In the Dayu imperial capital, crowds looked up as pale moonlight shone into their hearts.
With the betting pools open, everyone who had placed a wager wore a look of longing and anticipation.
Along streets and alleys, inside taverns and tea houses, nearly every conversation revolved around the contests on the moon; even non-gamblers discussed them with fervor.
Amidst the night mist, a full moon hung high.
From time to time, people looked up, their attention completely captured.
...
Outside the South Heavenly Gate, red-gold stones paved the expansive ground, wide enough to accommodate a clash between two armies.
A youth of exalted status among the aliens took the field. His appearance drew close attention from many on the immortal path's side, for he had delivered an extraordinary performance in their previous spar, and many still had a vivid memory of his finest moments.
A group of youths from the sun elven race stood up, watching him walk toward the open combat arena, clearly acknowledging his standing.
Qin Ming recognized him; they had crossed paths at the Shuyu River.
Xiao Wu was especially itching for a fight, intensely dissatisfied with this sun elf.
Back at the deity's estate, this elf had spoken ill of them, claiming that as lower-caste beings, how dared the trio show disrespect toward the River Goddess's Daoist sanctuary; if this were among the sun elves, their physical bodies and spirits would surely be incinerated to return to the light.
"Brother Ming, let me take him!" Xiao Wu rose to his feet.
Many looked at him with strange expressions; this bald youth was truly not one to mess with—ferocious and combative.
Across the field, among the crowd of sun elves, the maiden whom Wu Yaozu had battered had already regained consciousness, currently overcome with shame and fury.
The two bald heads stared at each other across the distance, mutual loathing in their eyes.
Soon, the maiden realized something and hastily put on a cap.
In the end, Qin Ming took the field himself. He needed solar fire to cultivate the Departing Fire Classic.
"Guang Yu, bring out your true skill. Don't go capsizing in a gutter. I'll be waiting in the third realm to spar with you!" said a seed-level expert of high rank among the sun elves.
Such words made many disciples of the immortal path frown.
Did those aliens truly believe they were guaranteed to win against this side? Moreover, using the phrase "capsizing in a gutter" was going a bit too far.
Xiao Wu rubbed his bald head, and Xiang Yiwu rubbed his palm-leaf-sized hands, both itching to jump back into the ring themselves.
"Guang Yu, display overwhelming might and thoroughly crush him!" people shouted from the alien side in the elven tongue.
Some understood the language, and once it was translated, a commotion broke out immediately.
The aliens held high expectations for the sun elf who had stepped forth, their confidence soaring.
Guang Yu was tall and slender, stepping with gentle, leisurely strides, possessing extraordinarily handsome features.
His skin was fair, his purple eyes deep and piercing, the bridge of his nose high and straight, and his long golden hair drifted in the wind. His entire being seemed to radiate light.
Such striking looks combined with his exotic grace caused quite a few noble maidens from Great Yu watching from the sidelines to lose themselves for a moment.
Guang Yu remained calm, his confidence radiating from the marrow of his bones. Bathed in brilliance, every step he took seemed measured with utmost precision, his steady rhythm carrying unfathomable power.
Sure enough, the instant he broke out of this serene stillness, everything changed—as if a calm sea had suddenly erupted, churning up thousands of surging waves that swept toward the high heavens.
Dazzling golden haze burst from him, his long hair billowing wildly, and in his grip materialized a golden hammer as massive as a stone roller, entwined with dense golden runes.
Just moments ago he had appeared ethereal and transcendent, his profile alone enough to charm countless women; in the blink of an eye, this exceptionally fair sun elf was about to swing a sledgehammer. The contrast was staggering.
From Guang Yu's well-proportioned frame erupted power beyond an ordinary person's imagination. With a single stride forward, the hard red-gold flagstones beneath his feet instantly cracked apart.
Carrying the great hammer, he tore through the air, his entire body blasting golden rays as he crashed down toward his opponent.
That an elf who supposedly revered nature could fight with such savage ferocity exceeded many people's expectations.
