The old servant Zhou Buyi was trembling once more. Shivering, he wanted to raise his hand to eliminate Xu Ying, yet he dared not.
Others might not know Xu Ying’s background, but he did.
He knew that Xu Ying had been brought here personally by the Zhou clan ancestor, Zhou Qiyun!
For that reason alone, he dared not act rashly!
*I only intended for Young Master Fan to teach this wild country bumpkin a lesson. Who told him to disrespect his elders and humiliate me for being useless? But how did he dare kill Young Master Fan?*
Cold sweat beaded on his forehead. As head steward of the inner residence, he had weathered many a storm over the years. The aristocratic clans and powerful lineages of Shenzhou were rife with sordid underhandedness—what kind of spectacle had Zhou Buyi not seen?
When an unknown junior like Xu Ying entered the Zhou clan and, full of arrogance, offended an inner residence steward like him, a single petty trap would normally make Xu Ying wish he were dead, forcing him to his knees in surrender.
Yet he had never seen anyone like Xu Ying, who drew real blades from the very start and even killed one of the masters.
Xu Ying noticed his expression and said with some disappointment, "You lied to me. You said the Zhou clan’s healing was the best under heaven, yet you couldn’t save him. Had I known, I wouldn't have struck so hard."
Yuan Qi asked suspiciously, "Truly?"
"Of course not," Xu Ying said, shaking his head. "He came to avenge a corrupt official like Zhou Yang, so he got what he deserved. Why would I hold back? I only said that to be polite and offer him a way out, sparing him some embarrassment."
Yuan Qi praised, "Ah Ying, I never imagined you could be so considerate. I misjudged you."
"Bastard! Do you take my Zhou clan for nobody?"
Finally, someone snapped out of their shock and rage. A figure charged forward, seething with murderous aura. Within a few strides, he expanded to fifteen feet tall, his skin gleaming golden like the golden body of a Buddha!
Behind his head, the Sea of Chaos surged, and two great cave-heavens radiated brilliant light, reinforcing his physical body!
"Today, I shall avenge the Zhou clan disciples and proteges who died at your hands!"
The man’s palms were immense. With a single strike, thunderous sounds erupted, as though a Buddha of the legendary Great Thunder Sound Temple were wielding demon-subduing arts, bringing down a holy wrath beneath his palm!
Xu Ying took a step back and asked, "A spar, or a vendetta?"
"A vendetta!"
The instant the words left the man’s mouth, Xu Ying thrust out a palm. Dust and mist billowed behind him, and a horned giant snake surged from the haze. As their palms collided, the Ba Snake met the giant Buddha palm.
The Zhou man grunted as a monstrous force slammed into him, and his arm bone snapped with a loud crack!
Propelled by the Ba Snake, he flew backward, only to be stopped in midair and swallowed in a single bite by the Ba Snake!
The Ba Snake apparition formed from Xu Ying’s vital blood dispersed, revealing Xu Ying’s outstretched hand clutching the man’s throat, lifting him into the air.
"You still dare injure our people?"
The Zhou clan disciples erupted in fury. Two figures darted out from the flanks. Before they could reach him, Xu Ying twisted his hand forcefully, and the Ba Snake apparition reemerged, coiling around the Zhou man and constricting violently!
*Crack!*
Every bone in the man's body shattered, even his neck snapped. Worse still, Xu Ying's strike severed the vitality transmission from his Mud Pill secret depository. When he fell to the ground, he could only heal the injuries to his head; below the neck, it felt as though he had been amputated, completely devoid of sensation.
Terror surged through the man’s heart, and he opened his mouth, screaming.
Meanwhile, the other two Zhou disciples had activated their Mud Pill secret depositories from the moment they charged out, their cave-heavens fully opened, pushing their cultivation to the absolute peak!
Each of them had mastered one of the Thirty-Six Heavenly Spirits Hidden Scenery Techniques, cultivating to the stage where scenery merged with body, and body merged with soul.
The so-called merging of scenery and body meant uniting the Hidden Scenery with the physical form. The Thirty-Six Heavenly Spirits Hidden Scenery Techniques mostly depicted divine demons, Buddhas, sacred beasts, and even heavenly gods; merging scenery with the body allowed one's flesh to take on the form of those divine beings.
Merging body and soul was even more difficult: the soul closely bonded with the physical form, transforming alongside the Hidden Scenery. With all three unified as one, cultivation and combat strength naturally multiplied!
