Realm of the Seven Immortals

As tempers flared between the two, the bronze bell and Yuan Qi sensed that things were turning sour and quietly slipped out of the golden hall. Just then, the hall suddenly convulsed violently. A streak of immortal light shot out through the doorway, and the bronze bell hurried to throw its body in front of Yuan Qi. Clang! The bell was knocked backward by the shockwave, various Dao images surfacing on its walls and swirling ceaselessly. Yuan Qi was startled as well. The tremors emanating from the golden hall were utterly terrifying; had the bronze bell not blocked the impact, a direct blast onto his body would have likely turned his flesh to mush! Following the toll of the bell, Xu Ying and Yan Kongcheng moved like soaring falcons and bounding hares inside the golden hall, shifting their stances endlessly and clashing over a dozen times in mere moments! Yan Kongcheng employed the cultivation arts and divine arts of the Mount Emei lineage. Even with identical Dao images, they unleashed vastly greater power in his hands! Even with the exact same techniques, they flowed naturally as if born of the Dao itself, leaving no opening to exploit! He was like a youthful immortal; even the most ordinary divine arts could turn base iron into gold under his mastery! Yet within the confines of the golden hall, Xu Ying held the home advantage. His physical body was simply too powerful. Every shift in his posture generated terrifying force that acted directly upon the interior space of the golden hall, causing the entire hall to violently tremble! Boom! Xu Ying's hands blurred as his bare palms repeatedly tore through Yan Kongcheng's divine arts. Closing in, he thrust a palm upward, aiming directly for Yan Kongcheng's throat. Eight Methods of the God of War: Earth Overturn! The golden hall shook violently under the immense force transmitted from his feet! Yan Kongcheng was utterly fearless, meeting palm with palm. A strange bird-and-worm seal script surfaced in his palm—the rune for "Strength" among the Immortal Dao runes. The instant their palms met, a hum echoed behind Xu Ying, and twenty-eight cave-heavens appeared, dazzlingly bright, distorting space-time and reaching into special other shores such as the Sea of Chaos, immortal fire, and the Nether Sea! In an instant, Xu Ying's dharmic power surged, his divine sense soared, and his physical strength skyrocketed. His vitality ran like a raging tide, roaring through his veins. The dual qi of yin and yang even spilled from his eyes, allowing his vision to perceive distinct realms—taking in the two worlds of yin and yang completely! Boom! Their palm forces erupted. With a muffled grunt, Yan Kongcheng bounced backward, crashing against the wall of the golden hall. Xu Ying shot forward in pursuit, his fist pounding toward him! To Yan Kongcheng's eyes, the incoming fist grew larger and larger until it filled his entire vision. He realized immediately that his opponent's vitality was so overwhelmingly strong that it suppressed his sight and divine sense. He hastily surged his yuan qi to flood his eyes, finally restoring his vision. Discerning the trajectory of Xu Ying's fist, he dodged in haste. With a deafening rumble, the golden hall's wall was struck so hard that countless minute Dao images surfaced, rippling out in all directions to disperse the blow's power! Yan Kongcheng was alarmed, but Xu Ying was already right on his heels, fist after fist crashing down. Yan Kongcheng had no choice but to hug the walls and weave around the hall. His movement was astonishingly swift, circling the hall once in the blink of an eye. Explosive booms resounded endlessly as countless Dao images erupted across the golden hall without a pause! If he keeps pounding away like this, the golden hall won't last long before he tears it apart! Yan Kongcheng's heart pounded. Under Xu Ying's wanton barrage, if he failed to dodge and took a single solid hit, it would likely end the battle right then and there. He truly believed Xu Ying had the strength to punch a hole straight through him! He shot out through the doors like a howling gale, simultaneously pinching a sword seal and slashing backward. "Immortal Sword Art!" Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh! Countless sword qi beams shot from his fingertips, bearing an incomparably profound Dao charm as they pierced toward the hall's interior! In the next breath, the sword qi shattered completely. Xu Ying charged out of the hall, his vitality soaring to the heavens like a god or demon. Yan Kongcheng had already rocketed into midair. Spinning around to face Xu Ying, dazzling light suddenly flared before him as a Golden Core rose slowly, floating in front of him. "Xu Ying, though you bear the title of Ageless Immortal, you have never cultivated qi refining to the pinnacle. Today, I shall show you what the Golden Core Dao truly is!" Yan Kongcheng activated his Golden Core, raising a hand to direct lightning and shouting, "Heavenly Thunder Induction!" The heavens shook violently as a thundercloud materialized. The cloud was not large, covering only a few mu, yet the might radiating from it was utterly terrifying. Countless bolts clustered together, lightning intertwining as it struck down at Xu Ying! The lightning was blisteringly fast, engulfing Xu Ying in a thunderous roar! Yet in the next instant, Xu Ying burst forth from the lightning. With frightening speed, his figure flashed and transformed into a rainbow streak, leaping from the Golden Summit into midair to appear right before Yan Kongcheng. The thundercloud was just as swift, trailing closely on his heels as lightning erupted once more! At the same time, Yan Kongcheng stood in midair with fingers spread wide. The Dao images behind him shifted and roiled into a dragon-fire phenomenon, and nine dragons swam forth, circling and clashing violently around Xu Ying as they spewed divine fire capable of refining all things. Mount Emei's Dao art: Nine Dragons Heavenly Conquest! Those nine dragons actually took on flesh-and-blood bodies; when they collided with Xu Ying's fists, dragon scales flew and dragon blood even splattered! Meanwhile, the thundercloud of Heavenly Thunder Induction unleashed its full might. Bolts slammed into Xu Ying with deafening peals, blasting him out of the sky into the mountains below. A cliff on that peak was shattered by the impact, sliding down at an angle with an earth-shattering crash as dust billowed. Yan Kongcheng stood aloft like a young immortal, the Great Dao of heaven and earth around him seemingly bending to his every whim, transforming into terrifying divine arts that rained down from above upon Xu Ying! "Kongtong Demon-Suppressing Seal!" He flipped his palm, and a palm print plummeted from the sky. Below was a hand imprint, and above sat Mount Kongtong, pressing down with supreme might. The howling gales it stirred instantly tossed the trees across the surrounding mountains in disarray! Xu Ying took off in a wild sprint, pushing the Extreme Intent Freedom Technique to its utmost. Skimming along like fleeting light and passing shadows, he darted between the mountain ridges to evade the Kongtong Demon-Suppressing Seal. Yet another sword gate descended from the sky, hanging suspended between two great mountains. In its center hung an immortal sword, radiating blazing sword light! The incoming beams of sword light pursued Xu Ying relentlessly, multiplying until they turned into a surging torrent hot on his heels. And above Xu Ying's head, the thundercloud summoned by Heavenly Thunder Induction flashed with lightning and rolled with thunder, striking unceasingly in dogged pursuit! Yan Kongcheng stood in midair, unleashing immortal arts of every kind. All the arts of Mount Emei, whether belonging to the Immortal Dao or not, were displayed to their absolute peak! Yuan Qi and the bronze bell stared wide-eyed. Inside the golden hall, Yan Kongcheng had been hard-pressed just to defend himself, but out here in the open, once his arts and divine powers were unleashed, it became an almost one-sided rout! Yuan Qi raised his tail and nudged the bronze bell quietly. "Lord Bell, let's split up the belongings. You go back to your Little Stone Mountain, and I'll go back to my Mount Wuwang. I don't think Ah Ying's going to make it. The moment he stops, Yan Kongcheng will definitely blast him to pieces." The bronze bell answered glumly, "How much does Ah Ying even have left with you?" Yuan Qi suddenly realized. "Nothing. Back when you were battered into scrap, Ah Ying told Ancestor Chanchan to use whatever was needed, and Ancestor Chanchan used it all up—all on you. Now, Ah Ying only has a single stalk of grass left, plus a sealed bug. Do you want the grass or the bug?" The bronze bell snorted. To it, neither was anything good. In the brief moments of their conversation, the sky was filled with divine arts cast by Yan Kongcheng, gradually forming an insurmountable momentum. The bronze bell sighed, "Such exquisite divine arts—none can compare to Kongcheng. Even that scrapped master of mine was far less refined in his divine arts than Yan Kongcheng." Keeping his eyes glued to Xu Ying's figure, Yuan Qi couldn't help but add, "A genius chosen by Emei and preserved for three thousand years. Everyone else, including Emei's Ascension-stage Qi Refiners, is dead and gone, yet he alone survived. That shows how deeply the Supreme Patriarch valued him. The Supreme Patriarch believed that Yan Kongcheng alone was enough to revive