Chapter 471 - 468: One Word, One Divine Skill; One Slash, Duanshan Rivers
Xue Baoshu was competing with a True Disciple from the Spring and Autumn Academy in a display of Divine Skills.
Although neither of them used their full strength, they both exhibited a considerable amount of their skills, as they didn’t want to lose face in front of so many fellow sect members watching.
Xue Baoshu had already merged with her Lifebound Spiritual Beast, the Barbaric White Elephant, making her much taller and bulkier than before. Standing over ten feet tall with a waistline measuring ten spans and her arms thick and long, her body was entwined with hefty chains, appearing utterly fierce. Even her opponent, a True Disciple of the Spring and Autumn Academy, was forced to retreat continuously in the face of her extreme brute-force tactics, which caused a sense of intimidation in his eyes.
Especially since Xue Baoshu was fighting spiritedly, her head shook, and she suddenly grew an elephant trunk and ears as large as a fan.
She was always rough and domineering in combat, accustomed to overpowering others with strength, so she never cared about her own appearance.
At that moment, with a flap of her fan-sized ears, she instantly whipped up two tornadoes, aiming them at the Scholar who was conjuring a volume to defend against her giant hammer.
The Scholar, upon seeing her new move, wasn’t afraid. He reached out to grab an inkstone, tossed it into the air to suppress the void, and it immediately stopped those two tornadoes from moving forward.
But he didn’t expect that Xue Baoshu would suddenly swing her head, and a tremendously heavy elephant trunk, wielding an extremely fierce Gang Wind, struck the inkstone, sending it flying away. The momentum didn’t wane and continued towards the Scholar.
The Scholar was shocked, not expecting that the force of Xue Baoshu’s trunk was in no way weaker than the Wild Beast’s White Bone Hammer made from a beast’s skull.
He quickly drew several strokes in the void with his right index finger, and in an instant, an ancient seal character “御” appeared in front of him, shining with golden light. It quickly expanded and, with strong defensive power, blocked Xue Baoshu’s strike.
But immediately afterward, Xue Baoshu’s White Bone Hammer fell.
Unlike the trunk’s earlier diminished power after striking the inkstone, this time Xue Baoshu unleashed her Great Strength Divine Power to its limit. The White Bone Hammer came crashing down with the wild force of a colossal beast—and the Scholar below was nearly suffocated by the fierce Gang Wind that pressed down even before the hammer made contact.
The Scholar spread both hands, his fingers dancing like a blossoming lotus, managing to inscribe ten shining ancient seal characters above his head before the White Bone Hammer struck.
“Seal, Prohibit, Trap, Prison, Resist, Defend, Steady, Fortify, Mountain, Peak!”
One finger for each character, each character a Divine Power!
Each ancient seal shone with golden light and exuded a power aura corresponding to its character, forming ten layers of defense against the wildly fierce White Bone Hammer.
“Boom!”
A loud crash sounded, and then like rotting wood being crushed, the defensive barrier formed by the ancient seals was shattered. The ferocious bone spurs of the White Bone Hammer flashed with a sharp, cold glint as they descended towards the Scholar.
The Scholar lifted his wide sleeves, his palm glowing with golden light, the lines in his hand resembling a map of mountains, and with illusions of mountains, he valiantly withstood the White Bone Hammer.
Xue Baoshu’s arms waved, and the chains around her body snaked towards her opponent like a long python.
The Scholar furrowed his brows.
It wasn’t that his Cultivation was inferior to Xue Baoshu’s. Rather, he was more accustomed to encountering Confucian Cultivators, and this was the first time he faced such a barbaric fighting style. He was somewhat unused to it and had been led into Xue Baoshu’s rhythm, resulting in a defensive position.
He called out softly, and suddenly from within his sleeve emerged a long scroll.
The scroll unfurled itself, circling him several times, with images of birds, beasts, insects, and fish emerging one after another, creating a barrier around him that once again stopped the entanglement of Xue Baoshu’s chains.
