After running a quick mental simulation, Chen Wei’s heart sank.
’Against Xu Yunfan’s terrifying Divine Power,’ he privately calculated, ’I doubt I could withstand three mace strikes before being pounded into a bloody paste.’
What was even more frightening was that while his opponent didn’t have a mountainous build, his every move exuded a majestic, imposing force. Such physical cultivation, a true state of Returning to the True Self, was utterly horrifying.
Xu Yunfan let out a long sigh, retrieved a Qi Replenishing Pill—a secret elixir of the Taoist Sect—from his robes, and swallowed it.
Once in his stomach, the elixir instantly dissolved into a searing current that spread through his blood and qi. His Blood Qi surged like a tidal wave, and as the Ten Extremes True Qi circulated, it was rapidly converted into pure True Qi, replenishing his losses.
The Qi Replenishing Pill had not yet fully dissolved in his throat when a dense, misty aura abruptly gathered in the sky above the Black Tortoise Martial Arts Arena.
The Earth Vein of Jade Capital City rumbled. The Profound Yellow Qi, previously channeled by the Taoist Sect’s Luotian Grand Sacrifice, descended again, pouring into every inch of his body like the Celestial River Reversal itself.
By winning a single match, he further consumed the Profound Yellow Qi of the Great Zhou Dragon Vein.
The Profound Yellow Qi, accumulated over the Great Zhou’s eight-hundred-year history, was now being forcibly stripped away by the previously established Kan Li Dragon Transformation Array. It transformed into the phantoms of nine Qiu Long, coiling around Xu Yunfan’s frame.
His exposed skin took on a jade-like luster, and the muscles beneath it bulged and writhed like the Earth Vein itself. His Jade Marrow Golden Bone, already perfected through the Yijing Marrow Cleansing Skill, was being refined yet again. His bones ground against each other, creating the sound of gold striking jade.
The Ten Extremes True Qi circulating through his organs grew ever stronger as it was scoured by the Profound Yellow Qi. With each full circulation, the air for a hundred feet around him warped and twisted.
CRACK!
The obsidian platform beneath Xu Yunfan’s feet cracked and shattered, crushed by the unconscious overflow of his True Qi.
Chen Wei’s pupils contracted, his eyes widening in utter disbelief.
He watched as the shattered stones were pulverized into dust by an invisible force before they could even fall. Even more terrifying was Xu Yunfan’s breathing. With every exhale, a jet of white vapor shot from his nostrils like a Sword Aura, piercing a flagpole thirty feet away. The rolling thunder from his chest sounded like a muffled drum, sending shivers of fear through the hearts of all who heard it.
’Can Ninth Realm Qi Cultivation really reach this level? Can Heavenly Human Communication truly grant a person such a terrifying, ocean-deep well of power?!’
Chen Wei’s knuckles turned white as he gripped his mace.
He had painstakingly cultivated the Wansheng Coiling Dragon Spear technique for forty years, earning a reputation for his divine Spear Mastery. Yet now, he couldn’t even get within thirty feet of Xu Yunfan without feeling a piercing pain in his internal organs.
A dead silence fell over the crowd below the platform.
On the viewing stands, the officials of the Astronomical Bureau and a number of white-haired old eunuchs could only glare in fury. They were powerless to do a thing.
He had grown stronger again.
Xu Yunfan raised his hand, feeling the misty Ten Extremes True Qi within him grow ever denser. Threads of it had even begun to circulate through the very layers of his skin and muscle.
Nourished by the Ten Extremes True Qi, his very flesh and blood were becoming something more than mortal.
Once his aura settled, he turned to the Senior Steward, who was still stunned speechless. His voice was calm but left no room for doubt. "Let’s proceed to the next round."
It was known that there were still three rounds of competition remaining. Once they were concluded, the finalists could proceed directly before the palace for the final exhibition.
When that time came, the Empress herself would personally attend to witness the final victor of the competition.
The Senior Steward was silent for a moment, struggling to suppress his shock. His withered fingers trembled slightly as he straightened the roster on his desk, his hoarse voice tinged with lingering fear.
"Each person will only fight one match today. For the next three days, there will be one round per day. The matches will begin at 7:00 AM. We will not wait for latecomers."
His murky eyes swept across the participants, pausing for a moment on Xu Yunfan.
The terrifying power this True Inheritor of the Taoist Sect had just displayed had sent the entire exhibition completely off its predetermined track.
According to the Six Ministries’ regulations, the plan was to fight three rounds today and proceed directly to the palace. But now, with treacherous undercurrents swirling between the various powers, even an old official like him who had served three dynasties felt a tremor of fear.
