ji Xuan said, joining his hands in salute.
Du’nan and Dufan exchanged a glance. The latter’s voice resounded like thunder: “I shall go.”
He leapt from the Wind-riding Boat.
…
Almost at the same moment, those below looked up to see a golden radiance descending like a meteor.
With it came an overwhelming might, vast, imposing, utterly resolute, making all instinctively lower their heads in awe.
“It’s a Buddhist Vajra!”
Someone cried out.
Though they had never seen a Buddhist Vajra, nor experienced one’s terrifying power, given the information they had and the sheer force descending, it was clear, a Buddhist Vajra had arrived.
Cao Qingyang thought for a moment and said, “I can hold out for as long as it takes to drink a cup of tea.”
Yang Cuixue withdrew her gaze, and, her face darkening, called out loudly, “Alliance leader, be careful!”
Dai Zong grinned. “No matter. The alliance leader is also now third-rank, protected by Vajra Divine Art.”
Qiao Weng, the portly middle-aged man, nodded.
“Even if Alliance Leader Cao cannot win, he can surely hold out for a while, laying the foundation for his breakthrough to third-rank.”
With the earlier victory, the confidence of the Wulin Alliance was at an all-time high.
As they spoke, the golden streak fell from the sky, its heat washing over them.
Cao Qingyang took a deep breath, lowered his stance, gathered his qi, and burned the power of third-rank blood within him. The dim golden light about him actually shone a little brighter.
From above and below, two beyond-mortal auras clashed ahead of time.
The golden streak reflected in everyone’s eyes, so fast it was like a shooting star across the midnight sky.
The very next moment, the earth shook.
The entirety of Quanrong Mountain quaked, its slopes collapsing, boulders tumbling. Even the beasts summoned by Qihuan Danxiang fled in terror.
All the fourth-rank experts staggered, unable to stand steadily.
After steadying herself, Xiao Yuenu and her companions immediately looked towards the stone gate to check what had happened.
The ruined clearing there was gouged by web-like cracks in the earth, caused by the splitting of rocks beneath the surface.
On the field, only one man remained standing: an enormous figure nine feet tall, hideously ugly.
His skin was a dark golden hue, his features so grotesque as to be terrifying, hard to imagine any living person could be so hideous.
His body towered like a steel tower, with metallic, sculpted muscles exuding power.
Beneath his feet lay Cao Qingyang, half-buried in the ground, blood flowing from all seven orifices, his breath weak and fading.
In an instant, all fell silent, Xiao Yuenu heard Dai Zong’s ragged breathing beside her, and her own rapid breaths as well.
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