Wielding the Thunders Across Two Worlds

"There is no misunderstanding," Taoist Yi Hong said flatly.

"Your wolf cubs wreaked havoc in the Central Plains. Their sins are grievous, and your Red Moon Valley must bear the karmic consequences," Taoist Yan Song chuckled.

"Attack." Taoist Ming Yu flicked his Thunderwood Sword, its tip aimed straight at Li Chiwang, and a bolt of the Five Yang Thunders shot toward him.

A point of golden light coalesced, containing boundless thunder within.

The full name of the Five Yang Thunders was the Five Directions Yang Thunder Spell. It drew its power from the Five Emperors of Shenxiao above, connected to the Yin Yang Five Elements below, was guided by the five viscera within, and linked to the Five Qi without. It was the core Thunder Technique of the *Tai Chi Thunder Concealment Book*.

Taoist Ming Yu’s Dao Practice was profound. He condensed the entirety of the Five Elements and Five Thunders into a single point of Purple Gold Thunder Light. Though it looked like a mere speck, Li Chiwang, who was directly in its path, felt its contained power most keenly.

’What kind of thunder is this?’

Li Chiwang was startled. Among the Demon Ghosts of this age, apart from the Thunderbirds in the far south and those with Kuiniu bloodlines in the East Sea, no others could control thunder.

Moreover, the thunder wielded by those two types of Demons was ferocious, tyrannical, and unrestrained. While immensely powerful, it lacked the true grandeur and majesty of Celestial Thunder.

But the thunder before him now was different.

Li Chiwang’s own Dao Practice was profound. Although Taoist Ming Yu’s Five Yang Thunders contained the Five Elements, it would still be difficult to harm him with it.

Yet, it was because their levels of Dao Practice were not worlds apart that Li Chiwang could so clearly sense the profundity and richness contained within this thunder—a grandeur and majesty that rivaled the might of heaven and earth itself.

With a flip of his hand, a Curved Saber appeared in his grasp.

He swung the Curved Saber, and an exceedingly fine wisp of blade energy shot from its tip. It met Taoist Ming Yu’s thunder with pinpoint precision, intending to slice into its core, disrupt the Five Elements within, and deconstruct the thunder from the inside.

But the moment the blade energy sliced into the thunder, the Five Yang Thunders erupted.

Faint rumbles of Celestial Thunder, booms of Divine Thunder, Dragon Thunder flowing like a river, Water Thunder surging in waves, Community Order Thunder calling forth crackling thunderbolts that crisscrossed the air.

The Five Thunders gathered and scattered, then scattered and re-gathered. They seemed to act independently, yet they were all connected. Through the principle of Five Elements Mutual Generation, the Five Thunders linked together, instantly forming a massive orb of lightning that not only devoured the blade energy but also surged toward Li Chiwang.

Li Chiwang’s pupils constricted. He unleashed another sharp wave of blade energy, which transformed into a net of blades, shattering the lightning orb with brute force.

Taoist Ming Yu shook his head and chuckled. "Arrogant."

’The Five Thunders Curse is the very essence of the Taoist Sect’s Thunder Techniques, and the Five Elements Five Qi are the fundamental Dharma Gate of our cultivation. To think he could dismantle the Five Elements from within, using finesse to break my Technique...’

’Where does he get that confidence?’

"Since he wants to try and unravel the Five Elements, then let’s give him the chance," Taoist Qingwei said, his expression grave as he raised his longsword.

And so, the Yin Yang Five Elements Array was activated.

The five Taoists—Yuan He, Ming Chong, Qingwei, Jing Chun, and Yan Qi—took their positions in the five cardinal directions. Each unleashed their respective Five Elements techniques, trapping Li Chiwang within.

At the same time, Taoist Jing Hong and Taoist Jing Fa activated their Inner Pills. Yin and Yang merged, Dragon and Tiger converged, causing the Qi of the Five Elements to circulate between them and giving rise to endless transformations.

Seeing the Yin Yang Five Elements Array activate, the Nine Palace Eight Trigrams Array did not act on its own. Instead, it shifted in tandem with the flow of the Five Elements, augmenting the other array’s power.

Now, the Yin Yang Five Elements Array took the lead while the Nine Palace Eight Trigrams Array acted as support. Together, they blotted out the sky, sealed the very air, and completely enveloped Red Moon Valley.

It wasn’t just Li Chiwang who was stunned; the dozens of shapeshifted Wolf Demons throughout Red Moon Valley were utterly baffled as well.

