At the very moment Gao Shiqing made his move, Gu Feiyu struck with brazen force as well!
The sky above Xu Ying's head suddenly turned dark as a towering divine mountain plummeted from the heavens, crushing down toward him.
This was the Mount Tai Dao image. Cast through his hands, it felt as though an actual Mount Tai was plummeting from high above!
At the same time, the Golden Core behind him shone with piercing clarity, his Dao methods and Dao heart free of any speck of dust.
The force of this strike had already reached the level of the Realm of the Six Immortals, utterly devoid of weakness—a magnificent display!
"Xu Ying, I have long heard of you defeating the great noble clans in Shendu, revered as the foremost among the younger generation. I am most eager to see how you measure up against me!"
Xu Ying turned his hand upward to meet the blow. Where Gu Feiyu's palm force was Mount Tai pressing down from above, Xu Ying's palm force rose from below—power surging from the earth, traversing his entire body, and gathering in his hand.
Coupled with the Golden Core Dao connecting him to heaven and earth, though this strike manifested no Dao image, the sheer force unleashed was even more astonishing!
Gu Feiyu's palm met Xu Ying's Earth Overturn Seal method, the full might of his Mount Tai Seal exploding beneath his palm imprint. At that same instant, the power of Xu Ying's Earth Overturn Seal surged forth, obliterating Mount Tai right within his palm!
The moment their palms collided, it was as if tens of thousands of thunders erupted between them at once, yet not a single trace of that destructive force leaked outward!
Behind Xu Ying, brilliant light suddenly whirled as twenty-eight cave-heavens roared into existence, locking into place in the sky behind him.
Xu Ying's strength surged wildly, instantly creating an overwhelming momentum of total suppression!
Gu Feiyu laughed heartily, using the recoil to leap backward as he shouted, "Brother Xu, let me show you the true Realm of the Six Immortals!"
His Hidden Scenery latent transformation ground unfolded. Layer upon layer of Dao images and towering ridges spread outward—Mount Tai, an immortal palace, a great river, the Eastern Sea, a rising sun, and dancing fish-dragons, together composing an immortal realm!
Gu Feiyu stood amidst this immortal realm like a youthful immortal.
At this moment, he was one with heaven and earth!
Back then, Li Xiaoke had boasted that he stood within the Realm of the Six Immortals, yet he had never revealed a true immortal realm.
Though Gu Feiyu's cultivation realm was far inferior to Li Xiaoke's, the immortal realm he revealed was a genuine Realm of the Six Immortals, a true Nuo immortal's Hidden Scenery ground!
Naturally, his cultivation was still shallow, and he had not yet refined a Primordial Spirit. If he were to forge a Primordial Spirit and reach the ascension stage, he would be able to open the nine tiers of cave-heavens of the six secret depositories. Only then, abiding within his Hidden Scenery latent transformation ground, would he truly become a Six-Realm Immortal.
Even so, his achievement was remarkable, something Xu Ying had never seen before.
He was the first person Xu Ying knew who had integrated Nuo methods and qi refinement so flawlessly—even Xu Ying himself had not reached this stage.
Yet Xu Ying's murderous intent was already roused. How could he grant him the chance to display the Realm of the Six Immortals at leisure?
Xu Ying shadowed him like his own reflection. Just as Gu Feiyu retreated, Xu Ying struck with the Overturning the Heavens Seal method. Like an immortal king wielding an immortal artifact, he smashed down the sky of the Realm of the Six Immortals!
The Overturning the Heavens Seal method of the Eight Methods of the God of War was meant to shatter this very sky, bearing the resolve to smash apart an old world!
In the distance, the crowd hurrying toward the sacred mountain of Kunlun—both Nuo masters and Qi Refiners alike—halted their steps to look back, filled with shock and doubt.
"These two youths are terrifyingly strong!"
A Nuo immortal cried out in utter astonishment, "If this were five or six years ago, their prowess would easily rival a Grand Nuo of the eighth tier of cave-heavens!"
Several young people wore solemn expressions as they looked toward Gu Feiyu.
A young woman in purple knit her delicate brows and murmured, "A perfect Realm of the Six Immortals. It seems I am not the only one who has reached this step. Is he a senior brother of the Wuji Sect? The Wuji Sect certainly selected a fine Sect Master."
Not far from her, a youth in yellow robes sighed and remarked self-deprecatingly, "One truly cannot underestimate the heroes of the world. The Sect Master of the Wuji Sect is no weaker than me."
Several others looked quite dejected, and one shook his head gloomily, whispering, "Has the path of pure Qi Refiners truly reached its end? Or is my cultivation simply not orthodox?"
With tense faces, they closely watched the battle.