Even while hurtling mid-air, the golden hammer stirred up white shockwaves, unleashing terrifying concussive booms.
Whether great nobles or senior luminaries from various paths, all asked themselves: if they were to return to their youth, could they withstand this blow? The answer was overwhelmingly grim!
Qin Ming remained unperturbed, as if taking a stroll in a courtyard. In such a tense moment, he still maintained an otherworldly bearing, in no way inferior to the exotic elf before him.
Rather than dodging the brunt of the assault, he actively advanced to meet it. The fingers of his right hand clenched tightly, as though grasping some primordial force of heaven and earth.
Around his body, a five-colored mist manifested, accompanied by miraculous phenomena, making him appear as though he stood within five-colored immortal mist, completely detached from the mundane world.
That was the Five Elements spiritual light, endlessly cyclical and regenerative, rapidly coalescing into a five-colored galaxy that spun around him at high speed.
With right fist and left palm, Qin Ming met the sun elf head-on.
Beyond the ring, many youths of the immortal path were thoroughly shaken, and several young noblemen and noblewomen found it utterly absurd—was he meeting such a heavy weapon with his bare hands?
Qin Ming met the enemy using pure heavenly light force. Of course, he harbored no contempt; fusing five extraordinary arts into one, though he had never studied at the premier sect known as the Five Elements Palace, he had now evolved the purest Five Elements force!
In an instant, he was enveloped in a five-colored divine halo, and between his fists and palms, five-colored clouds swirled, endowed with an unfathomable Daoist resonance amidst their supreme brilliance.
Qin Ming refused to believe otherwise—having cultivated power transcending the Four Imperials force, could he truly fail to withstand a sun elf walking the immortal path in close-quarters combat?
In a flash, his left palm checked the great hammer while his right fist struck out violently; the void seemed to roar as multicolored divine radiance erupted in full fury.
In Guang Yu's left hand, a silver hammer abruptly appeared—only slightly smaller—smashing toward Qin Ming's right fist.
Evidently, Guang Yu possessed a spatial treasure for storage.
The two traded thunderous blows, clashing instantly before shifting into blindingly fast motion, moving so swiftly that many onlookers could not even track their figures.
Both unleashed astonishing might, their bodies dragging fierce astral gales that swept up the red-gold flagstones paving the floor, lifting them into the air before they shattered and exploded into dust.
Over countless heavy clashes and close-quarters grapples, Qin Ming's fist prints and fingers shone crystalline and translucent, bearing five-colored runes that fully demonstrated the foundation of legendary heavenly light force.
Finally, amidst the dazzling clash that took everyone's breath away, a sharp crack echoed across the grounds. The silver hammer in the sun elf's left hand shattered into fragments and tumbled to the ground.
And in his right hand, the golden hammer the size of a stone roller was also riddled with cracks, crisscrossing like a dense spiderweb.
Summoning all his strength, Guang Yu swung this hammer, smashing it toward the ethereal youth before him.
This time, Qin Ming's feet remained planted. He merely extended his right arm and tapped out a single finger, pressing against the massive golden hammer.
Time seemed to freeze; the scene appeared suspended.
Standing within the five-colored ring of light, Qin Ming halted that terrifying hammer strike with just one finger. The two remained in deadlock, completely still.
Crack, crash!
At last, the golden hammer in the sun elf's hand disintegrated, turning into a shower of metallic shards that scattered in all directions.
Clutching the remaining half of the hammer's handle, Guang Yu retreated rapidly. His golden hair whipped around him, yet his handsome countenance remained composed, without a trace of panic.
From behind him, Qin Ming rode the five qi, as if treading upon five-colored auspicious clouds, lifting off the ground with his right arm thrust forward, still maintaining his outstretched finger stance.
This thrust produced a terrifying roar, shooting forth intimidating five-colored divine clouds.
Guang Yu possessed sharp combat awareness and ample experience.
A palm-sized golden shield flew from his person to obstruct his powerful pursuer, accompanied by a spiritual saber crafted from lightning-struck wood that swept out with blistering speed, crackling with lightning and flame.