Emei!" Their confidence in Xu Ying waned further, for Yan Kongcheng's unstoppable momentum had already coalesced! His Golden Core Dao was breathtaking, pushing the application of Dao arts to the absolute pinnacle and leaving Xu Ying with no chance to turn the tables! Finally, the torrent of Yan Kongcheng's divine arts closed in from all sides, encircling Xu Ying so completely that there was no way up to heaven and no door into the earth. Xu Ying suddenly halted, landing atop a mountain peak. Facing the incoming divine arts from all directions, he threw frenzied punches, driving the Eight Methods of the God of War to their limit! "Aaaahhhh!" An earth-shaking roar rang out, deafening even from a distance. Yet what sounded even louder was the thunderous explosion of Yan Kongcheng's divine arts! Countless divine arts surged in and engulfed Xu Ying. No matter how powerful his Martial Dao arts were, no matter how formidable his physical body was, he could not withstand the crushing weight of such overwhelming momentum! Heavenly Thunder Induction, Immortal Sword Art, Sword Gate, Kongtong Demon-Suppressing Seal, Nine Dragons Heavenly Conquest, Soul-Locking Incantation, Lunar Hand... Countless divine arts unleashed their fury, completely blanketing that Mount Emei peak! Yuan Qi and the bronze bell could barely bear to watch. The bell murmured, "When we go look for Ah Ying in a bit, pick up a piece or two of crushed flesh, nourish it with your Mud Pill cave-heaven, and then go search for his imperishable true spirit." It estimated that this time Xu Ying would surely be torn to pieces with no corpse remaining, his soul most likely shattered, leaving only his imperishable true spirit. Perhaps, relying on a scrap or two of undamaged flesh and his imperishable true spirit, they might be able to bring Xu Ying back to life. Suddenly, all the divine arts on that mountain peak that were blasting their power outward seemed to freeze, pausing for the briefest fraction of a breath. In the very next instant, twisted fist silhouettes shattered every single attacking divine art, and a pillar of vitality soared into the sky from the peak, forming a cloud of blood in midair! Atop the mountain, amidst the shattered remnants of countless divine arts, Xu Ying snapped his head up to gaze at Yan Kongcheng dozens of li away, the dual qi of yin and yang swirling in his eyes. Whoosh! He unleashed a punch. Over the mountains of Mount Emei, space shuddered with a deep thud. Yan Kongcheng's eyelids twitched violently. Raising his Golden Core, he channeled his divine arts, and a massive fortress wall materialized before him—touching the stars above, anchored to the earth below, towering high with a deep moat. With a resounding crash, the wall blew apart into fragments. The Martial Dao art formed by this single punch struck Yan Kongcheng, bowling him over and slamming him toward a Golden Summit peak! The peak shuddered. Yan Kongcheng was driven deep into the rock face, agony racking every bone in his body. My bones... are broken... he thought. No sooner had the thought crossed his mind than Xu Ying appeared right before him, another fist crashing down. I'm done for... Despair seized Yan Kongcheng's heart. A deafening boom rang in his ears as his body convulsed violently, thrown clear of the mountain. From the corner of his eye, Yan Kongcheng caught a fleeting glimpse: a tunnel had been punched clean through the mountain peak, shaped like a colossal fist, open from front to back. The tunnel was a hundred feet high and a hundred and twenty feet wide, with loose rocks still bursting and crumbling within. Xu Ying withdrew his hands and exhaled a breath of turbid air. Smiling, he said, "Brother Yan, how about this: you teach me the Golden Core Dao, and I'll pass down the Six Secret Depositories of the Human Body to you. What do you say?" The bronze bell and Yuan Qi rushed over, filled with astonishment and disbelief. Shrinking in size, Yuan Qi flew onto Xu Ying's shoulder and whispered, "Ah Ying, how did you win?" Xu Ying's divine sense rippled as he sent a mental transmission: "Just now, I accidentally broke through the second mystic pass, opening the Jiaji Pass and stepping into the Second Pass-Breaching stage. I am in the same realm as him now." Yuan Qi jumped in fright upon hearing this. The situation earlier had been perilously close. It was precisely at that critical juncture that Xu Ying successfully broke through the pass, throwing open the Jiaji Pass to cause a massive surge in his cultivation. Only then was he able to withstand the crushing momentum of Yan Kongcheng's Golden Core Dao and severely wound him with a single punch. Yan Kongcheng had also opened the Jiaji Pass and was a Qi Refiner of the Second Pass-Breaching stage. Though