Is That All You're Capable Of?

"Xu Ying? Barbarian Xu Ying?" In Longhua Immortal City, nearly every dragon immortal was alarmed, taking to the skies one after another and looking toward the commotion. Immortal mountains dotted the Qianyuan Cave Abyss, filled everywhere with fragrant flowers and singing birds like a holy realm. Hearing the uproar outside, a young dragon woman hurried out from an academy. This was Longhua City's Qianyuan Academy, an institution that taught knowledge brought from the other shore. Back then, Imperial Son Mingdao had commanded the World-Crossing Golden Ship, leading Chaoyuan Dao and many other members of the dragon race in fleeing the Three Realms. Enduring endless hardships, they had finally reached the other shore. They brought back the knowledge of the other shore and returned to the Heavenly Immortal Realm, which had been reduced to ruins. The very first place they established to preach the Dao was Qianyuan Academy. As time passed, Qianyuan Academy had fallen far from its former glory, falling behind the Other Shore Academy in the Dragon Court's Imperial Capital. There, powerful figures from the other shore would even occasionally descend to personally impart ultimate techniques. Seeing her fellow disciples flying outward in righteous indignation and seeming fury, the young dragon woman did not know what had happened, so she followed them into the air. When she emerged from the Qianyuan Cave Abyss, a tremendous clamor shook the heavens outside. Thousands upon thousands of dragon immortals had formed an enormous circle, surging in the same direction. The young dragon woman looked over and saw that they were rushing toward a towering primordial spirit that shone like indestructible spiritual light. The primordial spirit's form bore some resemblance to the aliens, yet differences remained. And beneath its feet stood a youth who looked somewhat like an alien, yet was much shorter and far more delicate in appearance. In recent years, many among the dragon race's younger generation had adopted the beauty standards of the aliens from the other shore. When assuming humanoid forms, quite a few chose not to manifest with a dragon head and human body, but rather in the likeness of an alien, even styling their attire, clothing, and makeup after them. There were many such dragons in Qianyuan Academy. However, the young dragon woman could tell that this delicately featured youth was definitely not a transformed dragon, nor was he an alien. Instead, he bore a strong resemblance to the human slaves who had ascended from the lower realm not long ago. *Is he a barbarian from the Earth Immortal Realm?* Just as the thought crossed her mind, dragon immortal after dragon immortal suddenly flailed in panic, unable to control their bodies as they plummeted from the air like raindrops, crashing across the ground! Several senior brothers and sisters from Qianyuan Academy also charged forward, intending to kill the fellow who called himself the barbarian Xu Ying. These disciples possessed stronger cultivation and pushed farther ahead. Yet the moment they reached Xu Ying's side, they met his primordial spirit's attack. These senior brothers and sisters—who had once thought themselves unrivaled—were almost all struck down in a single move by that primordial spirit, grievously wounded and unable to rise from the dirt! The young dragon woman was startled. All around that human barbarian, disciples of Qianyuan Academy lay sprawled haphazardly across the ground! "Cang Jue greets Princess Mingman," a voice spoke. The young dragon woman turned her head and saw an elder in green robes emerging from another cave abyss. It was Elder Cang Jue, who oversaw Longhua City. By this point, the other elders were also alerted and stepped out from their secluded cultivation grounds one after another. The young dragon woman, Mingman, offered a greeting and said, "Mingman greets Elder Cang Jue, Elder Qing Qiufeng, and Elder Yu Lingcai." As the three elders walked out of their cave abysses, the astonishingly massive chasms hung behind their heads, radiating profound Dao resonance and formidable momentum. Longhua had four great elders, and Long Dai was one of them; however, Long Dai had traveled to the Earth Immortal Realm and had yet to return, leaving behind the three elders Yu Lingcai, Qing Qiufeng, and Cang Jue. If Long Dai's strength were placed in the Earth Immortal