Chapter 386
Chapter 386
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 387
Chapter Title: Tianqing Needs Only One Move
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Chen Shi looked toward the voice and saw that the newcomers were Zhang You and another young man who was not much older, only seventeen or eighteen.
The man had excellent talent and bearing, exuding an aura as deep and steady as an abyss or a towering mountain. Even standing beside Zhang You, his presence showed no weakness.
Zhang You was the understated type, standing there like a soft glow, calm and composed, while this man was like a great spear, tough and unyielding.
Li Qianyun said, “This is Xia Tianjie of the Xia family. He entered the Upper Realm to cultivate alongside us.”
Xia Tianjie bowed in greeting and said, “Tianjie pays respects to the Young Scholar. I have long heard of your great name, and Brother Zhang has mentioned several times before me how you slew the Young Master in Xijing, which has left me in admiration. Seeing you today, I am far from disappointed.”
His words were sharp, like an expert's strike, aggressive and direct. Staring straight at Chen Shi, he continued, “Young Master Yang Shaohu personally invited you to the Upper Realm for a duel, yet you were injured twice, giving the impression of cowardice. Now you exaggerate about Li Tianqing, an outer disciple of the Li family, which seems like mere boasting. All talk and no substance—you fall short of the Young Scholar and Champion Chen's reputation!”
The Upper Realm was clearly safe beyond measure, yet Chen Shi had been injured twice right after arriving, which indeed looked to others like he was deliberately getting hurt to avoid battle.
Chen Shi shook his head. “Li Tianqing is my brother; we've known each other for a long time. I know exactly how far his cultivation has progressed. Qianyun, when did you duel him?”
Li Qianyun said, “Half a year ago.”
Chen Shi said, “In this past half year in the Upper Realm, you've cultivated under the guidance of the Li family's ancestors across generations. Your progress must have been considerable.”
Li Qianyun humbly replied, “It's not quite a thousand miles in a day, but it's been leaps and bounds.”
“But Li Tianqing could defeat the current you without observing you for eight days.”
Chen Shi said, “Now, he might only need a day—or even half a day—to see through you completely.”
Li Tianqing excelled most at deciphering enemies' techniques and spells, finding flaws from the smallest clues. With his vast knowledge, the more he read, the more methods he had. Now in charge of the Heavenly Court's Ministry of Rites' library, which housed various techniques and spells from the Tomb of the True King, he would surely have studied them thoroughly with his personality.
He was also responsible for teaching Red Mountain Hall talisman masters various techniques, making the current Li Tianqing a walking library.
On top of that, he possessed a Martial Saint Temple enshrining Emperor Guan Shengjun, blessed with Three Lights Righteous Qi from the ancestral court.
He cultivated the new path of Divine Shrine, Divine Embryo, Divine Descent, and Refining Void, free from worry of corruption by evil. He had all of Chen Shi's strengths and none of his weaknesses.
Though unassuming, few in Chen Shi's mind could match him.
Li Qianyun was merely proficient in the Li family's signature arts. Even in the Upper Realm, her guidance came only from the Li ancestors—her achievements, however high, were limited.
In front of Li Tianqing, she had no secrets.
Chen Shi even suspected Li Tianqing wouldn't need half a day to see through her techniques and spells. Defeating her again might take fewer than six moves—perhaps just two or three, or even one.
“She's a girl with thin skin; better not to discourage her too much.” Chen Shi thought kindly to himself.
Li Qianyun was somewhat unconvinced.
Xia Tianjie shook his head. “Young Scholar, I have always admired your skills, but Li Tianqing is just an outer disciple of the Li family.
Praising him so highly seems biased because he's your friend. Before the Nine Halls, would the Champion Chen who dared slay a young master resort only to words?”
Chen Shi pondered briefly, then smiled. “You're right; I do seem biased. I know Tianqing extremely well and can replicate about seventy to eighty percent of his skills. Brother Xia, how about this: my cultivation is currently exhausted,
my qi and blood depleted. Give me one day to observe you and recover my cultivation. After one day, using Li Tianqing's methods, I'll defeat you. How does that sound?”
