Ascension Day

Xu Ying strode forward. As his foot landed for the second time, the ground sank again, and rubble floated into the air!

He threw another punch. The force of the fist carried the rubble, forming a second Fist Seal that blasted toward the Giant Divine Spirit!

DONG!

His third step landed, and a third Fist Seal blasted out!

The Giant Divine Spirit grinned, brandishing the swords in his hands. He met the three Fist Seals head-on, and chunks of rock collided with the gleam of his blades, exploding with a series of CRACKS!

The two Flying Swords dancing around him shattered the pieces of rubble he couldn’t block in time. In an instant, He had broken through all three Fist Seals with ease.

The pulverized rubble filled the air as dust, obscuring the Giant Divine Spirit’s vision. From beyond the swirling dust, Xu Ying charged forward and unleashed his fourth punch!

He was determined to land this punch!

Just as his fist broke through the cloud of dust, he heard the sound of a Flying Sword slicing through the air.

Xu Ying roared, putting all his strength into the punch. At the same time, two Flying Swords shot out from the mist. One went straight for his face, while the other grazed past his side!

Xu Ying raised his left hand to block. Behind him, the Elephant-headed God-man also raised its hand, and its palm, formed of dense Evil Qi, was the first to meet the Flying Sword!

With a SHHIIINK, the Elephant-headed God-man’s palm was pierced. Immediately after, the Qi Blood in Xu Ying’s left palm was punctured, and then his hand was pierced through as well!

The immense power within the Flying Sword forced his hand back, plunging into the left side of his chest. It entered through the front, pierced his shoulder blade, and exited through his back!

At the same time, Xu Ying’s right fist smashed into the Giant Divine Spirit’s body, his Qi Blood erupting with surging power!

BOOM!

He and the Giant Divine Spirit were thrown backward at almost the same time!

The Flying Sword carried Xu Ying through the air, pinning him to a large tree sixty or seventy feet from the village entrance. The sword dissipated into smoke, and he slid to the ground.

He tried to lift his left arm, but it was limp and weak, completely devoid of strength.

His shoulder blade was pierced, his left arm was crippled, and his left lung was punctured. He had little combat strength left.

’He must be dead, right?’

Xu Ying raised his head and looked into the distance. The dust ahead was still thick and had yet to settle, so he couldn’t tell if the Giant Divine Spirit was dead or alive.

Just then, a Flying Sword emerged slowly from the dusty mist, ringing softly.

Xu Ying’s pupils contracted. A tall shadow slowly became visible within the dust.

Most of the ribbons on the tall shadow’s body were torn, and the halo behind its head was a third of the way shattered.

There was a fist-sized hole near His ribs, where Xu Ying’s punch had blasted straight through His body!

But He still wasn’t dead!

"If I were a creature of flesh and blood, you would have already killed me."

The tall figure walked out of the dust, chuckling. "But what can you do? I am a Divine Spirit. Xu Ying, your Martial Dao is useless against me."

The tall figure raised a hand and waved it forcefully. With a WHOOSH, He blew the dust away with a single sweep of His palm, revealing His towering, imposing body!

Xu Ying stood under the tree, pressing on the wound in his chest, his heart filled with despair.

He had little Qi Blood left; he couldn’t escape even if he wanted to.

’I’ll have to make one last, desperate stand!’

Xu Ying gritted his teeth, stirring his remaining Qi Blood and preparing for one last struggle.

Just then, a familiar voice suddenly echoed in his mind, "Young man, do you know how to achieve Transforming Evil into Essence?"

Xu Ying hastily asked, "Senior, what is Transforming Evil into Essence?"

The Giant Divine Spirit, who was walking toward him, heard this and stopped abruptly. He warily scanned the surroundings and sneered, "You have an accomplice?"

The Snake Demon Yuan Qi was also stunned, thinking to himself, ’Someone’s talking? How come I didn’t hear anything? Don’t tell me that Bell has messed with Ying’s head?’

In Xu Ying’s mind, the voice instructed, ’You possess the Five Qi. Through Five Qi Chaoyuan, you are meant to transform the Five Qi into Primordial Qi. It’s only because you don’t understand Transforming Evil into Essence that you’re being bullied by this oaf. The "Evil" refers to the Evil Qi inside you, your impure Qi Blood. In your Cultivation of the Martial Dao, you first refined an Evil Body. You need to achieve Transforming Evil into Essence before you can advance further.’

Understanding dawned on Xu Ying instantly. He was both surprised and delighted, and he laughed, "So that’s how it is! Thank you for your guidance, Senior!"

The Giant Divine Spirit looked all around but saw no one. He sneered, "Stop bluffing, kid. You think I can’t tell you don’t have an accomplice?!"

Xu Ying stirred the Qi Blood in his body, enduring the pain, and began to channel the Elephant Power Ox Demon Fist over and over again!

NGRRAAA—

An elephant’s trumpet sounded from his chest, shaking the wilderness. As it echoed, the Qi Blood in his Five Viscera churned. All over his body, impure Qi Blood was expelled like waste gas, hissing from his countless open pores!