Realm, the only ones capable of reliably defeating him were the Ancestral God, the Far Ancestor, and the Holy Venerable. There was also Daoist Wukong, who might possess the power to surpass him, but Daoist Wukong moved like a phantom, and no one knew the true depth of his cultivation. Yet within Longhua City, three other elders stood on par with Long Dai, demonstrating the tremendous might of the dragon race. Each of the three elders possessed a Supreme-grade cave abyss, wielding boundless cultivation and strength. Seeing Princess Mingman salute them, they did not dare treat her lightly and hurriedly returned the gesture. Yu Lingcai inquired, "Princess, how have your studies been progressing lately?" Princess Mingman shook her head and said, "Still no improvement." The three elders each knitted their brows. Princess Mingman was the youngest daughter of Dragon Emperor Mingdao. She was incorrigibly unruly. Dragon Emperor Mingdao's cultivation reached the heavens and earth, an existence in the Immortal Realm who was considered formidable even on the other shore. Yet this daughter of his was utterly useless and exceptionally dense; no matter how they instructed her in Zangification or taught her the Dao methods of the other shore, she could not master any of it. Previously, Princess Mingman had studied at the Other Shore Academy in the Dragon Court's Imperial Capital, but she was so slow-witted that even the Other Shore Academy could do nothing with her. Dragon Emperor Mingdao had had no choice but to send her to Qianyuan Academy, hoping that exposure to the original supreme arts of the other shore might grant her a breakthrough. Yet it had proved almost entirely useless. "What is all this clamor about?" Clan Elder Yu Lingcai summoned a dragon immortal and questioned him. The dragon immortal hurriedly recounted how Xu Ying called himself a barbarian, had come to challenge them, and asked the dragon race to use the methods of the other shore to educate and civilize him. Hearing this, Clan Elder Yu Lingcai cast his gaze upon Xu Ying, somewhat surprised. "The Earth Immortal Realm originally belonged to our dragon race, but it is currently controlled by inferior species like the humans and demons. Human ascenders have weak physical bodies, feeble cultivation, and backward Dao methods. The human slaves who ascended to the Immortal Realm last time were mediocre at best. How dares a barbarian like this Xu Ying come to challenge us?" Elder Cang Jue said, "He calls himself a barbarian and asks us to civilize him, so our Dragon Court shall educate him properly. Ying Wuye!" A young dragon expert stepped forward from the cave abyss behind his head and replied in a deep voice, "This disciple is here!" Cang Jue said, "Go teach this barbarian the height of the heavens and the depth of the earth." Ying Wuye acknowledged the order. An invisible aura erupted, immediately parting the surrounding dragon immortals to both sides like an unseen hand. Yu Lingcai smiled and said to the other two elders, "Ying Wuye has been rising swiftly in recent years, showing signs of becoming the foremost expert among our Longhua's younger generation. It is quite fitting for him to civilize this barbarian." At that moment, another aura flared. The crowd was abruptly parted once more as another young expert approached. The space between him and the surrounding dragon immortals widened continuously, yet as he passed, that expanded space sealed itself back up. This display of divine ability was truly breathtaking. "Ying Wuye, your Five Candles Burning Heaven Technique is indeed extraordinary, but you may not necessarily best the barbarian Xu Ying." This newcomer strolled leisurely, smiling. "Back in the colosseum, the barbarian Xu Ying beat Young Master Qixuan to death. You don't truly believe you are stronger than Young Master Qixuan, do you?" Another dragon elder, Qing Qiufeng, stroked his beard and chuckled. "My disciple Yuan Zhuang is not necessarily inferior to Ying Wuye." Suddenly, hearty laughter rang out as yet another outstanding talent of Longhua City strode forward. His aura was overwhelmingly domineering; wherever he passed, dragon immortals were crushed by his momentum and tumbled from the sky one after another. The burly dragon possessed a ferocious bearing and acted ruthlessly, suppressing everyone who stood in his path. "Yuan Zhuang, Ying Wuye, neither of you has brought the