But in doing so, he was now completely on the defensive, unable to break free.
Xue Baoshu, invigorated, swung her White Bone Hammer with the speed of wind and lightning, pounding down one hundred and eight times towards the ground. If not for the strong Prohibition within the palace, it could hardly withstand such hammering. Still, the stone slabs below continuously emitted light from the Prohibition.
More importantly, amidst her exhilarated battle cries, a hint of the Power of Laws began to rise around her.
“Thrilling!”
Xue Baoshu laughed heartily, then pulled on the chains to retract her White Bone Hammer and hung it at her waist. Her figure shifted as she cancelled the merge with her Lifebound Spiritual Beast and politely bowed, “Thank you for the instruction, and thank you, Daoist Fellow, for assisting me in my Enlightenment!”
The Scholar let out a sigh of relief. He had indeed been caught off guard by Xue Baoshu’s fierce onslaught. Particularly the last few blows, where this wild woman had managed to grasp the Power Principle through the excitement of battling with him.
Although it was just the beginning of her comprehension, when added to the White Bone Hammer, it significantly increased its might. If Xue Baoshu hadn’t stopped when things were going well, the battle would have continued, and he would have undoubtedly been embarrassed.
“Miss Baozhu is too modest.”
With a wry smile, the Scholar said, “Your formidable fighting style is something I wasn’t able to withstand initially, and it was indeed a bit overwhelming to resist.
Congratulations on grasping the Principle Magic, Miss Baozhu. From now on, you step onto the path of the Dao, a momentous and celebratory occasion!”
“Ha ha… I still have to thank you, Daoist Fellow. If it weren’t for you battling with me to such enjoyment, relying on seclusion alone for my comprehension, it would have taken me at least three more years of hard work.”
Xue Baoshu was thrilled inwardly. It seemed that she was indeed not suited for solitary cultivation. Engaging in more battles was the way to make further progress.
“Excellent, what a spectacle!”
The spectators watching from outside the arena burst into a round of applause.
Tang Sanyuan fanned himself with his folded fan and exclaimed repeatedly, “Junior Brother Ge had little experience in fighting before, so it’s normal for him to fall into Miss Baozhu’s fighting rhythm. After more interactions with fellow Daoists and more battles, his experience will naturally improve!”
“Thank you for your advice, Senior Brother!”
Ge Qingshan nodded repeatedly. He had also realized where his weakness lay. This time it was an honest exchange with a fellow of the Beast Taming Sect, and Xue Baoshu naturally would not resort to lethal force against him, ensuring his safety. But if he encountered similar opponents in the future, it would not necessarily be like today.
He wasn’t the Chief Disciple; among the five virtues of benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and faithfulness in the true inheritance of the Scripture Interpretation Division, he only ranked last. Therefore, he was very polite to Tang Sanyuan.
Tang Sanyuan looked at Xue Baoshu and said, “Miss Baozhu’s comprehension of the Power of Laws while fighting Junior Brother Ge is also a result of her accumulated experience and a breakthrough after a gradual build-up. Even without today’s battle, she would soon come to the realization!”
“Brother Tang, you flatter me.”
Xue Baoshu’s face showed excitement as she politely responded. Although she was wild and combative by nature, being a woman, she also had a meticulous side, which is why she was able to stop in time during the fight and did not make the male scholar lose face.
After all, the other party had assisted her in comprehending the Law, and even though she would have comprehended it sooner or later without this battle, there was still no need to continue fighting seriously, as they were not enemies intent on determining a victor.
“Daoist Fellow Miao Zhen.”
Tang Sanyuan glanced at Fang Chengqian a few steps away and then, with a smile, turned to Li Miaozhen, “The fight between Miss Baozhu and Junior Brother Ge was very exciting just now, and I found myself itching to join in. Why don’t we have a bout so that I can witness for myself the wonders of your White Tiger Saber!”
