Directly above the imperial palace's Book Collection Pavilion, as that profound and wondrous aura diffused and spread, the clouds began to lose their ethereal drift, seemingly congealed by a peculiar force and dyed with a somber, loamy hue of yellow earth.
Even the sky's light took on a viscous feel, as though weighted down, pressing upon the mind with heavy solemnity.
Palace attendants, guards, and imperial consorts all raised their heads to gaze up at the sky, whispering amongst themselves.
"That place... seems to be the Book Collection Pavilion, doesn't it?"
"Could it be that Commander making a commotion again?"
"I remember he only broke through to Rank One last month. It couldn't be again—"
"Impossible. This is no sign of crossing a cultivation realm."
"That vast expanse of yellowish light in the sky makes my heart flutter with dread."
"With such an anomaly, he must have comprehended something profound again. I've long heard his comprehension is the greatest throughout history, and true to the rumors—"
Amidst their hushed chatter, the clouds in the sky suddenly surged violently.
In a flash, an expanse of earth, seemingly boundless, stretched across the firmament. Though illusory, it radiated an imposing majesty heavier than tens of thousands of mountains!
Within the phantom vision, myriad peaks rose from the soil like the spines of divine beings, vast plains stretched in all four directions, and countless enormous earth veins, winding like dragon backbones, could be faintly seen slowly pulsating.
With every pulse, the mountains and plains resonated in unison, emitting a low, vigorous rumble.
It looked just like a god whose body had become the vast earth, slowly breathing.
Between every breath, peaks stood like swords and the earth moved like dragons!
"Hiss—"
Ordinary martial artists might not sense much from this boundless expanse of earth, feeling at most a slight tightness in their chests. But to a Celestial Being powerhouse like Shen Dongming, who had cultivated divine intent, an ancient and vast, boundless charm could be felt within it.
Heaviness! Suppression! Bearing!
Just facing it directly, Shen Dongming felt the circulation of blood, qi, and true qi in his body grow slightly sluggish.
If it were to overturn and crash down upon him, pressing over everything, his blood and qi would surely struggle even harder to circulate!
Rumble!
Suddenly, a golden streak pierced the layers of cloud vapor, flying from afar into the Imperial City and landing beside Shen Dongming.
"You've come as well, old monk?" Shen Dongming glanced over.
Gazing at the sky-floating earth overhead, Master Longding said with solemn gravity, "With such a great commotion, how could this poor monk fail to notice? Across the Imperial Capital, at least hundreds of thousands of people are looking this way, buzzing with discussion."
Inhaling deeply, he remarked in some puzzlement, "This poor monk recalls that Benefactor Huang had already comprehended divine intent long ago. Why today...?"
Shen Dongming did not find it strange. "When it comes to divine intent, who would complain of having too much? In the past, Yin Fenghai condensed two divine intents—immortal and demonic—and overwhelmed the Celestial Beings of the five nations. Today, Fellow Daoist Huang's comprehension surpasses his, so naturally he seeks even more."
Master Longding shook his head. "Divine intents are not simply better in greater numbers; they must complement one another. Otherwise, wouldn't every Celestial Being abandon honing blood, qi, and true qi, seeking only to comprehend divine intent day after day?"
Shen Dongming was speechless. "Listen to yourself, old monk. How could divine intent be so easy to comprehend? Even you and I, searching for a hundred years, have failed to comprehend a new divine intent, let alone anyone else."
Once divine intent was formed, one's foundation was virtually set. Trying to comprehend another divine intent was exceedingly difficult.
For the first divine intent would hinder subsequent insights and cause interference. Take Wan Shenyang's Great Sun Patrolling the Heavens, for instance: utmost hard and utmost yang, matchless in might. Yet precisely because its power was overwhelmingly potent, it obstructed him from grasping other divine intents, leaving him no choice but to delve ever deeper into the Great Sun divine intent.
Shen Dongming said slowly, "Yet I wonder which number of divine intent Fellow Daoist Huang has comprehended? Speaking of which, the resonance of this divine intent is quite similar to yours and mine."
Master Longding nodded. "Indeed."
Shen Dongming's divine intent was a towering mountain, while Master Longding's was a Vajra Arhat. Both walked the path of strength and dominance, emphasizing overwhelming others with momentum.
Huang Tian's divine intent of a boundless continent likewise contained the nuances of momentum, force, and dominance, yet in comparison, it possessed an added touch of heaviness and primeval desolation.
"Another brand-new divine intent?"
In a side hall, Wei Shen, politely entertained by several princes, walked out with the others. Gazing up at the vast phantom of the earth in the sky, an unspeakable shock stirred in his heart.
Earlier at Qinghui Garden, he had witnessed Huang Tian comprehend divine intent, when the sea roared over Qinghui Garden, colossal waves churning with sky-toppling might.
"And even before that day, Senior Huang had already comprehended divine intent at Rank Three. In other words, counting this time, he has comprehended at least three different divine intents?!"
Wasn't comprehending divine intent supposed to be immensely difficult?