Boom!
Qin Ming actually detonated the small golden shield with a single finger tap—a spectacle that stunned all peers of their generation.
Then, flattening his fingers into a palm, he slashed diagonally at the incoming spiritual saber imbued with lightning and fire. With a sharp crack, he snapped a fine weapon of the immortal path barehanded, subsequently shattering it to pieces.
Yet delayed by these obstructions, Qin Ming's figure paused slightly, his momentum slackening.
The sun elf pulled open the distance between them, coming to a halt on the open ground outside the South Heavenly Gate.
At this moment, with Guang Yu at the epicenter, a chilling killing intent radiated outwards. Then, sword radiance seemed to surge toward the heavens, threatening to tear apart the night sky above the moon.
He seemed to transform into an immortal sword, as if intent on shredding the void, his entire being releasing a deeply terrifying, formless sword intent.
"Heart sword!" Many young disciples of the immortal path were astonished. Even an immortal seed in the second realm might not necessarily be able to execute a heart sword, let alone sword intent of such intensity.
Everyone realized that he truly possessed genuine ability; he did not rely solely on solar fire.
The heart sword was formless, yet ubiquitous—supremely terrifying.
The sun elf pointed his finger, and a transparent immortal sword seemed to unsheathe, slashing toward his opponent.
Qin Ming did not evade. Instead, he calmly strode forward. As he advanced, ripples stirred beneath his feet, rising continuously in overlapping layers to shield him within.
Near the South Heavenly Gate, Chu Yuan and Jiang Yunfan almost felt tears welling in their eyes; after fighting for so long, this fellow had finally remembered the various arts of the immortal path they had taught him.
The two figured that this wasn't Qin Ming experiencing a "pang of conscience," but merely an impulsive urge to test the techniques.
For anyone could tell that his Five Elements heavenly light force still had unfathomable power left to unleash.
Qin Ming appeared to be countering with conscious sword waves as golden ripples expanded outward, but in truth, it was primarily an evolution of his heavenly light force. Around his body, layer upon layer of ripples enveloped him.
Guang Yu's heart sword was formidable. Formless and shapeless, as it slashed in, it produced sharp, metallic clangs against the ripples surrounding Qin Ming, sending glittering streams scattering and divine radiance surging.
Who would have thought that a sun elf who had just been swinging a massive hammer would now display the unfathomable heart sword, adopting an entirely different style?
Many felt a chill run down their spines. Had it been someone else, caught off guard, they would undoubtedly have been slain by this formless heart sword.
The crowd deduced that Guang Yu's hammer-wielding had merely served to conceal his true forte; now that he unleashed continuous strikes of heart sword radiance, he was exceedingly dangerous.
Around Qin Ming, heavenly light sword waves rippled. Having blocked the heart sword, they began expanding outward.
Certain areas could be seen caving in repeatedly, the ripples severely warping. Yet the force with which he projected his heavenly light sword waves grew ever stronger until it finally began sweeping forward.
Sword qi surged between them, dread killing intent permeating the air. Though neither held an actual sword, ear-piercing sword chimes rang out. Even the extremely sturdy red-gold flagstones nearby were swept up like autumn leaves in the wind, only to be pulverized and blown apart.
Pfft!
The sun elf coughed up a mouthful of blood infused with sparks of fire. He was gravely injured—his heart sword had proved inferior to the heavenly light sword waves!
"Guang Yu!"
Among the aliens, many shot to their feet, expressions of worry washing over their faces.
Before the South Heavenly Gate, Xiang Yiwu muttered to himself, "And you dared say not to capsize in a gutter! Looks to me like the vast ocean is capsizing your little paper boat!"
Guang Yu did not retreat. Instead, he pushed forward stubbornly, continuously slashing with his formless heart sword. In an instant, sword qi crisscrossed between the two, an unending metallic ringing filling the air.
Blood seeped from the corners of his mouth, yet he held his posture even straighter, charging forward several more paces until he was very close to his opponent!