One of the two was a three-legged divine being who wielded blazing flames as blades, while the other was a three-eyed divine being whose eyes shot divine rays. Taking advantage of the moment Xu Ying manifested the True Cultivation of the Ba Snake, they attacked from left and right!
Xu Ying leapt into the air and called out, "A spar, or a vendetta?"
"A vendetta!"
Xu Ying twisted midair like an overturning Ba Snake. With a sweep of his limbs, dragons flew from beneath his robes and giant pythons surged forth, crashing directly into their strikes!
All of them used martial arts rather than divine abilities. What appeared to be a clash of visions was, in truth, an impact of martial stances.
Instantly, the two felt an overwhelming power crush down upon them like toppling mountains and draining seas—indescribably deep and immense. Both were shocked to the core: *Has he opened three layers of cave-heavens? No, he's a monster cultivator—could his demonic arts have broken past the Qi Harvesting stage?*
To them, the power Xu Ying unleashed was supreme demonic might, long surpassing the limits of monster kings and monster gods!
Roaring at the top of their lungs, the two poured all their strength into blocking the joint strike of dragon and serpent. The dragon and snake shattered, but the bulging muscles on the two men’s bodies burst with sharp pops. Before their blood could even spill, it was vaporized into red mist by the violent pure yang primordial qi!
They exchanged a glance, gritting their teeth. *As long as a Zhou clansman isn't killed outright, no wound is too severe!*
Suddenly, the blood mist rising from them coalesced into a blood-red short sword. Xu Ying’s sword qi had merged with the crimson vapor. With a faint hiss, the blood sword pierced straight through one disciple's temple!
The blood sword snapped around, darting before the other man. Just as it was about to impale him, a white-haired youth stepped forward, interposing himself before his clansman and raising a hand to confront Xu Ying’s sword qi head-on!
His palm instantly took on the texture of gold and stone, gleaming with a brilliant golden luster. The moment it met Xu Ying’s sword qi, his hand suddenly expanded, turning thick and massive. He flicked his fingers repeatedly, each flick immensely heavy. With several sharp clangs, he deflected the sword qi aside!
The sword qi grazed past him, slashing across the ground and slicing into a massive bronze pillar.
A resonant clang rang from the bronze pillar. Then, as the sword grew stronger against greater resistance, its power surged, prompting another thunderous chime from the bronze pillar that lingered long in the air!
Seeing his sword strike miss, Xu Ying also felt a pang of vigilance. Setting his feet one forward and one back, he leaned forward and unleashed the Twin March of Dragon and Python from the Dragon Snake Awakening Technique.
Suddenly, by some strange impulse, he thought of the third character from the Taiyin Primordial Nurturing Technique—the character *Yuan*. Instantly, a grand, resonant Dao sound echoed in his mind. The primordial qi within his body split into two paths of yin and yang, water and fire refining each other, and burst forth alongside the Twin March of Dragon and Python!
"*Mang-gu—*"
Xu Ying thrust his hands forward. Pure yang primordial qi transformed into a divine dragon, while pure yin primordial qi became a Ba Snake. The divine dragon soared and roared while the Ba Snake coiled and churned, rolling forward to crush the white-haired youth!
This white-haired youth was Zhou Youyou, the sixth young master of the Zhou clan, who had been studying Granny Tuo's Immortal Scripture in the hall. Because of his exceptional talent, he had been held in high regard from an early age and assigned to comprehend the immortal scripture.
Yet the scripture was so obscure that it had turned his hair white in his youth.
Even so, his talent was truly formidable; his deflection of Xu Ying's Realm Breaker sword strike just now had merely been a test of his skill.
Yet Xu Ying’s current blow was supremely fierce and unyielding. With dragon and serpent united, its power had multiplied six- or sevenfold. The billowing sound waves kicked up by the strike even ruffled the youth’s cheeks into deep folds!
Shielding the Zhou disciple behind him, Zhou Youyou could not hold his ground against Xu Ying’s ferocious onslaught and was forced to slide backward. Seeing the dragon and serpent apparitions lunging toward him, he hastily cried out, "A spar! It’s a spar, not a vendetta!"
He poured every ounce of strength into withstanding the attack, despair flooding his heart, when suddenly the momentum behind the Twin March of Dragon and Python vanished entirely.