Seventh Realm to perfection. For this battle, I, You Longbi, must personally step forward!" Elder Yu smiled and said, "My disciple You Longbi is the true number one among Longhua's younger generation." Ying Wuye, Yuan Zhuang, and You Longbi were the Three Paragons of Longhua City, the most powerful trio among the younger generation, disciples of the three clan elders, and the three most outstanding figures in Qianyuan Academy. Knowing that Yuan Zhuang and You Longbi possessed cultivation not a shred weaker than his own, Ying Wuye took the first step toward Xu Ying and declared, "This scoundrel styles himself a barbarian. If a barbarian comes seeking education and enlightenment and we fail to show real capability, we will only invite his ridicule! I shall civilize him first!" He let out a long whistle and circulated the Five Candles Burning Heaven Technique. Seven Dao realms unfolded, his momentum swelling higher and higher. Within that Dao realm, five strange flames resembled candles from the netherworld, or perhaps the eyes of some colossal behemoth, backed by pitch-black darkness with only the candle flames burning faintly. Just as Ying Wuye strode forward, Yuan Zhuang and You Longbi also advanced, each unleashing their respective arts. Yuan Zhuang cultivated the Futu Heavenly Heart Art, while You Longbi cultivated the Good Fortune Mysterious Art. Both of these arts, along with the Five Candles Burning Heaven Technique, were supreme methods brought back from the other shore by the World-Crossing Golden Ship in the past, each pointing straight toward the Immortal Realm! Noticing that the other two were charging toward Xu Ying alongside them, all three hesitated. *We came to civilize a barbarian. If we swarm him together, won't we become a laughingstock to a barbarian?* The three came to a halt simultaneously. Ying Wuye laughed aloud. "Senior brothers, we should determine a victor among ourselves first today. Whoever wins will have the honor of civilizing the barbarian!" You Longbi said, "My thoughts exactly!" Yuan Zhuang smiled. "Once I beat both of you into submission, it won't be too late to educate the barbarian!" Their battle intent surged. Each pushed his technique to the utmost, fully deploying seven Dao realms. Just as they were about to clash to determine the victor, the giant hand of the primordial spirit behind Xu Ying rose into the air. Daylight flared across the sky as the hand came crashing down upon the three of them! "You talk too much!" That palm strike descended with terrifying heaviness. Countless bolts of lightning danced around the palm as it pressed downward, erupting from the inside out, as though the latent energy concealed within the void had been squeezed out by his palm and released as thunderbolts! Ying Wuye, Yuan Zhuang, and You Longbi each felt as though the palm was aimed solely at himself. Without hesitation, they mobilized all their dharmic power, unleashing divine abilities to meet it head-on. *Boom! Boom!* Xu Ying's primordial spirit's giant hand crushed all their divine abilities, smashing all three out of the sky with a single strike and slamming them viciously into the ground! When the palm lifted, the ground had sunk deep into a crater, leaving only the tops of the three youths' heads sticking out. Xu Ying remained still, eyes contemplating his nose and nose contemplating his heart. His Indestructible Primordial Spirit spoke, its voice shaking Longhua City. "The grand Heavenly Immortal Realm, the towering Great Dragon Court, boasting arts from the other shore, noble bloodlines, and flourishing Dao methods, yet you cannot even broaden the horizons of a barbarian like me. The Dao methods you display are crude and vulgar, lacking even the slightest edge over this barbarian. You have disappointed me." He slowly opened his eyes, a divine radiance blazing within them as he said coldly, "Is there anyone else who wishes to educate this barbarian?" Princess Mingman was startled, and she hurriedly said to Elder Cang Jue, "Elder, I want to learn that!" Elder Cang Jue said hastily, "Princess, do not joke. What this lad employs are barbarian methods from the Earth Immortal Realm, infinitely weaker than the Dao methods of the other shore!" Princess Mingman curled her lip and retorted, "Yet the things you teach me can't even beat him!" Hearing this, the three elders all frowned deeply. Had anyone else spoken such words, they