The sun elf continuously unleashed heart swords, showing signs of exhaustion. Just when many assumed he would no longer hold out against the heavenly light sword waves, the scene around him transformed completely.
With a tremendous crash, a thunderbolt exploded, cleaving through the battlefield as blazing clouds surged, as though a miniature golden world were unfolding.
Guang Yu's aura underwent a drastic shift. His golden hair whipped violently, his eyes turned razor-sharp, and his entire body crackled with electric arcs. Within a radius of one zhang, dazzling brilliance flared as the area turned into a domain of thunder and lightning.
"Guang Yu has finally unleashed his inner landscape!" Many among the aliens grew wildly excited, having apparently anticipated this turn of events all along.
Many sun elves let out long sighs of relief, their worries completely dispelled. With this, the match was secured—Guang Yu was bound to win!
The expressions of many on the immortal path's side changed abruptly. They instantly realized that this sun elf had studied the ancient deity-immortal methods, rather than the contemporary, pure immortal path.
The ancient deity-immortal arts naturally encompassed both the divine and immortal paths. In their early stages, the differences were minimal, only parting ways in the third realm—and Guang Yu leaned toward the divine path.
For he had actually comprehended the secrets of the inner landscape ahead of time—a hallmark of the esoteric sect's third realm!
Whether in ancient times or the present day, only a tiny handful walking the divine path could grasp third-realm methods in advance.
Guang Yu was precisely such a divinely gifted being!
The third realm of the divine path—Inner Landscape—was the bedrock for achieving godhood in the future.
This was the direction of the divine path one resolved to pursue following internal contemplation; once constructed and honed, the inner landscape would manifest, destined in the future to merge with extraordinary geography or celestial spectacles.
The esoteric sect's path to godhood possessed multiple branches. One involved suppressing an extraordinary realm of land and merging with it; rumors also spoke of terrifying beings capable of subduing wondrous celestial phenomena.
The third-realm inner landscape was the manifestation of an embryonic pure land before attaining godhood; if one's objective was to become a mountain god, what manifested would naturally be mountain peaks and the like.
Guang Yu sought to become the Duke of Thunder from ancient mythology and legend, and the inner landscape he displayed took this exact form: within a radius of one zhang, golden thunderous power permeated, lightning interweaving as if he had carved out a tangible pure land of lightning.
Evidently, he remained in the second realm; even with his extraordinary innate gifts, trying to prematurely employ the inner landscape methods that belonged solely to the third realm was immensely difficult, requiring lengthy preparation before finally surfacing at the critical moment.
"Within one zhang, I am invincible!" the sun elf said coldly, flashes of lightning flickering with every word he uttered.
Bathed head to toe in electrical radiance, he had not revealed this earlier in the slightest—he was an innate wielder of thunder and lightning.
"Divine pure land! The lightning inner landscape reigns supreme!" Farther off, many alien youths shouted at the top of their lungs.
Without question, the path to godhood chosen by Guang Yu was thoroughly terrifying—a legendary path of apex deities.
Beyond the ring, even the figureheads of this generation on the immortal path—Jiang Ran, Pei Shuyan, Cui Chonghe, Li Qingyue, and others—watched intently, their eyes gleaming with divine light.
Suddenly, Guang Yu froze. "Hm?"
His arduous exertion of third-realm techniques and borrowing of partial inner landscape power had indeed swiftly shattered the opposing layered defensive ripples.
Yet in the final stretch, he failed to crush the youth before him. After swaying violently, the other regained his footing, standing calmly in place once more.
Moreover, Guang Yu felt his divine pure land, the manifested inner landscape, lose its stability and begin to shudder violently.
"I'll give you one more chance to rephrase your words!" Qin Ming spoke. As showers of light drifted down, he stood ethereal and detached from the mortal world. Where his feet were planted, all manner of sacred phenomena emerged, growing clearer and clearer. He looked like a deity walking out of high antiquity, parting the mists of history to descend upon the present age.
Chapter 280