Gu Feiyu smiled slightly, confident of victory. He raised his hands abruptly to meet Xu Ying's strike, instantly elevating his yuan qi, divine sense, physical strength, mortal body, souls, and the dual qi of yin and yang to their absolute peaks!
"It seems Brother Xu has been rolling through the mud all these years and has yet to master the Six Immortals'—"
Even as he met Xu Ying's Overturning the Heavens Seal method, Xu Ying's knee slammed viciously into his groin. Tears and snot burst from Gu Feiyu in agony—how could he still care about showing off his Realm of the Six Immortals?
Xu Ying spun with a whip kick, lashing across Gu Feiyu's face and sending him flying!
Gu Feiyu crashed into his own Mount Tai with a thunderous boom, smashing a massive hole straight through the Dao image.
Xu Ying flicked his fingers, instantly sending a torrent of sword qi swarming forth. Sh-sh-sh! Countless strands of sword qi pierced into that gaping hole in Mount Tai—the Sword Character Incantation.
Deafening rumbles reverberated from within the cave. The next moment, a gleam of sword light pushed a riddled, battered Gu Feiyu bursting out from the mountain, hurtling toward the distance!
Xu Ying leaped through midair, transforming into a brilliant rainbow, and appeared directly above Gu Feiyu the very next instant!
Gu Feiyu knew things were dire. While struggling against the sword qi, he raised a hand to summon his Dao images; an immortal palace descended from the heavens trailing dazzling ribbons of immortal light.
This immortal palace was no ordinary thing; it was an immortal artifact left behind by the founding ancestor of the Mount Tai Wuji Sect to anchor the sect's destiny. Gu Feiyu had contemplated that immortal artifact to condense this Dao image!
Merely as a Dao image, it already bore world-destroying might!
Xu Ying paid it no heed. Crashing down with the Sea Inversion Seal method, it was as if the Eastern Sea had been flipped upside down, crushing directly atop Gu Feiyu.
Gu Feiyu heard the popping crackle of his internal organs rupturing as he plummeted to the ground, blasting a giant crater into the Hidden Scenery latent transformation ground as a mushroom cloud billowed upward.
At the same time, as the immortal palace descended, Xu Ying smoothly transitioned into the Mountain Crashing Seal method. He slammed his fists upward against the immortal palace with a resounding dong! The palace's descent was halted by his blow, yet the impact forced him downward as well!
Streams of immortal light hissed sharply, sweeping toward his physical body and soul.
Yet when the immortal light that Gu Feiyu considered a sure-kill immortal art swept across Xu Ying, phantoms of Xu Ying manifested one after another behind him. Each phantom absorbed a portion of the immortal light's might, completely withstanding the onslaught.
This was none other than the divine ability born of the Dao of Tianshu!
Xu Ying's execution of this Tianshu divine ability was even more wondrous than that of the righteous god Tianshu himself!
His mastery over Heavenly Dao divine abilities was truly exquisite.
Gu Feiyu frantically circulated his Mud Pill vitality to mend his bodily injuries. With a thought, a great river surged into the air, sweeping toward Xu Ying like a divine dragon whipping its tail!
As the river swept past, countless figures appeared behind Xu Ying. He passed straight through the river and lunged toward Gu Feiyu, activating the fifth form of the Eight Methods of the God of War from afar—the Dao Hammer Seal method!
When this hammer struck down, even the Heavenly and Earthly Great Dao of this Hidden Scenery latent transformation ground was obliterated in its wake, and the river severed in its flow!
The Dao Hammer Seal method was arguably the ultimate martial dao divine ability for wrecking the Realm of the Six Immortals. Wherever it passed, the river evaporated. The Dao image Gu Feiyu had painstakingly cultivated was shattered into six or seven broken segments by a few punches, rendered completely useless!
Outside the Hidden Scenery latent transformation ground, the young woman in purple and the yellow-robed youth were struck dumb with shock at the sight, rendered speechless.
Only after a moment did the same doubt dawn in their minds: "If the senior brother from the Wuji Sect had used his full strength from the start, how could he have ended up in such a state? But who is this person?"
By the time Xu Ying severed the river, Gu Feiyu had finally healed his physical wounds and knit his broken bones, rocketing out of the crater into the sky.
Although his Mud Pill secret depository could heal fleshly trauma, damage to the soul was beyond what Mud Pill vitality could mend, let alone the visualized Hidden Scenery Dao images.
Once damaged, Hidden Scenery Dao images could only be restored through one's own continuous visualization.
With his cultivation and strength heavily depleted, he knew he had been too arrogant earlier, allowing his opponent to seize the initiative. If only he hadn't talked so much, if only he had gone all out from the start, he would never have fallen into such a pathetic state!
In the next instant, Xu Ying's palm strike descended, causing the Great Dao of this Hidden Scenery latent transformation ground to resonate with it, as though augmenting the terrifying power of his blow!