He was aware of Fang Chengqian’s intentions. Originally, he did not have a specific desire to compete with Fang Chengqian, especially considering Lianxing of the Creation Lineage from the Beast Taming Sect was not inferior to Li Miaozhen in either Cultivation or appearance, and she also possessed an innocent and charming nature that was quite endearing.
As for Liu Xuanling, he thought it best to let the matter go.
She was already at the Peak of the Purple Mansion, perhaps on the verge of a Breakthrough to the Dharma Image Realm. Given the current disparity in Cultivation, there was basically no chance of success, so he wisely did not disturb Liu Xuanling.
Moreover, Liu Xuanling always seemed to have a teasing look in her eyes when regarding him, clearly aware of his intentions. Approaching her at this time would only serve to entertain her.
However, since Fang Chengqian wanted to edge him out through underhanded competition, thereby secretly reaching out to his sister and causing him to monitor his sister all day, not to mention enduring the clueless harassment from Young Master Ma…
He wondered what Young Master Ma was thinking. Despite never giving him any encouragement, Young Master Ma seemed to misinterpret his words and still circled around his sister all day, and from time to time, tried to curry favor with him, as though he had already seen him as an uncle.
Therefore, with resentment towards Fang Chengqian in his heart, Tang Sanyuan felt inclined to disrupt his plans. That’s why he would engage in conversation with Li Miaozhen from time to time, getting close to her to irritate Fang Chengqian.
Sure enough, after his words, Fang Chengqian’s expression subtly changed, obviously uncomfortable, which secretly delighted Tang Sanyuan.
“Oh?”
Hearing Tang Sanyuan challenge her, Li Miaozhen’s spirited eyebrows raised lightly, and her face instantly lit up with excitement, “Are you challenging me to a duel? That’s great, I’ve been so bored these days, wandering aimlessly!”
Without a second word, she jumped into the arena, excited, and beckoned to Tang Sanyuan continuously, “Come on, come on, my saber has been thirsty for too long!”
“Uh?”
Tang Sanyuan was slightly taken aback.
He had initiated the conversation with Li Miaozhen merely to provoke Fang Chengqian. He had thought that even if Li Miaozhen agreed to fight him, she wouldn’t be as combative as Xue Baoshu just now. Yet, to his surprise, Li Miaozhen seemed even more eager to fight!
But having said those words, and with Li Miaozhen already in the arena, he, as the challenger, could hardly refuse to engage.
Moreover, as the Chief Disciple of the Poetry Institute of the Spring and Autumn Academy, his expertise was not only in poetry and compositions. His Cultivation Combat Power was also extraordinary, or he wouldn’t have been able to secure the position of Chief Disciple among so many talents.
So he smiled carelessly, stepped into the arena, and brandished his folded fan with a casual, dashing bearing that made many a female cultivator in the crowd take notice.
However, this posture made no difference to Li Miaozhen; she even found him somewhat pretentious. To be defenseless in front of her, he was asking for trouble.
Li Miaozhen, who had not fought for many days, was excited to burst forth like a human-formed White Tiger—ferocious and fierce. Her White Tiger Saber emitted a bracing flash of Sword Light as it swept out of its sheath towards him.
With that strike came an incredibly sharp Sword Energy that alarmed Tang Sanyuan, prompting him to hastily close his mouth and swallow back the words he intended to say. He raised his Mountain and River Fan, and suddenly, a mountain, a river, and an eagle materialized in the Void.
The mountain bore down with heavy suppressive force, the river roared with a dynamic force looking for weaknesses, and the eagle soared through the sky, breaking the Void and diving straight for Li Miaozhen.
“Ha-ha-ha… Take my strike!”
Li Miaozhen was utterly fearless, the White Tiger Saber gleaming with a bright Sword Light.
Where the Sword Light passed, the mountain crumbled, the river ceased its flow, and the eagle was decapitated!