Xia Tianjie flew into a rage at these words and sneered, “Fine! I'll tell you first what technique I cultivate—”
“No need. I've already figured it out.”
Chen Shi smiled. “In your breathing, your aura splits into eight, as if eight people are breathing at once, with endlessly prolonged breaths. I sense eight deities standing behind you. This technique must be the Cavern God Eight Emperors Primordial Transformation from the Ten True Cultivation Books.”
Xia Tianjie laughed. “This is my Xia family's ancestral technique; it's no surprise you recognized it.”
Chen Shi continued, “When cultivated to the Golden Core Realm, Cavern God Eight Emperors Primordial Transformation refines eight golden cores as external bodies.
At Nascent Soul Realm, eight nascent souls; at Incarnation Realm, eight primordial spirits called the Eight Emperors. This technique's Incarnation Realm differs from others. It refines eight gods, each with a primordial spirit force field called a cavern heaven. At Divine Descent and Refining Void Realms, when forming the dao field, the eight cavern heavens gain immense power. At Unity Realm, the eight gods unite, unleashing boundless might.”
Xia Tianjie's expression changed slightly.
Chen Shi described the Cavern God Eight Emperors Primordial Transformation with perfect clarity, as if he had cultivated it himself!
Chen Shi sized him up, observing every detail, and smiled faintly. “Cultivating Cavern God Eight Emperors Primordial Transformation requires refining your golden core into pure yang from the start, using pure yang qi. But you have yin qi in your body. Your primal yang has leaked—you've lost your virginity. And the one who took it wasn't clean. She was most likely an evil spirit.”
Li Qianyun's face reddened slightly. “He can even see that?”
Zhang You's heart skipped a beat, thinking luckily, “Good thing my Zhang family technique doesn't require preserving primal yang. Otherwise, he might have seen through me too.”
Xia Tianjie's face flickered with emotions. Gritting his teeth, he said, “During my Incarnation Realm training outside, I encountered an evil spirit who seduced me and took my primal yang. But by then, I had already formed my eight emperors' primordial spirits, so it wasn't a big issue.”
Even so, he still felt deeply humiliated.
That night, confident in his strength, he hadn't sought a village or a godmother's protection.
He casually found an abandoned temple to rest. While cultivating Cavern God Eight Emperors Primordial Transformation, a spirit transformed into a woman calling herself Moon Lady, who had become a spirit after wrongful death under moonlight. Xia Tianjie intended to refine her to death but thought she could temper his will, so he let her try seducing him to test his cultivation.
During the trial, his will held firm; Moon Lady, outmatched, was injured by his aura.
Feeling smug, he healed her, only to be ensnared by her tenderness. His dao heart lost resistance, and she took advantage. When he awoke, after a night of passion, his primal yang was gone, and Moon Lady had fled to the heavens.
Losing his virginity to an evil spirit was mortifying; he told no one. Only after arriving in the Upper Realm did his Xia family ancestor discover it and scold him.
He never expected Chen Shi to expose it now, filling him with shame and anger.
Chen Shi shook his head. “Broken is broken—what do you mean 'not a big issue'? That strand of yin qi in you means you're no longer pure yang; your technique is flawed. Originally, you could reach the Three Corpses Realm and refine pure yang without severing them. Now, you'll need to sever your three corpses.”
Xia Tianjie fell silent; his Xia family ancestor had said the same.
Chen Shi added, “Besides Cavern God Eight Emperors Primordial Transformation, you also cultivate the Eight Majesties Dragon Summoning Art as a supplement. A trace of dragon qi leaks from you, fierce and unruly, clearly from this technique. The Eight Majesties Dragon Summoning Art includes spear arts; your talisman soldier is a long spear, wielded with coiling golden dragons—extremely formidable.”
Xia Tianjie laughed heartily. “The Young Scholar lives up to his name. But this is your insight, not Li Tianqing's.”
His laughter rang a bit hollow.
“But because your primal yang was broken, your spear arts have a flaw.”
Chen Shi withdrew his gaze. “The Eight Majesties Dragon Summoning Art is purely yang and rigid; its spear techniques maximize that. With your primal yang broken, when you execute the spear arts, that wisp of yin qi in you
creates a flaw in your eight dragons. Your flaw is much larger than Qianyun's.”