Why did it seem completely otherwise with Huang Tian, as though comprehending divine intent were as simple and natural as eating and drinking?
Buzz, buzz~
Just then, the celestial phenomenon shuddered violently. Golden light burst forth from the illusory earth, brilliant radiance cloaking a quadrant of the heavens. As far as the eye could see, flowing light flooded everything!
Lasting for about three breaths, the phantom earth trembled slightly, quickly shrinking smaller and smaller until it finally coalesced into a beam of golden light that plunged straight into the tall Book Collection Pavilion.
"Hoo—"
A soft exhalation drifted out from the pavilion. Though the sound was exceedingly faint, it oddly resonated like an explosion by everyone's ears and in their hearts.
Bang!
The doors of the Book Collection Pavilion swung open without any wind, and a heroic youth walked out. A shimmering golden halo still radiated from his body. With each step he took, it receded a fraction; seven paces later, it was drawn entirely back into his form.
"Congratulations, Fellow Daoist Huang, on comprehending yet another divine intent!" Shen Dongming and Master Longding flew over, offering their smiling congratulations.
"My thanks to Fellow Daoist Shen, and to you, Master." Delighted at heart, Huang Tian could hardly conceal his smile.
Having perused tens of thousands of martial technique manuals, the Earth-element technique was finally created.
Yuanji Tian!
The origin of all things, bearing all, suppressing all quarters!
After more than half a year, the five forms of the Five Elements were finally forged! Once he grew a little more familiar with the newly comprehended Yuanji Tian divine intent, he would immediately achieve the rotation of the Five Elements, completing his divine intent! It had not been an easy journey. What a pity that the divine ability born from merging the Five Elements forms still lacked some inspiration...
Putting aside that slight regret, Huang Tian conversed with the two, his face full of smiles.
After chatting for a while, Master Longding suddenly said, "Benefactor Huang has been in the Imperial Capital for over a month, first breaking through to the Rank One realm and now comprehending a new divine intent. Your strength has surely progressed by leaps and bounds. I wonder if this poor monk might have the honor of exchanging a few moves with you, to discuss the Dao through martial arts?"
Huang Tian's eyebrows raised slightly. "Naturally. Even had the master not mentioned it, I held the same intention."
Actual combat was always the best way to digest one's gains. To face a formidable opponent right after comprehending a new divine intent and polish it to rounded perfection was something he could not have wished for more.
Shen Dongming asked with a laugh, "I wonder if I might join in as well?"
"Naturally," the two replied.
"Good!" Shen Dongming said, delighted. "The commotion of the three of us clashing will be too great; there is no room to unleash our strength in the palace. How about we head to the Yupan Mountain Range?"
The Yupan Mountain Range was a chain of continuous, towering peaks northwest of the Imperial Capital. The State Protection Temple, where Master Longding resided, happened to be situated right before the range, built against the mountain.
"Excellent!"
"Very well!"
Neither of them objected. Shen Dongming gave a hearty laugh and raised a hand in a beckoning gesture. "Come!"
As his words fell, a beam of golden light shot out from somewhere in the imperial palace and was clutched firmly in his grip with a bang. Upon closer inspection, it was a gilded coiled-dragon staff!
Precious luster shimmered across the staff's body, engraved with nine golden dragon patterns, radiating a ferocious, overbearing aura.
"Let's go!"
With a loud shout, Shen Dongming took the lead, leaping up amidst surging air currents and flying toward the northwestern horizon. Huang Tian and Master Longding did not hesitate either, soaring into the sky to give chase.
"The Old Ancestor took his divine armament—could they be going to spar?" a prince asked curiously.
"Let's go take a look! A clash between Celestial Being powerhouses is a sight unseen in a decade!"
"Let's go together!"
Several silhouettes leaped into the air, pursuing Huang Tian and the others. Wei Shen was among them, clutching the Juntian Ocean-Subduing Ruler, his face brimming with excitement.
Rumble~
The trio flew at astonishing speed, churning up vast airwaves like meteors streaking across the sky above the Imperial Capital, drawing the distant gazes of countless martial artists.
"Is that... is that the Mountain-Carrying Arhat, Master Longding?"
"The one beside him seems to be Celestial Being Shen?"
"Who is the third? Mmm, I can't quite see clearly—"
"I see him! It's Commander Huang Tian!"
"What are they doing? From their direction, they seem headed for the Yupan Mountain Range."
"The fighting intent boiling off all three of them—they are either off to battle someone together or heading to the Yupan Mountain Range to spar."
"A clash between Celestial Beings! I must go watch!"
"I'm going too! How could I miss such a grand event?"
The Imperial Capital was full of crouching tigers and hidden dragons. In an instant, nearly a hundred figures flew into the sky, every single one at least a Rank Three Grandmaster!
Thus, the countless common folk within the capital saw what looked like a meteor shower raining across the sky, a hundred shooting stars plunging straight toward the northwest.