would have beaten them to death long ago, but she happened to be the Dragon Emperor's youngest daughter, someone they could not touch. All around, countless dragon immortals grew furious, yet no one dared step forward to challenge Xu Ying. Ying Wuye and the other two were already the most outstanding young experts in Longhua City; few could best them. "Attack together and kill him!" someone shouted loudly. Xu Ying snapped his gaze toward the sound. The boundless, rampaging killing intent of the Zhuxian sword intent surged forth. That dragon immortal spat blood, shocked into unconsciousness by the all-destroying murderous aura! Silence fell over the surroundings; no one dared utter another word. Suddenly, Xu Ying swept his gaze across the sky, landing upon the three great elders Yu Lingcai, Cang Jue, and Qing Qiufeng. He laughed heartily. "Three elders, this barbarian Xu Ying would like to ask you three for your esteemed guidance!" The three elders were both shocked and enraged. Abruptly, Xu Ying's physical body and primordial spirit merged into one. Soaring into the sky, he charged straight at Cang Jue. Circulating Martial Extreme Proving the Dao, he unleashed Zhuxian, the fourth method of the Eight Immortality Methods. A world-ending killing intent swept forward, domineering beyond measure! Cang Jue snorted and mobilized the Five Candles Burning Heaven Technique. Worthy of being an arcane art that led straight to the Immortal Realm, in his hands it was an entirely different beast compared to Ying Wuye's! Cang Jue's eight Dao realms unfolded, incredibly ponderous, resembling eight worlds formed from Great Daos. In the depths of these worlds, five eerie eyes opened, as though igniting his entire cultivation and causing Elder Cang Jue's strength to skyrocket frantically! One utilized a martial divine ability, while the other employed a divine ability of the other shore. At the moment of impact, Xu Ying's Martial Dao ultimate intent unfurled. Thousands upon thousands of silhouettes struck from different angles, each wielding the Zhuxian broken sword, some swift and some measured, assailing Cang Jue! Such a divine ability dazzled the dragon city, drawing gasps of wonder from the onlookers! Having clashed with Elder Long Dai, Xu Ying had gained tremendous insights; his current capabilities far exceeded what he had displayed during that battle. Now, even without Zangification, he possessed strength nearly equivalent to it! The Zhuxian sword intent seemed to plunge the entire Longhua Immortal City into a great extinction, as though the Great Daos cultivated by everyone present would shatter and dissolve beneath that sword light! The dragon immortals who had been floating ten li away suddenly fell into complete disarray, their Dao methods losing control as they tumbled from the air one after another. Behind Cang Jue, Princess Mingman trembled with excitement at the sight, cheering in her heart: *I want to learn this! I want to learn the barbarian way!* *Chi! Chi! Chi!* Cang Jue was struck by dozens of sword strikes in rapid succession, blood splattering. He had not refined a Great Dao ultimate intent, so against the offensive of the Martial Dao ultimate intent, his techniques and divine abilities were vastly inferior. Furthermore, the current Zhuxian divine ability was far more complete than when Xu Ying had fought Long Dai. Faced with such a technique, he was powerless to resist! Just at that moment, from behind the five candle flames within Cang Jue's bodhimanda, a colossal consciousness surged forth, clashing head-on with the Zhuxian sword intent without yielding an inch. Xu Ying was shaken to the core. He had never encountered a will capable of standing against the Zhuxian sword intent. The Zhuxian sword intent was simply too ferocious, bearing an aura of extinguishing the universe and recreating the primordial chaos. Even the Ancestral God and the Holy Venerable did not possess such terrifying destructive willpower! Under such a will, the Great Daos of heaven and earth would crumble! Yet the ancient god's will emanating from Cang Jue's Dao realm was dreadfully potent, making him wonder whether Cang Jue could truly cultivate such a dreadful willpower himself. If not forged by Cang Jue, where did this will originate? Colliding with the impact of that will, the Zhuxian divine ability instantly fell apart. Xu Ying immediately altered his stance, shifting to