Xia Tianjie laughed. “Besides the Eight Majesties Dragon Summoning Art, I cultivate other combat methods. Focusing only on that does me no harm.”
Chen Shi shook his head. “No need to observe your other combat methods. In front of my Li Tianqing, you can only use the Eight Majesties Dragon Summoning Art against me; any other, and you'll lose even faster. Time for me to cultivate.”
He slowly activated the sixth new talisman: primordial spirit, dao field, and flesh body merging into unity, tempering endlessly within, though no changes showed outwardly.
The Xiaolang Emperor Chapter Art's phenomena were spectacular, transforming the primordial spirit dao field into nine heavens, drawing heavenly righteous qi, refined through the nine xiao emperor chapters to empower himself—Chen Shi's first immortal art. This technique advanced boldly and swiftly!
Chen Shi had previously cultivated the Eight Extremes Golden Threshold Divine Chapter, which perfectly integrated into the Xiaolang Emperor Chapter Art, making his progress faster than his peers.
But the immortal arts deciphered yesterday by the white-clothed immortal from the Zhangtian Iron Ruler were different.
The Zhangtian Iron Ruler recorded nine immortal arts to cultivate in sequence; its technique chapter was even more domineering than the Xiaolang Emperor Chapter Art, especially the sixth new talisman—no phenomena during cultivation. All phenomena concentrated internally!
Chen Shi appeared unchanged outwardly, but heavenly righteous qi flowed ceaselessly from the small temple into his body, transforming into ancestral qi forming the northern and southern dippers within.
The two great dippers revolved, birthing yin-yang qi that tempered ceaselessly, nourishing his flesh body—drained by the seventh new talisman—like sweet rain from heaven. His qi and blood gradually replenished.
“Huh, a crack has opened in me!”
Chen Shi exclaimed in surprise. Zhang You and Li Qianyun hurried over; Li Qianyun asked concernedly, “Where are you hurt?”
She was puzzled. Yesterday when she carried him to bed, she had checked and found no external wounds.
Chen Shi didn't answer, instead looking inward.
His body housed a dao field, now with an added crack—small, only three inches long, but strikingly vivid!
Strangely, though the crack existed, his yin-yang qi passed through it unhindered, as if it weren't there.
“Could activating the seventh new talisman have truly opened the Great Void Realm?” Chen Shi wondered.
Sensing carefully, he vaguely felt immense power surging in the crack, but he couldn't mobilize it.
Xia Tianjie leaped up, flying out of the White Wave Palace to hover in the air, shouting, “Chen Shi, I'll demonstrate all my combat methods! I won't take advantage of you! Watch closely—this is the Black-Yellow Transformation I refined after seven months of苦修!”
Move by move, he displayed his spells and divine abilities, condensing black-yellow qi with his blood and qi into twin serpents that coiled around him, attacking up to a hundred li away in motion or stillness!
“This is the Heaven-Overturning Seal Art!”
Xia Tianjie unleashed seal arts with rumbling force, vast and sweeping, like divine mountains crashing down from the sky, suppressing all, with astonishing might!
“This is the Dipper Mother Demon-Breaking Art!”
Xia Tianjie performed it in the sky, each move growing stronger, every form and strike like a master craftsman's perfect sculpture—flawless, showcasing the Xia family's top heir's extraordinary talent.
Several other youths, drawn by the power of his spells and divine abilities, arrived at the White Wave Palace and paid respects to Zhang You and Li Qianyun. One woman laughed, “What's Brother Tianjie going crazy about now?”
These were heirs sent by other families to cultivate in the Upper Realm. Previously, they lacked qualification to enter until truly succeeding, when they could learn of and visit to pay respects to ancestors.
But with night falling ever earlier and days shortening, the thirteen families had preemptively sent their strongest heirs.
Zhang You and Li Qianyun explained the bet between Chen Shi and Xia Tianjie; all were stunned.