He added, "If you win three matches in a row, you will, of course, earn the right to the final exhibition before the palace and win the Empress’s favor."
"Win the Empress’s favor..."
Xu Yunfan said nothing more, a flicker of mockery crossing his face.
’Whether the Empress will still be sitting on her throne by then remains to be seen.’
The Senior Steward snapped the register shut, his face a mask of wrinkles like a turtle’s shell, hiding an unspeakable anxiety.
’This delay gives the other factions a chance to breathe,’ he thought, ’but it also buys time for the Empress on her high throne to lay her own plans.’
And that imposing figure in the center of the arena, standing as still as a tranquil abyss, had already become the eye of the storm that was about to engulf Jade Capital.
-----------------
「On the peak of Qingwei Mountain, atop the Luotian Altar.」
The Gang Wind atop Qingwei Mountain cut like a blade. On the Luotian Altar, seventy-two ancient bronze lamps were arranged in the pattern of the Stars of the Celestial Sphere. Their wicks, burning with the Taoist Sect’s secret Dragon Blood Jelly, held bluish-purple flames that remained perfectly still against the gale.
Bi Yuan was clad in a black Magic Robe, its cuffs embroidered with the Daoist Sect’s arcane Cloud Runes.
He performed the Yhu Step, and with each footfall, the surrounding Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi converged as if being devoured by a whale. A crimson Array Pattern materialized beneath his feet with every step.
Bi Yuan formed the Meridian Technique with his left hand. With his right, he used a Nine-sectioned Peach Wood Sword to lift a Cinnabar Talisman. The talisman paper burst into flame without a breeze, transforming into a fiery dragon that coiled toward the sky.
He pointed the tip of his sword toward the Kan Li Cauldron at the center of the Magic Altar. The energy within the cauldron roiled like boiling water, sending out ripples of qi that traveled down the mountain. Following the shuddering Earth Vein, it resonated with the Earth Vein of Jade Capital City at an unimaginable speed.
Bi Yuan muttered an incantation, his voice rising into a powerful chant: "Heaven and Earth the furnace, Creation the craftsman! Kan and Li clash, the Dragon Vein returns to its master!"
With the terrifying might of a Ninth Realm Supreme Qi Refining Grandmaster, the words left his lips with the force of a thunderclap. The clouds above the peak split apart. A green light erupted from the Thirty-Six Peaks, gathering the spiritual essence of the world and shooting toward the heavens. Starlight then poured down from the sky, funneling into the cauldron to nurture a core of Earth Vein Xuanhuang Qi.
The eighty-one Profound Iron Array Banners surrounding the Magic Altar snapped in the wind, their surfaces displaying the mountain ranges and river systems of the Great Zhou’s 79 States.
Bi Yuan bit his fingertip, using his blood as ink to trace a series of runes in the air. With every stroke, a deep rumble echoed from the Earth Vein in the direction of Jade Capital City.
Watching this, Chang Mei Lao Dao couldn’t help but speak. "Be careful, Bi the Kid. The last time a true Luotian Grand Sacrifice was performed was two thousand years ago. The Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi has recovered a little, stirred up by the Earth Vein, but you must still be cautious. Simply following the ancient diagrams is risky."
"Rest assured, Martial Uncle," Bi Yuan replied. "I have practiced this talisman for thirty years."
After his reply, Bi Yuan’s eyes began to glow with a jade-colored light, allowing him to perceive the flow of the Earth Qi.
He could see it then: from beneath the Black Tortoise Martial Arts Arena where Xu Yunfan stood, a column of Profound Yellow Qi as thick as a palace pillar was being forcibly ripped out. It surged along the channels of the Earth Vein, rushing toward Qingwei Mountain.
Sensing this was complete, Bi Yuan’s expression relaxed slightly. He knew, of course, that this meant Xu Yunfan had won another match.
Once all three matches were won, the situation would be settled. The Empress would have no chance to recover. Li Haomiao could seize the opportunity to rise to power and reshape the world, and Xu Yunfan could use this chance to take the final step—to find the opportunity to break through the Ninth Realm and ascend as a Land Immortal.
Bi Yuan abruptly thrust his Peach Wood Sword into the cauldron. Inside, the Profound Yellow Qi transformed into nine small dragons that roared and thrashed.
Nine Jade Nails shot from his sleeve, their heads engraved with ancient seal script characters like "Zhenyue" and "Lock Sea." Each nail pierced the brow of one of the small dragons.