Whoosh—
Above the rolling, majestic mountain range, their bodies came to an abrupt halt, sending ripples crashing through the air. Shen Dongming gripped the coiled-dragon staff with wild, arrogant dominance; Master Longding stood upon empty air, palms pressed together with a solemn expression; and Huang Tian stood alone atop a mountain peak, hands behind his back, looking calm and at ease.
"Patriarch!"
Within the State Protection Temple before the range, several thousand monks noticed Master Longding standing above the mountain peak, and all were astounded.
"That one is the Great Gan imperial family's ancestor, Celestial Being Shen, and the other is Huang Tian? It looks like they intend to spar!"
Many monks stared unblinkingly at the three figures in the void above the mountain peak.
Shen Dongming waved the coiled-dragon staff lightly and said, "There are three of us here. How shall we fight? One by one?"
With a smile, Huang Tian replied, "There is no need for such trouble. You two fellow daoists can simply attack me together."
Hearing this, Shen Dongming and Master Longding took on solemn expressions. They did not think Huang Tian was being arrogant; since he said such words, he clearly possessed the confidence to face two at once.
Exchanging a glance, Shen Dongming said in a grave voice, "Then let us witness Brother Huang's methods!"
Master Longding chanted a Buddhist invocation, and his entire body suddenly erupted with a brilliant golden light. In the next moment, blood and qi detonated like roaring thunder within his thin, small frame, forming a tangible crimson mist that enveloped his form!
Gone was the look of an old monk; in an instant, he was a Vajra Arhat!
"Brother Huang, take a strike from my staff first!"
A resounding roar burst like thunder.
Brandishing the gilded coiled-dragon staff, Shen Dongming's burly figure transformed into a bolt of golden lightning tearing across the expanse of the sky, crashing straight down toward Huang Tian!
Before the staff arrived, an incomparably vast blast of astral force descended ahead of it. Around Huang Tian, the air wailed like ghosts weeping and wolves howling. Beneath his feet, hundreds of towering ancient trees buckled under the immense weight, their thick trunks bent by the sheer pressure, and countless leaves tore from their branches, ground to powder by the incoming gale before they could even hit the ground.
Rumble!!
The earth groaned as the ground sank at a speed visible to the naked eye. Hundreds, thousands of cracks spread outward, and countless beasts fled their dens in sheer terror.
In the dense woods, countless birds took flight in panic, attempting to escape into the distance, yet beneath that mountain-pressing momentum, their wings froze and they plummeted straight to the earth.
Even the drifting clouds a dozen li away were churned by this sudden, terrifying force—like snow cast into boiling soup, tumbling and surging as they scattered in all directions, revealing a washed azure sky!
"Not bad!"
Looking at the strike capable of sundering a mountain, Huang Tian chuckled softly. The blood and qi within him detonated like hundreds of fiery furnaces, a beacon of blood-and-qi smoke soaring into the firmament, his true qi surging like an ocean and stirring visible ripples through the air.
He abruptly raised his right arm, splaying his five fingers. A rich, golden radiance swirled within his palm, as though a vast expanse of earth rose and fell in his hand. Meeting the coiled-dragon staff smashing down toward his head, his palm struck upward.
Clang!!
Like the tolling of an ancient temple's millennium bell, an earth-shaking resonance like a grand chimed bell reverberated across heaven and earth.
A visible white shockwave expanded outward in a rapid ring. Wherever it passed, the already battered ground was plowed into long, deep furrows, and countless shattered ancient trees and boulders were instantly blasted into the air, flung into the distance.
The ground beneath Huang Tian's feet sank violently, blowing open a crater several zhang deep, yet like a sea-calming needle, he stood firmly planted at the bottom of the crater, his form not swaying in the slightest.
And his raised arm was steady as a rock, his five fingers seemingly forged of diamond, holding the gilded coiled-dragon staff—a weapon capable of cleaving mountains and splitting seas—firmly in check within his palm!
"This strong?!"
Feeling the immense recoil transmitted through the staff, Shen Dongming's arms trembled, and monstrous waves churned in his heart. He felt as though his blow had not struck Huang Tian's palm, but slammed against a vast and boundless continent—all the force swallowed whole by the earth, without raising even a ripple!
He was shocked, and the martial artists watching from the distant horizon were all the more terrified and awed.
"Senior Shen's coiled-dragon staff carries immense force and crushing weight—with a single strike, it could shatter even a mountain! Commander Huang could actually hold it off with one hand without swaying an inch? How is that possible?!"
"Is this a clash between supreme Celestial Beings? Even several hundred zhang away, the shockwaves make my blood and qi churn unceasingly! If I drew any closer, I'd probably be ripped apart by the gale!"
"Fall back further, lest we get caught in the fallout!"
"Back, back, back!"
"I wonder when I'll ever break through the divide to Celestial Being. This barrier has held me back for fifty years, and in another ten or so, my lifespan will run out. Alas!"
"Focus on sensing the divine intent permeating heaven and earth. Perhaps it might grant us some enlightenment—otherwise, why would we come to watch the battle?"
"Quite so! Quite so!"
Chapter 140