When Pilingzi uttered these words, Mingchengzi couldn't help but nod in deep agreement.
In this current age, internal turmoil was rampant and external calamities loomed. The laws of imperial courts and the order among nations were all founded upon martial might. To whom something belonged was ultimately decided by force; failing to claim what one wished was simply due to insufficient strength.
Moreover, in his view, although the three secret vaults were said to belong to the Chang Dynasty, after hundreds of years they had effectively become ownerless.
Back then, the Ding Dynasty claimed to be "borrowing," but in truth had never intended to return anything; they merely treated this place as a repository to stash their treasures. To borrow and repay without interest made an immense difference, not to mention having a Dongxuan View expert guard the vault on their behalf—one had to admit it was a brilliant scheme.
Emperor Wenguang's claim about leaving it for the descendants of the Chang Dynasty was another calculated manipulation, intended solely to keep Pilingzi minding the riches for him.
He surmised that Pilingzi was likely well aware of this, but because it perhaps involved the cultivation methods of the Duanchen Sect, the man could not extricate himself for the time being, and so had agreed nonetheless.
Yet by now, Emperor Wenguang was dead and the old dynasty had fallen; Great Shun was the true orthodox power! Therefore, these treasures rightfully belonged to Great Shun, and Xuanji claiming them in its stead was entirely just and proper!
Pilingzi smiled again and said, "What our esteemed guest says is indeed sound reason. However, I have a word to impart to all of you: the secret vaults here are entirely under my control. With a mere thought, I could destroy them.
"Since I cannot protect them either way, why shouldn't I destroy them? At least that would fulfill my duty to the trust placed in me by their former master."
Chen Chuan looked at him and asked, "What are your conditions, Gaogong?"
In his view, if Pilingzi truly wanted to do so, he would have done it long ago without bothering to tell them now; he was merely using this threat to bargain for favorable terms.
Pilingzi studied him for a few moments, a solemn look suddenly appearing on his face as he offered a formal salute.
"I wish to hold a contest with your side, using this boundary as our arena..."
As he spoke, a thin wisp of white smoke rose from his body, tracing a large circle along the edge of the mountain ravine.
"Within this domain, all restrictions apply equally to host and guest. Anyone from your side may step forward to decide victory against me here. The first to be forced out of this boundary shall be deemed the loser.
"If I lose, I shall yield immediately, and your side may take the secret vaults as you please. If your side loses, you must withdraw and restrain others from disturbing me.
"Naturally, if your side finds an heir of the Chang imperial bloodline, I will gladly open the pass to welcome them and hand over the vaults. What does your side think?"
Chen Chuan considered it briefly and nodded. "Agreed. It is settled."
Pilingzi had evidently learned of Chen Chuan's status from the young Xuanist. Receiving his promise put him at ease, and he smiled. "Very well. Then I shall await here. Once your side has decided who will fight, we may test our mettle."
Chen Chuan said to Mu Xiaoren and Mingchengzi, "I shall test this Gaogong's prowess. Staff Officer Mu, Gaogong Mingcheng, please wait outside for a moment."
Neither of them hesitated, stepping back out of the boundary.
Once outside, though they could still see Chen Chuan and Pilingzi, without the floating stones to ferry them back, they could find no way in for the moment. Thus, until the victor was decided, they could only wait where they were.
Mu Xiaoren was very calm; having absolute confidence in Chen Chuan, he did not believe for a second that Chen Chuan could lose.
Mingchengzi felt the same way, knowing Chen Chuan's capabilities well. Yet this was suspected to be the Duanchen Sect's home ground, and fearing that the opponent might resort to underhanded tricks if unable to win directly, he continued observing and deducing, ready to offer support at a moment's notice.
After the two departed, Chen Chuan looked toward Pilingzi. For the man to dare engage in this duel, he surely possessed some form of reliance.
This battle was not merely a contest of raw strength, but of who would be eliminated first.
Moreover, this was clearly his opponent's home ground, presenting factors that favored Pilingzi while putting him at a disadvantage.
The first thing he had to address was the stone beneath his feet. If it shattered, he would be expelled from the ritual space, which according to the duel's rules would count as a defeat.
However, Pilingzi had just stated that within this field, both parties faced identical conditions. Whatever disadvantage applied to Chen Chuan applied equally to his foe, so there was nothing to complain about.
He could tell that the stone was only slightly sturdier than an ordinary rock; to fighters of their caliber, the slightest movement could crumble it. It was likely an intentional weakness designed into the arena, so it had to be protected thoroughly.
Doing so was actually quite simple.
With a shift of his intent, a stream of fire of spirituality faintly tinged with purple qi flowed down from his body, encasing the entire stone.
Although there were many means to neutralize or counter it, he cultivated the Visage of Man, making his fire of spirituality exceptionally solid and dense. Destroying it could not be accomplished in an instant, affording him ample reaction time.
Moreover, there was another point where he differed from others: because his fire of spirituality was highly activated, even after being cast out it could return to his body, and could even manifest as an avatar of power. Thus, it could be regarded as an extension of his own body; encasing the stone while remaining connected effectively meant he was still anchored to it.