Zhou Youyou stared in disbelief, only to see Xu Ying stumble back several paces, his face flushed as though he were drunk.
"Young Master possesses profound cultivation and astonishing abilities."
Xu Ying took several steps back before steadying himself. Calming his breath, he said, "It is my honor to spar with you. Shall we call today’s fight a draw?"
Zhou Youyou stood dazed, his hands still trembling. He quickly stammered, "I am inferior to you..."
Xu Ying smiled. "Then it’s a draw. I am Xu Ying. May I ask your name?"
"Zhou Youyou." Zhou Youyou was completely bewildered.
Xu Ying looked upon him with newfound respect. "Brother Youyou possesses such skill at such a tender age—truly admirable. Might I ask your age?"
Still in a daze, Zhou Youyou mumbled, "I am sixteen..."
Xu Ying said, "Truly young and promising. I am fourteen."
Zhou Youyou fell silent, saying no more.
Yuan Qi quietly raised his tail toward Xu Ying and whispered admiringly, "Ah Ying, you really know how to carry yourself now. Living in Qinyan Cave wasn’t for nothing. You've read so many books and grown so refined and courteous. Could it be you were reading the *Comprehensive Study of the Five Rites*?"
Xu Ying said happily, "You noticed? That thickest book—I read it every night before bed, and I sleep like a log."
Despite the earth-shaking battle just now, the thirteen Zhou clan elders in the center of the hall had not stirred. They remained completely absorbed in contemplating the jade slip Daoist scripture, a dedication that was truly admirable.
As for the other Zhou clan disciples, though eager to test their mettle, Xu Ying’s final dual-march strike had been too terrifying. Unable to gauge the depths of his strength, none dared step forward.
Yuan Weiyang’s gaze had remained fixed on Xu Ying. Suddenly, he turned to the green-robed old servant beside him and said, "Monster King Xu has obtained the true transmission."
"What?" Uncle Xiao seemed not to hear clearly.
Yuan Weiyang said, "He has obtained the true transmission. The contents of Granny Tuo's Immortal Scripture are spurious, not the genuine teachings. Or perhaps only half of the true transmission."
Uncle Xiao still did not understand. "Weiyang, what are you trying to say?"
Yuan Weiyang's eyes dimmed slightly, and he said no more, walking straight toward the jade slip Daoist scripture. He murmured to himself, "Just now, when he unleashed the martial method of dragon and serpent combined, his own primordial qi wasn’t inherently that dense. But when he struck, it gained an extra transformation of yin and yang, causing the technique's power to skyrocket. That move subtly aligns with the path of Taiyin explained in Granny Tuo's Immortal Scripture, yet it includes the transformations of Yang as well. This proves that Granny Tuo's Immortal Scripture is either an incomplete fragment or a counterfeit..."
He arrived before the jade slip Daoist scripture, studying the green jade bamboo slip, lost in thought. *In that case, how did he obtain the true transmission from these eight characters?*
He sat down quietly, racking his brains over the eight bird-and-worm seal characters inscribed on the jade slip Daoist scripture. Yet after a long while, he gained nothing.
Suddenly, an idea struck Yuan Weiyang. Recalling the strange postures Xu Ying had struck before the jade slip Daoist scripture, he thought, *Could that be the reason?*
He immediately followed suit, performing the same movements before the jade slip Daoist scripture.
The eight odd postures Xu Ying had made were not complicated. Having observed them carefully, Yuan Weiyang found them easy to replicate.
The green-robed Uncle Xiao watched in astonishment, while a nearby Zhou disciple muttered, "Great, another one’s gone mad!" It was unclear whom he was referring to.
After trying for a long time and copying Xu Ying’s eight movements down to the finest detail, Yuan Weiyang still found no progress. *There must be a mental technique to go with it,* he thought.
He looked around for Xu Ying, only to find that Xu Ying and Yuan Qi were no longer in the hall.
Stepping outside, he saw that Xu Ying and Yuan Qi had somehow climbed onto the roof of the hall. One was striking bizarre postures while the other lay coiled there. Boy and snake inhaled and exhaled in unison, sounding like a massive pair of bellows pulling air, whipping up howling gusts of wind.
Only in the intervals between their breaths did the air fall calm.
This method of cultivation did not look human in the slightest; it reeked entirely of monstrous habits.