their cultivation realms were the same, Xu Ying possessed twenty-eight cave-heavens from the six secret depositories on top of it. Thus, even Yan Kongcheng's grand momentum could be utterly shattered. Yan Kongcheng looked haggard, barely supporting his body with his Golden Core. He said raspy-voiced, "My defeat by your hands is because my skills are unpolished, not because Qi Refiners are inferior. If you gave me a little time..." "Done!" Xu Ying agreed readily. With a wave of his hand, vitality gushed forth from his Mud Pill cave-heaven, rapidly healing Yan Kongcheng's injuries. He laughed and said, "I'll give Brother Yan ten days. In ten days, we'll duel again. If Brother Yan loses once more, then you must agree to my condition." Yan Kongcheng felt his injuries healing at incredible speed, restoring him to his peak condition. Surprised and overjoyed, he felt immense envy for Nuo methods. "Since Brother Xu is so generous, how could I go back on my word? In ten days, if I lose again, I will cultivate Nuo methods with you." Xu Ying added, "And you must also pass on Mount Emei's Golden Core Dao to me!" Yan Kongcheng gave a hearty assent and departed in haste, his fighting spirit blazing as he laughed. "The Supreme Dao Attainment Technique passed down by the Supreme Patriarch is something I was never able to master. Today's battle with you has enlightened me; I will definitely master this technique within ten days!" Xu Ying watched him leave into the distance. Yuan Qi said worriedly, "Ah Ying, if he really masters the Supreme Dao Attainment Technique, I'm afraid..." Xu Ying smiled. "I only just opened my second mystic pass, and my cultivation is in the middle of a massive surge. Even if he masters the Supreme Dao Attainment Technique in ten days, it won't keep up with the speed at which my yuan qi grows over these ten days. In ten days, he'll lose even faster!" Ten days later. Boom! Yan Kongcheng tilted his head aside as Xu Ying's fist grazed past his scalp. The mountain behind him shuddered, countless rocks raining down in clattering cascades as the mountainside was punched completely through. Every bone in Yan Kongcheng's body was fractured. Shaken free from the mountain wall, he crashed to the ground with a dull thud. Xu Ying had been right. No matter how powerful the newly mastered Supreme Dao Attainment Technique was, it could not rival the speed of Xu Ying's yuan qi growth over these ten days. Wherever Xu Ying's fists swept, they crushed every single one of Yan Kongcheng's divine arts! "As I am now, I am a minor immortal dwelling in the Realm of the Six Immortals. Factoring in the Martial Dao, that makes it the Realm of the Seven Immortals. It is only natural that you are no match for me, so there is no need to be disheartened." Xu Ying healed Yan Kongcheng's injuries once more, waiting until he rose before asking, "Care for another round?" Yan Kongcheng shook his head. "Brother Xu, there is no need. Your divine arts are inferior to mine, your cultivation arts are inferior to mine, your movement techniques are inferior to mine, and your comprehension of the Dao is still inferior to mine. Yet you still managed to defeat me. It is clear that dual cultivation of qi and Nuo is definitely the right path!" Hearing this, Xu Ying felt rather annoyed. He urged warmly, "How about another round? Who knows, maybe you'll beat me this time!" Yan Kongcheng shook his head like a rattle-drum. Xu Ying felt secretly regretful, thinking, I really want to give him another beating. "By the way, Ah Cheng, earlier you said you saw me on Mount Emei. What was that all about?" Xu Ying inquired. "Oh, that," Yan Kongcheng recalled the past. "My mad martial uncle was growing old and believed he wouldn't be able to survive the Heavenly Tribulation. So he snatched you and said he would use you to shield him from it. When the tribulation came, he planned to hold you over his head." Yan Kongcheng continued reminiscing, "When my master heard about it, he scolded him repeatedly for such nonsense and ordered him to release you, saying it was pointless to use you to shield against the tribulation. A thousand years ago, Zulong had the exact same idea, and didn't he abandon it in the end? But after my mad martial uncle let you go, he secretly caught you again, intending to boil and eat you, claiming it would grant immortality. When my master found out, he gave him a thorough thrashing." Xu Ying was speechless for a long time. Once his mind calmed down, he pressed, "And after that?" "After that? After that, my mad martial uncle didn't dare face the Heavenly Tribulation, so he grew old and died. He was buried on Mount Emei." An inscrutable gleam flickered in Xu Ying's eyes. In an offhand tone, he asked, "Mm... where is he buried?"