"Who are they?"

"I don’t know! They’re not Demons, not Ghost Gods... Are they Mages?"

"Are there Mages this powerful in the world?"

"Are they from the Southern Border?"

"They seem to be from the north."

"Why are they targeting our Red Moon Valley?"

"Based on what that man just said, some of our people were causing trouble in the Central Plains."

"Since when did any of us go to the Central Plains?"

"Third Miss went to see her son, and a few days ago, Fourth Young Master went too!"

"Could it be..."

Li Chiwang snapped his head up. "Did Hongning and Hongfeng offend someone from your esteemed sect?"

By now, the Taoists’ gazes had pierced through the Demon Qi Li Chiwang had gathered, and they could see the scene within Red Moon Valley.

Inside were pens of captive men and women, children awaiting slaughter, and a bone pit overflowing with skeletons.

The elder Taoists didn’t deign to reply. They simply channeled their Magical Power, and as the Five Elements circulated, Flying Swords, Thunderbolts, Tai Chi symbols, Earth Fire, and Earth Qi all pressed down upon Li Chiwang in unison.

Li Chiwang now understood completely. They had come with the sole purpose of annihilating Red Moon Valley. There was no room for negotiation.

Either they would kill him and annihilate Red Moon Valley, or he would break through their arrays and kill them instead.

"AWOOOO—"

A lone wolf howl echoed throughout the entire valley.

This was the Wolf King’s call to rally his pack, and its meaning was clear...

"Fight to the death!"

"Break out from this desperate siege!"

"AWOOO—AWOOO—AWOOO—"

Throughout Red Moon Valley, answering howls rose and fell in a continuous, unbroken chorus.

Eight jets of Demon Qi shot into the sky as eight more Wolf Demons capable of flight burst out from the valley. Each unleashed their Magical Power, striking at the arrays that enveloped Red Moon Valley.

An ancestor with over two thousand years of Dao Practice and eight Wolf Demons with several hundred to a thousand years of Dao Practice each. Strictly speaking, this was a power not much weaker than the Nether Fire Sect.

But before the sixteen elder Taoists, they were simply outmatched.

While numbers matter little when the gap in Dao Practice is too vast, Chi Wang Ancestor’s own cultivation had not reached the overwhelmingly dominant level of the Ink Flood Dragon or Yun Fei’ang. Furthermore, when facing Demons and Ghosts, the elder Taoists had always been adept at fighting opponents above their own level.

Furthermore, they were now empowered by the arrays. As the Five Elements circulated, the formations also drew upon the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi. With the two arrays stacked, all the elder Taoists could unleash power far beyond their usual capabilities.

The Yin Yang Five Elements Array continued its assault on Li Chiwang, while the Nine Palace Eight Trigrams Array turned its attention to the other Wolf Demons.

The first to strike was Taoist Shen Hao. Though advanced in years, the elder was as vigorous as ever. He tossed his Flowing Gold Fire Bell, and the Nanming Li Fire blazed forth, forming what looked like a scorching sun that fell from the sky, hurtling toward the most powerful of the Wolf Demons.

The Wolf Demon let out a sharp cry as Demon Qi erupted from its body. Its claws slashed through the air, creating a flurry of attacks as it charged head-on into the blazing sun.

But just as he channeled his full Magical Power, at the very peak of his momentum, a crisp ringing suddenly echoed in his ears. "TING-A-LING—TING-A-LING—"

The Wolf Demon’s mind went blank for an instant, and the flow of his Magical Power faltered.

By the time he regained his senses, the blazing sun, imbued with Nanming Li Fire and the might of heaven and earth, was already upon him.

With the Eight Gates shifting and the Five Elements flowing, Taoist Shen Hao had, in a split second, channeled most of the Nine Palace Eight Trigrams Array’s power into the Flowing Gold Fire Bell. Using the bell’s chime as a distraction, he delivered his strongest Attack.

BOOM!

With a deafening explosion, the blazing sun engulfed the Wolf Demon, and the Flowing Gold Fire Bell slammed heavily into its chest.

"AARGH!"

The Wolf Demon let out a piteous scream as its body immediately plummeted downward.

"Eldest Young Master!"

The few Wolf Demons who were a step behind cried out in alarm. They wanted to go to his rescue, but were caught off guard as the other elder Taoists’ attacks followed instantly.

Flashes of blade light!

The roar of thunder!