Yuan Weiyang leapt onto the roof and asked in confusion, "Aren't you going to study the immortal scripture?"
Xu Ying did not pause his movements, continuing to slowly cultivate the Taiyin Primordial Nurturing Technique. He answered sluggishly, "I've already learned it, so I won't be going back."
The giant snake replied frankly, "I can't make sense of it, so I won't go either. Once Ah Ying gets the hang of it, he'll teach me."
Yuan Weiyang opened his mouth to speak, hesitated for a moment, and said, "When I return, I shall seek my mother's permission!"
Xu Ying stopped and asked curiously, "You want to consult your mother? Are you planning to trade your Yuan clan’s techniques for the contents of the jade slip Daoist scripture? But Brother Yuan, does your family even have an immortal art of this caliber to exchange?"
Yuan Weiyang's expression grew crestfallen. "No."
Just as he was about to jump down from the roof, Xu Ying laughed. "So don't go asking your mother about every little thing. You can make decisions for yourself. For instance, if you bring out your Yuan clan's Dragon-Seeking Locating Art, the method to open the Yellow Court secret depository, and your ancestral arts, I’ll gladly trade with you."
A glimmer of delight appeared on Yuan Weiyang’s face, and he was just about to agree when the green-robed old servant Uncle Xiao materialized behind him, saying expressionlessly, "Young Master Weiyang, it is time to come down. Do not forget that you will be the master of the Yuan clan in the future, bearing the duty of its revival. You must not associate closely with fiends."
Yuan Weiyang stiffened and said, "Uncle Xiao, I understand."
The joy in his eyes vanished, replaced by an unyielding coldness, and he leapt down from the roof.
Uncle Xiao gave Xu Ying a deep look. "Young Master Xu had best keep his distance from Young Master Weiyang. Do not dream of obtaining my Yuan clan’s supreme arts through him."
Xu Ying stretched lazily and continued practicing the Taiyin Primordial Nurturing Technique, as if he hadn't heard a word.
Uncle Xiao jumped down from the roof.
The bronze bell’s voice rang out, "Yuan Weiyang is quite sharp. He saw through the flaws of Granny Tuo's Immortal Scripture and came seeking you out. A pity that old servant of his is such a wet blanket. Ah Ying, I watched you cultivate the Taiyin Primordial Nurturing Technique just now, and it seemed extraordinarily profound. If you pass it to me, I can likely heal my injuries much faster!"
Yuan Qi asked curiously, "Big Bell, you can cultivate the Taiyin Primordial Nurturing Technique too? You’re a bell, how can you cultivate?"
The bronze bell snapped, "Foolish snake, the Eight Forms of Primordial Nurturing are merely the outward appearance; the true foundation lies in the Eight Sounds of Primordial Nurturing! Those eight Dao sounds are the true essence of Taiyin Primordial Nurturing! As long as I learn the Eight Sounds of Primordial Nurturing, I can cultivate it! What’s more, I’m a bell—I’ll learn it even faster!"
Yuan Qi asked, "Can I learn it too?"
Xu Ying sized up Yuan Qi’s physique and said reluctantly, "You probably can, but you might not be able to learn all of it."
The bronze bell chimed with ill intent, "Ah Ying, teach him half of it and let him turn into a woman. Once he takes human form, you can save on the bride price!"
Yuan Qi roared furiously, "Broken bell, Master Niu will fight you to the death!"
Snake and bell tumbled into a brawl. Before long, Yuan Qi was crying for Lord Bell’s mercy, leaving everyone satisfied.
Xu Ying waited until they quieted down before passing the Dao sounds of the Taiyin Primordial Nurturing Technique to Yuan Qi and the bronze bell. He could not reproduce the Dao sounds of the eight characters perfectly, managing only an approximation, but even so, it was extraordinary. Though lacking the depth detailed in Granny Tuo's Immortal Scripture, it was far more complete.
And so, one person, one snake, and one bell struck various bizarre postures on the palace roof while absorbing the rich worldly primordial qi brought by the fragrance of the blossoms.
The old servant Zhou Buyi glanced upward, let out a cold snort, and hurried toward the main palace of Huaihua Palace.
"Ancestor, that snake catcher Xu Ying has caused trouble," he said, bowing low before Zhou Qiyun as he entered the hall.
Zhou Qiyun was resting with his eyes closed. Hearing this, he asked faintly, "How many did he injure?"
Chapter 50