the fifth method, Myriad Daos. The Great Daos across his body chimed in unison, attacking in all directions. Cang Jue, Yu Lingcai, and Qing Qiufeng all fell under his assault. The three elders of Longhua City were both shocked and enraged. Each struck out to meet his Myriad Daos divine ability. The moment the four clashed, Xu Ying immediately felt immense pressure. That sensation of assaulting the Supreme entryway, of glimpsing the Supreme threshold, surged forth once more! Xu Ying felt an inexplicable surge of excitement. Withstanding the siege of the three dragon elders, he rotated through divine abilities—Opening Earth, All Heavens, Dragon Dance, Zhuxian, Myriad Daos, Years, Samsara—battling the three dragon elders! Against a single elder, he could still fight evenly. But against all three elders striking together, even his Eight Immortality Methods—the most exquisite techniques he had ever created in his life—could not hold out. The three elders' attacks were extraordinarily fierce. Crashing upon his body, they beat Xu Ying until golden light blazed around him. Xu Ying immediately felt his Leakless Golden Body, which had remained stagnant for so long, surge frantically once more! He attempted to breach the Supreme entryway, but fell just short of the necessary heat. Xu Ying bellowed in fury, "Three elders of the dragon race, is this all you are capable of?" At these words, the three elders flew into a rage, roaring in unison, "Zangify!" *Boom! Boom!* The three elders' auras surged skyward as they each Zangified, transforming into the shapes of ancient gods in an instant. Xu Ying withstood three of their strikes in succession; his internal organs nearly shattered, his Leakless Golden Body instantly pushed to its limit, and the foreign Great Daos accumulating within his body exceeded the threshold of what he could suppress! Though he stood unimaginably close to the Supreme Realm, he saw death arriving a step ahead of it! Without a second thought, Xu Ying unleashed the Samsara divine ability, forcing Elder Yu back, and whistled away in a desperate dash. The three elders raised their hands together, their divine abilities detonating as they struck toward his back. Xu Ying pushed Martial Extreme Proving the Dao to its utmost limit, absorbing all three divine abilities simultaneously. An earth-shaking blast echoed out, and his figure shot away at astonishing speed. His laughter drifted back from afar: "Three elders of the dragon race, bullying the young with your seniority, yet this is all you amount to! Even joining forces, you three still could not handle a barbarian like me!" With faces ashen with fury, the three elders gave chase at full speed, but they soon lost all trace of Xu Ying. Qing Qiufeng said coldly, "Find him! We must never let him escape! Otherwise, the faces of us three will be utterly ruined!" Three elders working together had failed to capture a lowborn human from the lower realm—one who styled himself a barbarian and claimed to come seeking instruction in the dragon race's arts of the other shore. If word of this spread, their reputations would be completely disgraced, turning them into laughingstocks of the Heavenly Immortal Realm! The three split up to search for traces of Xu Ying. Before long, their eyes brightened one by one as each found tracks left behind by Xu Ying and pursued in different directions. Shortly after they departed, Xu Ying reappeared, his steps somewhat unsteady. He murmured softly, "I was a bit too arrogant this time. I shouldn't have confronted all three elders at once. Had it been two, I might have smoothly stepped into the Supreme Realm. Being injured this heavily, I'm afraid it will take several days to heal..." He had used One Qi Transforms into Three Pure Ones to separate into three Heaven and Earth Primordial Spirits, luring the three elders away while concealing his aura right here, only showing himself after the three elders had left. "Hey!" A crisp voice suddenly called out behind him. "I want to take you as my..." Without thinking, Xu Ying whirled around and reached out. A young dragon woman, immobilized by his dharmic power, flew toward him helplessly with flailing arms and legs. In the next moment, his fingers clamped around her neck, nearly cutting off her breath. "Such weak cultivation?" Xu Ying was surprised and eased his grip slightly. The young dragon woman's neck went limp, and she passed out.