Chapter 323 - 320: Slay
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Beams of Cyan Wood Sword Light descended like pillars from the heavens, each carrying a terrifying sharpness that could pierce through anything as they slammed viciously onto the White Jade Eight Diagrams Mirror!
In that instant,
a heaven-shaking, earth-shattering roar erupted!
With Zhou Lingyun at the center,
vast swathes of earth vanished in an instant!
The collision detonated, sending countless streams of Sword Qi surging in all directions, severing and pulverizing the surrounding trees and earth and turning them into clouds of fine dust!
Protected by the White Jade Eight Diagrams Mirror, Zhou Lingyun felt an overwhelming, tsunami-like force surge down from the sky,
almost crushing him into the ground!
But fortunately,
The White Jade Eight Diagrams Mirror in his hand was a Treasure Artifact, after all. Shen Changchuan’s Third Layer Cyan Wood Sword Light attack had been blocked!
However, at this moment,
Zhou Lingyun’s face was filled with utter disbelief.
’Are you kidding me?!’
The square-faced, middle-aged man hadn’t been able to comprehend the power Shen Changchuan displayed,
and Zhou Lingyun, who was personally fighting him,
understood it even less!
’Since when,’
’could a backwater place like this, where the highest Cultivation is the mere Divine Travel Realm, possibly produce a genius of the Soul Emergence Realm?!’
’Although I, Zhou Lingyun, am not considered the absolute top prodigy in the prosperous Central State region of the Immortal Cultivation Realm,’
’because of my background in the Zhou Family,’
’and having received guidance from the Profound Pill Ancestor after advancing to the Soul Emergence Realm,’
’my strength,’
’is at least a cut above that of an ordinary Soul Emergence Realm Cultivator!’
’A Soul Emergence Realm cultivator from the Central State,’
’even an ordinary one, should be considered a first-class genius in a remote, backwater region like this, thanks to growing up in a prosperous corner of the Immortal Cultivation Realm!’
’Coming from the Central State,’
’I should be wiping the floor with that brat named Shen Changchuan, leaving him unable to retaliate!’
’But now,’
’how have the tables turned?!’
’How can I, a descendant of the Central Zhou Family, be beaten so soundly by some country bumpkin?!’
"I don’t believe it!"
Zhou Lingyun roared, his face twisting into a savage snarl.
The very instant the Cyan Wood Sword Light shattered and its power was completely blocked,
the immense power within his body erupted, surging entirely into the White Jade Eight Diagrams Mirror.
VMMM!
Ripples of white light vibrated outward, the phantom image of the eight diagrams expanding in concentric circles.
The ground beneath Zhou Lingyun’s feet instantly collapsed!
At the same time,
WHOOSH!
The phantom of the White Jade Eight Diagrams Mirror spun rapidly.
Then, a power strong enough to shake space itself surged from the mirror, forming a white pillar of light as thick as a bucket that blasted toward Shen Changchuan in the sky!
An aura of power powerful enough to make space itself tremble spread out.
The very sound in the air seemed to be pulverized at this moment,
leaving only a dead silence filled with endless killing intent!
"Hm?!"
Shen Changchuan’s eyes narrowed.
The white pillar of light was already before him, rapidly expanding in his pupils!
CRACKLE!
Thunder Shadow Swift Movement!
Without the slightest hesitation, Shen Changchuan activated the only Body Technique he had mastered.
In a flash of lightning,
Shen Changchuan vanished instantly!
Only an afterimage was left behind, pierced effortlessly by the white pillar of light!
"Damn it!"
"How can he be so fast?!"
Zhou Lingyun’s expression was grim.
A Tier Two Perfection Body Technique was just too unfair!
Even with the power of a Treasure Artifact, it was meaningless if his attacks couldn’t hit their target!
At this moment,
Zhou Lingyun couldn’t help but recall the teachings of the Zhou Family’s Profound Pill Ancestor from years ago.
"Treasure Artifacts can quickly boost your combat strength, but they are ultimately external objects."
"Magic Secret Techniques are difficult to practice, but they become completely your own!"
"Therefore, no matter how difficult a Tier Two Magic is to practice, you must spend the time to master one or two to serve as your core methods for engaging enemies..."
"Only then can you reign supreme among those in the same Realm!"
He had listened very attentively back then.
After all, that was the wisdom of Master Profound Pill.
But later,
as he truly entered the Soul Emergence Realm, Zhou Lingyun had grown increasingly dismissive of this idea.
To cultivate a single Tier Two Magic to Perfection, someone without natural talent would need to put in at least several years, or even a decade or more, of hard work.
In contrast,
as long as one had Spirit Stones, resources, and connections, one could directly equip a Treasure Artifact and gain immense power in a short amount of time.
So what if a Perfection Technique could be cast with a single thought, making it a hair faster than using a Magical Artifact?
With his background, he could just equip a few more Treasure Artifacts to make up for the difference!
Until this very moment,
Zhou Lingyun finally, truly understood.
In a clash between masters,
a sliver of difference,
was the difference between heaven and earth!
Just like now,
what good was it, no matter how many Treasure Artifacts he wielded?
He couldn’t track his opponent’s movements.
He couldn’t land a hit.
It was all completely useless!
Just as Zhou Lingyun’s thoughts were running wild,
in that very instant,
WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!
three cyan sword lights shot down from the sky behind him!
The terrifying cyan sword beams seemed to carve visible cyan scars into the very fabric of space!
Zhou Lingyun sensed the danger.
He quickly repositioned the White Jade Eight Diagrams Mirror, raising it to block the attack from behind.
BOOM!!!
Another violent collision detonated,
and a visible torrent of Magical Power Energy swept out in all directions, wreaking havoc!
Under the bombardment of the terrifyingly sharp Cyan Wood Sword Light,
the light reflecting off the White Jade Eight Diagrams Mirror dimmed noticeably.
"Damn it!"
"This can’t go on!"
"I have to end this fight quickly, or he’ll wear me down and kill me!"
A savage look flashed across Zhou Lingyun’s face,
but at the same time,
a flicker of hesitation also crossed his eyes.
’That thing... it’s a one-time-use weapon the Ancestor gave me.’
’It’s meant for dealing with opponents at the Soul Emergence Peak Realm, or even the Divine Travel Realm!’
’I only received it as a reward from the Ancestor because I broke through to the Soul Emergence Realm by condensing a Spirit Body around the age of twenty.’
’I have one, and only one.’
’And it’s basically impossible that I’ll ever get another one.’
’It’s unbelievably precious.’
’Do I really have to use it here?’
’To deal with someone my own age, whose Cultivation is also just the mere Soul Emergence First Layer?’
At this very moment,
he couldn’t help but hesitate!
However,
in that very same instant,
WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!!!
Another three streams of Cyan Wood Sword Light, wrapped in an overwhelming cyan radiance, slammed down viciously!
The White Jade Eight Diagrams Mirror once again raised its defenses in time to block the attack.
With a tremendous roar, immense waves of energy surged out, sweeping over everything in all directions!
But this time,
a sliver of the immense Sword Intent penetrated the White Jade Eight Diagrams Mirror and struck Zhou Lingyun,
sending him staggering back dozens of feet!