Could he then leave the stone to engage in combat?
He wasn't certain, but felt it was worth testing. Furthermore, he was certain there were many "rules and restrictions" here of which he remained unaware, so the priority was not rushing to defeat his opponent, but figuring out the rules of the terrain.
While Chen Chuan was making his preparations, Pilingzi had not stood idly by either; in fact, he had begun placing his pieces even earlier.
Under his urging, the ring of white smoke previously demarcating the boundary grew progressively thicker, and the surrounding scenery began to blur.
This was an effect achieved by combining secret techniques with the ritual here, effectively obscuring the opponent's vision and forcing them to rely solely on spirit and domain perception to sense him. And since he walked the path of the Visage of the Divine, he could deploy numerous methods in this regard.
As for whether it was fair, this was no staged tournament bout, merely a contest to decide victory or defeat; he naturally intended to leverage every advantage available.
From within the mist, his voice drifted out: "Honored guest, please forgive Pilingzi's offense."
With that, he took the initiative. His glabella flashed, and a probing Divine Visage secret technique swept toward Chen Chuan.
Martial artists of the Visage of the Divine excelled most at myriad esoteric transformations; condensing spirit directly for a blunt strike was, in their eyes, the crudest and lowest method. A Xuanist like him, steeped in the secret arts of the Xuan Sect, would tailor distinct counters based on an opponent's willpower, known secret arts, and spiritual strength.
Chen Chuan had fought many martial artists of the Visage of the Divine and had spent time in the Tianji Sect. While he might not know every nuance of the Xuan Sect's methods, he had a solid grasp of them.
Sensing his opponent's attack, he understood its intent and strength without having to think twice.
At this moment, he did nothing—not even invoking the One Origin Divine Seal—choosing to withstand the strike directly with his own body.
As expected, it merely stirred slight ripples across his fire of spirituality, failing to cause him any harm whatsoever.
Even as he took the blow, he tapped his toe, light surging across his frame as he attempted to dash toward his opponent's position.
Yet the moment he parted from the stone, he discovered that although the ritual did not immediately expel him, Pilingzi's presence abruptly vanished from his senses.
His eyes flashed slightly. Instantly, he expanded the Grand Radiant Light Forms outward, blanketing the entire airspace, yet he still could not detect the man. Consequently, he fell back, returning to his original perch in a flash.
Simultaneously, Pilingzi's silhouette reappeared once more.
He pondered the situation. From what had just occurred, it seemed very likely that once he left the stone, the two of them entered relatively independent domains.
Thus, if he wanted to make contact with his opponent, he had to keep at least the majority of his power anchored here.
Could he shatter the entire ritual through sheer force?
Likely not.
He had already tested the waters: this ritual appeared to be fused into one with the outer spatial domain. Unless he had the ability to destroy this entire Exterior Heaven in a single breath, it was impossible.
However, in doing so, the opponent had managed to restrict his mobility.
Still, that mattered little. Being unable to charge out did not mean he lacked other ways to fight.
Once these thoughts flickered through his mind in an instant, he raised his hand and pointed forward. A beam of platinum spiritual brilliance shot thunderously toward the spot where his opponent stood.
Seeing that his earlier strike had achieved no effect on Chen Chuan, Pilingzi immediately realized that what Ji Shaoyou had told him was true: this man likely had no shortcomings in either physical body or spirit.
Therefore, ordinary offensive secret arts would surely fail against him; only unique methods could contend with such a foe.
Relying on the superb acuity of the Visage of the Divine, he perceived the surge in Chen Chuan's fire of spirituality ahead of time and instantly identified it as a spiritual impact.
Not intending to take it head-on, he immediately dispersed his Divine Visage—an action that, in truth, also severed his contact with his own stone.
Chen Chuan's eyes flickered. Because the ritual space operated under the premise that both parties were subjected to identical restrictions, this also meant that while his opponent's divine qi was dispersed, Pilingzi likewise could not perceive him through conventional means.
Yet he discovered that he could still clearly observe his opponent. Understanding dawned on him: when one of the combatants left their stone, it was only that person whose ability to perceive their opponent was lost, but it did not prevent the other party from observing them.
While it seemed fair on the surface, his opponent actually gained a slight advantage, because as an adherent of the Visage of Man, Chen Chuan was bound to be the primary aggressor, and many offensive methods required closing the distance.
Conversely, it would have little negative impact on Pilingzi. As a practitioner of the Visage of the Divine who was familiar with this esoteric ritual space, the man might well possess other means to bypass ordinary perception and locate him, such as observation-oriented secret arts.
He looked toward the dispersed divine qi. Dispersing divine qi could naturally evade a spiritual impact, but that only held true against ordinary foes. In his hands, that hardly meant the attack was over.
With a shift of his intent, that beam of spiritual impact suddenly fractured, transforming into countless scattered sparks of fire of spirituality that chased down every single strand of dispersed divine qi!
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Chapter 1448