Assisting the Returning to the Dao Seal method with the Golden Core Dao, he caused the power of the seal to multiply exponentially!
Furious and shocked, Gu Feiyu suppressed his injuries and roared furiously:
"Heaven and Earth Limitless!"
He gritted his teeth and unleashed the Wuji Sect secret art he had yet to fully master, instantly seizing back control over the Hidden Scenery Dao images that Xu Ying had manipulated to meet Xu Ying's strike head-on.
His Hidden Scenery latent transformation ground possessed six realms of the immortals—six kinds of immortal realms. With one realm destroyed, its power was vastly diminished.
Yet Heaven and Earth Limitless was an immortal divine ability passed down by the founding ancestor of the Wuji Sect. Its extraordinary might was enough to offset the loss of that single realm.
The instant their palms clashed, Gu Feiyu's blood and qi churned wildly, forcing him a step backward.
Xu Ying took a step forward and unleashed another Returning to the Dao Seal method. It was as if the Great Dao of heaven and earth was completely under his sway—though, of course, what he held sway over was the Great Dao within this Hidden Scenery latent transformation ground!
Gu Feiyu once again invoked the Heaven and Earth Limitless seal art to withstand the blow, only for his blood and qi to be jarred into steam, venting from his body and scattering like fine dust—a strikingly beautiful sight.
Yet the yellow-robed youth and the others watching from outside wore solemn expressions, knowing he was being suppressed by his opponent's blood and qi and had fallen into a disadvantage. His blood and qi steaming and dispersing indicated that his cultivation was beginning to decline.
Xu Ying took another step forward with yet another Returning to the Dao Seal method. This time, the remaining five realms of the immortals in the Hidden Scenery latent transformation ground trembled under his palm strike, and a portion of the Dao images' power was actually mobilized by him!
Gu Feiyu grunted, staggering backward as blood leaked from his eyes, ears, mouth, and nose.
Xu Ying took another step forward, striking once more with the Returning to the Dao Seal method. Half of Gu Feiyu's domain teetered on the brink of collapse, and half of the Hidden Scenery ground's Dao images transformed into the power backing Xu Ying's palm!
He had actually turned the tables and made himself the master, intending to commandeer Gu Feiyu's own Dao images to slay him, shattering the undying body of the Mud Pill Hidden Scenery and annihilating Gu Feiyu in both form and spirit!
The girl in purple whispered, "The man fighting the Wuji Sect Master is far too formidable. Could he be the sect master or sect leader of some grand sect? But what he uses looks like divine abilities, yet also like martial dao. And furthermore... furthermore..."
Her face flushed slightly as she recalled Xu Ying pouncing forward and driving his knee into Gu Feiyu's crotch. She thought to herself, 'It's like the dirty brawling of a backwater bumpkin!'
"Boom!"
Xu Ying struck with yet another Returning to the Dao Seal method. The entire Hidden Scenery latent transformation ground fell under the control of his Golden Core Dao, coalescing into his palm strike and tearing through Gu Feiyu's divine abilities like dry weeds!
Under this strike, Gu Feiyu would surely perish!
Not even Mud Pill vitality could possibly save him, for beneath this seal, both his mortal flesh and his souls would be reduced to ash!
Right at that moment, beams of brilliant light shone from within Gu Feiyu. Golden bells shot forth from his glabella, radiating towering power as they surged to intercept Xu Ying's Returning to the Dao Seal method!
Xu Ying grunted, jolted backward in stumbling steps by the golden bell.
The second golden bell flew out, chiming shrilly as it sent his blood and qi churning violently, even jarring his Golden Core out of its boundless, edgeless state!
The third golden bell flew forth, spitting out soaring flames and flying sand that swirled toward Xu Ying!
The fourth golden bell was also flying out!
In total, Gu Feiyu had four golden bells, all treasures refined by great Qi Refiners of the ascension stage. Originally a complete set, they had hung upon the Black Dragon Carriage.
Seeing their master in peril, the four golden bells flew out to his rescue. The first saved Gu Feiyu; the second disrupted Xu Ying's state; and the third was enough to claim Xu Ying's life.
Yet in the next breath, a bloodstained bronze bell shot in from an angle. With a deafening clang, it smashed the third golden bell flat, sending the blazing flames and flying sand blasting away!
The Dao images of myriad beings across the bronze bell's surface blazed with blinding brilliance as the sun and moon revolved within them. It clashed against the remaining three golden bells, its tolls resounding incessantly as it battered back and forth. Within a few exchanges, it had pounded the three bells full of dents, their power severely crippled.