His tattered clothes were soon soaked by the bloody filth in the expelled gas, turning them crimson. Beads of blood even began to drip from the hem of his robe.

As Xu Ying circulated his Qi Blood, the qi moving through his body grew purer and purer, while the amount of impure Qi Blood diminished.

A brilliant light radiated from his entire body. The Elephant God Evil Body gradually lost the filthy appearance of its Blood Evil Qi as he steadily refined the Evil Qi and achieved Transforming Evil into Essence. It was as if a true, Venerable Elephant God now stood behind him!

He had mastered the final layer of the Elephant Power Ox Demon Fist: the Elephant God King Body!

His aura surged to the heavens, projecting an incomparably tyrannical might. Before him, any Great Demon could only bow in submission!

He had cultivated the Elephant Power Ox Demon Fist to a level that only a Demon King could hope to achieve!

The Snake Demon Yuan Qi stared, his eyes wide, and murmured, "Xu Ying broke through again... He’s really become a Great Demon King..."

He suddenly realized that even if Xu Ying were a demon, he had only been practicing the Elephant Power Ox Demon Fist for two days. In just two short days, Xu Ying had brought his cultivation of the technique to the level of a Demon King.

’Is it even reasonable to cultivate that fast?’

’But if he’s breaking through, it means I’m not far from a breakthrough myself,’ Yuan Qi thought.

’In any case, I’ll just cultivate however the smart guy does. That can’t be wrong.’

’And even if it is wrong, it’ll be the smart guy’s fault.’

The Big Snake, still pinned to the ground, thought, ’You know, just lying flat like this is actually pretty nice sometimes.’

In Xu Ying’s mind, the Da Zhong felt a pang of shame. ’I siphoned off too much of his Qi Blood,’ it thought, ’preventing him from using his full strength. I almost got him killed. Luckily, this kid is smart enough to comprehend Transforming Evil into Essence so quickly. If it had been someone dumber, like that Snake Demon over there, he would’ve been a goner for sure.’

The Giant Divine Spirit was shocked to see Xu Ying achieve Transforming Evil into Essence, but charged forward recklessly all the same.

He was immensely confident.

"I am the venerable Divine Spirit of Yangzitang Town! I have enjoyed two hundred and thirty-four years of Incense and Candlelight offerings, and my Magical Power is immense! How could I possibly lose to a mere brat? So what if you broke through?!"

His Flying Sword moved a step ahead of Him, stabbing straight for Xu Ying’s face!

With his left arm crippled, Xu Ying could only use his right hand to block the attack!

In a flash, Xu Ying raised his right hand and threw a punch to meet the Flying Sword.

Behind him, the body of the Elephant-headed God-man grew even taller and threw a punch in tandem!

The Giant Divine Spirit sneered. ’This strike will surely pierce Xu Ying’s right arm and pin him to the tree behind him!’

However, when Xu Ying threw his punch, it created a massive vacuum behind him. The force was so great that even the large tree at the village entrance was nearly uprooted, its canopy lurching forward. With a great RUSTLE, its leaves were torn away, swirling into the gale created by the punch!

CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!

The Flying Sword slammed into Xu Ying’s fist and shattered, reverting to its original form—a cloud of Incense Smoke Qi that promptly dispersed!

The power of Xu Ying’s punch did not diminish as it met the Giant Divine Spirit’s descending twin swords, the fist of the Elephant God overlapping with the boy’s.

The moment the swords and fist collided, a fierce gale erupted, sending countless leaves scattering to the sides!

The Snake Demon Yuan Qi stared blankly at the scene, his heart in turmoil. ’Who won? Who lost?’

The leaves fluttered down, revealing the figures of the Giant Divine Spirit and Xu Ying.

The long and short swords held in the Giant Divine Spirit’s hands were both shattered. The protective Incense Smoke Qi enveloping His body had been blasted through, leaving a gaping hole in His chest.

Around the edges of the gaping hole, fragments of stone crackled and exploded bit by bit.

"Your power... is far purer than mine..."

Fear finally appeared in the Giant Divine Spirit’s eyes. Looking at the boy who was so much smaller than Him, He said with a trembling voice, "You dare to kill a god! You have violated the Celestial Rules! There will be no place for you in this world..."

Xu Ying looked up at Him, slowly withdrew his fist, and pursed his lips. "If a lordly Divine Spirit won’t even grant a commoner a path to survival, why should I revere you as a god?"

He walked around the Giant Divine Spirit and toward the Snake Demon Yuan Qi. "After killing a god for the first time, they become no different from the straw dogs on an altar in my eyes. The next time I have to kill one, I’ll be more practiced."

"The Yin Court will not let you go..."

The Giant Divine Spirit crumbled, collapsing into a pile of shattered fragments on the ground.

————As for the ad on my Official Account, well, it’s because this pig (the author) lost quite a bit in the stock market recently (don’t play the stocks, a lesson learned in blood), so I took an ad to earn a little cash. Although it looks pretty revealing, it’s actually just a normal game. The ad will be deleted. Scurrying away~~ Okay, scurrying back again. My Official Account is open for all kinds of compliant advertising business. Interested parties can contact me on WeChat at yansonghetang