The woman, Zhai Yuanyuan, next sect leader of the Zhai family, eyed Chen Shi and smiled. “Does the Young Scholar really have this confidence? Your complexion looks poor, like you're ill.”
Chen Shi shook his head. “It's not my confidence—it's Li Tianqing's. Right now, I am Li Tianqing.”
Zhai Yuanyuan stuck out her tongue and laughed. “What a weirdo.”
Chen Shi did look sickly, qi and blood depleted, while Xia Tianjie was vigorous and robust. Between them,
Xia Tianjie appeared the pure yang body, Chen Shi the one whose primal yang was broken.
Xia Tianjie finished demonstrating, descending from the sky to sit cross-legged. Blood qi surged above his head, forming clouds, his aura blazing as he glared at Chen Shi.
Chen Shi, however, kept eyes on nose, nose on heart, ignoring him.
Unknowingly, a day passed. Xia Tianjie leaped up, staring at Chen Shi.
Chen Shi opened his eyes. “Ready.”
Thunder-fire exploded under Xia Tianjie's feet, propelling him skyward. The crowd looked up to see him shrink to an ant-like spark.
Faint thunder rumbled from the sky—Xia Tianjie activating Cavern God Eight Emperors Primordial Transformation, merging flesh, primordial spirit, and dao field. His body expanded several zhang tall, like a deity in the air, with seven other primordial spirits appearing behind him!
The other seven primordial spirits spread swiftly, occupying superior positions in formation.
As the crowd watched, whoosh—Chen Shi soared from the White Wave Palace like a rising wind, turning into a streak of light racing through the sky.
Li Qianyun laughed. “Brother Tianjie surely won't use the Eight Majesties Dragon Summoning Art—”
Before she finished, dragon roars shook the sky. Chen Shi's body swelled, blood qi condensing into a great spear that thrust at Xia Tianjie from afar!
The spear in his hand was unmatched in dominance. As it stabbed, the shaft vibrated, sending true dragons flying out—hundreds in an instant—surging from all directions toward Xia Tianjie dozens of li away!
With Chen Shi's charging advance, the distance closed rapidly; dragons roared, spear might intensified, pressure surging!
Facing such a domineering strike, Xia Tianjie didn't hesitate, immediately activating Eight Majesties Dragon Summoning Art.
He realized other combat methods would be crushed by Chen Shi's momentum buildup; only Eight Majesties Dragon Summoning Art could counter it!
Chen Shi was merely new to it, while he was deeply immersed—same method, higher odds for him!
Moreover, with eight primordial spirits, his version was even stronger!
Activating Eight Majesties Dragon Summoning Art, his display outshone, filling the sky with coiling dragon qi!
Then, a massive heavenly god drifted slowly nearby, a thousand zhang tall like a great mountain, dividing the two!
Unable to see each other, their combat methods unleashed, they charged on either side of the thousand-zhang god, fully powering spear arts, dragon qi curving around its vast body to attack the other!
Suddenly, a thousand dragons danced in the sky, roars unending. With a boom of thunder, the dragons swirling like wind and lightning around Chen Shi abruptly dispersed.
The heavenly god drifted past expressionlessly.
Chen Shi stood in midair, spear in hand.
Opposite, over ten li away, Xia Tianjie stared in shock downward, seeing a dozen holes in his body gushing blood.
In that instant of remote clash, under Chen Shi's dragon qi siege—all moves familiar—the moment of contact, pure yang thunder hidden in the dragon qi erupted, triggering his internal yin qi, creating a flaw in his arts!
Then Chen Shi's spear arts pierced straight through, shattering his defenses and riddling his flesh with over a dozen punctures!
Chen Shi dispersed the spear; it turned to dragon-like blood qi, spiraling once before entering through his crown. Faintly, he said, “Li Tianqing would kill you in one move. I used two.”
In the White Wave Palace, Ma Zhe, Zhai Yuanyuan, and others felt a slight shock. “Is Li Tianqing really that strong?”
Li Qianyun suddenly shouted, “Li Tianqing, I don't believe you're that strong! I'll give you one day!”
Chen Shi's cold gaze descended, his voice echoing from above. “Tianqing needs only half a day to kill you.”