Gao Shiqing had originally trapped the bronze bell and Yuan Qi within his own Hidden Scenery latent transformation ground. He was a Nuo immortal of the Gao clan; with the Gao clan and Wuji Sect allied, Gao Shiqing had studied the cultivation methods and divine abilities of the Wuji Sect, and his cultivation had progressed at lightning speed. He had believed that standing within his Hidden Scenery latent transformation ground made him akin to a true immortal, and suppressing a bronze bell and a snake would be effortless.
Yet in merely a few clashes, he had been suppressed by the bronze bell, his Hidden Scenery latent transformation ground smashed to pieces, leaving his cultivation in tatters. Then Yuan Qi had summoned all manner of treasures from his belly, beating Gao Shiqing into total submission.
Taking advantage of this opening, Xu Ying raised another seal strike, poised to blast Gu Feiyu to death. Suddenly, Gu Feiyu grabbed a Golden Seal-Script Immortal Talisman and activated it, unleashing an unimaginably terrifying might!
Xu Ying's heart jolted, and he instantly retreated at full speed. At that moment, the bronze bell charged in, planting itself between the immortal talisman and Xu Ying.
The bronze bell hung suspended in the void, seemingly tangible yet formless, entering a boundless and edgeless state, connected externally to the Great Dao of heaven and earth, fully integrated with the cosmos!
"Clang—!"
The immortal light struck the bronze bell, instantly piercing through the bell's Grand Supreme Immortal Scripture of the Golden Casket. The Dao images of all things and creatures that had just surfaced on the bell's wall disintegrated and were annihilated in the immortal light!
The bronze bell tolled clang upon clang as it carried Xu Ying steadily backward, its bell wall spinning until it finally blocked the talisman's full might.
Deep fissures scarred the bronze bell's surface, wounded by the immortal talisman, its power heavily depleted!
Having already been used by Gu Feiyu to ward off the blizzard on the snow mountain, the immortal talisman's power had been diminished; used once more, its might was far weaker than before. It immediately transformed into a swirl of immortal light, wrapping Gu Feiyu within it and flying forward.
Xu Ying invoked the Dao Character Incantation. A strand of sword qi tore through the sky and collided with the immortal light, erupting in power and causing the light to tremble slightly, revealing a weak spot!
Xu Ying thrust out his sword, unleashing the Truth Character Incantation of the Sword Dao Return to Truth Art! The sword qi pierced clean through the immortal light and plunged into Gu Feiyu's body!
The supreme sword dao of the Mount Shu Sword Sect was encapsulated within four characters: Sword, Dao, Return, and Truth. Each of these four possessed its own strengths, but the one Xu Ying wielded with the greatest mastery was the Truth character.
He had already encountered three different 'Truth' characters of the Immortal Dao: the Truth of 'Taiyin nurtures the primordial, one yang forever true' from the Taiyin Primordial Nurturing Technique; the Truth of 'true spirit void, tranquil, empty, and luminous' from the Grand Supreme Immortal Scripture of the Golden Casket; and the Truth of the Sword Dao Returning to Truth.
Three seemingly identical Immortal Dao runes expounded entirely different principles. By combining these three distinct Truth characters, Xu Ying infused this single strike with unbelievable power!
Enveloped beneath the glow of the immortal talisman, Gu Feiyu groaned in pain as the sword struck him. He instantly felt the yuan qi and Dao images within him threatening to transform into sword dao and erupt outward. Terrified out of his wits, he hurriedly channeled his qi to suppress it.
Yet how could he possibly suppress it?
The Golden Seal-Script Immortal Talisman used its immortal light to help him suppress the sword qi inside him, but just then, Xu Ying struck again with another Truth Character Incantation sword qi, penetrating the immortal light and impaling Gu Feiyu's body.
The immortal talisman escorted Gu Feiyu in rapid retreat, but Xu Ying charged relentlessly forward, thrusting out sword light after frantic sword light!
The talisman could no longer suppress the sword qi raging inside Gu Feiyu. Suddenly, a majestic voice echoed from within the talisman, crashing into Xu Ying's mind: "Junior, in all things leave a way out! Do you truly intend to exterminate us and sever the lineage of my Wuji Sect? Are you not afraid of the retribution of me, Immortal Elder Wuji?!"
"In all things leave a way out?"
Xu Ying was enraged. He thrust another sword through the talisman directly into Gu Feiyu's body, sneering, "When you people captured me back then, why didn't you leave a way out? What dogshit Immortal Elder! If you have the guts, come down from above to face me! But before that, I'll wipe out your lineage first and dig up your ancestral graves!"
"Chhh!"
The sword qi within Gu Feiyu could no longer be contained. Both Primordial Spirit and mortal body transformed into bloodstained strands of sword qi, exploding in all directions. Form and spirit were utterly annihilated—not even the Golden Seal-Script Immortal Talisman could save his life!
Chapter 227