Setting aside the side effect of turning someone bald, the Arhat Fist was an exalted martial art of the Buddhist path.
Previously, Lu Yang had refrained from using it for fear of accidentally injuring Lan Ting. Now that his clone was handling Lan Ting, leaving him free to face Bai Ming alone, he could unleash the Arhat Fist without reservation.
"Let's see how well you split your attention!" Convinced that Lu Yang could not control two bodies at once, Bai Ming thrust his spear in an instant, its sharp tip glittering like celestial stars.
Lu Yang calmly watched the spear tip. A hollow, resonant chime echoed from within his body, resembling a Buddha chanting scriptures to deliver all sentient beings.
He threw a punch. It sounded like rolling thunder, unstoppable in its momentum, colliding violently with the spear shaft and sending ripple after ripple spreading through the air like splashed ink.
"Arhat Fist!"
*Clang—*
The spear vibrated with a metallic ring, while Lu Yang's fist nimbly glided along the spear's length, pressing in on Bai Ming.
Bai Ming engaged his waist and legs, sinking into a firm stance as he tried to pull the spear back. But Lu Yang relentlessly hammered the weapon with the Arhat Fist, making the shaft tremble so violently that Bai Ming could barely keep his grip.
*Not good,* Bai Ming thought. He had stayed on guard against Lu Yang's divine abilities and spells, but he had never imagined Lu Yang's bare-handed combat would be this terrifying.
Seeing the fist about to strike him, Bai Ming formed an incantation seal with his left hand. The wind howled overhead as a razor-sharp wind blade descended from above like a guillotine, aiming to split Lu Yang in two.
Bai Ming took the opportunity to dodge, but the Arhat Fist still grazed him.
"What a heavy punch!" Bai Ming was thoroughly rattled. Fortunately, he had evaded the brunt of it. Such a devastating blow had left a painful wound from merely brushing past him; taking a direct hit would have been excruciating.
He could not afford to get hit again.
Suddenly, a few black hairs drifted down, catching Bai Ming off guard. Before he could react, more and more black hair fell.
*Wait, could this be...*
Bai Ming subconsciously touched his head, and his expression changed drastically. "Where's my hair?!"
Staring at the hair strewn across the ground, Bai Ming glared fiercely at Lu Yang.
"Unifying fist and spell! To think you could combine martial arts and sorcery so seamlessly that even I fell into your trap!" Bai Ming forced himself to stay calm and analyze the situation so as not to lose his footing.
Beneath the stage, a steady stream of cultivators continued to arrive to watch the battle.
"Hey, who's that bald guy? Didn't they say the Hanging Temple didn't send anyone?"
"I heard something about an Arhat from afar just now. Is that bald guy calling himself an Arhat?"
"Must be a fake. He doesn't even have ordination marks on his head."
Overhearing the chatter below, Bai Ming could no longer contain his fury. "Lu Yang, you forced my hand! Five Elements Revolving Spear Technique!"
"The Five Elements Revolving Spear Technique? He even learned that?" Old Mr. Kang gasped.
"What's the Five Elements Revolving Spear Technique?" the people around him asked one after another.
"It was created by a patriarch of the Five Elements Sect who was proficient in Five Elements spells. It combines Five Elements spells with spear arts. One cannot learn it without mastering both. To think this Five Elements Sect disciple has already met the requirements to learn it!"
"I keep feeling that what he displays resembles a Five Elements Golden Core, but a Five Elements Golden Core shouldn't possess this kind of offensive power!"
"Radiant Metal!" The spear struck out like a dragon, thrusting toward Lu Yang with unbelievable speed as an overwhelming aura surged forward.
Lu Yang strode forward. Buddhist chants resonated around him, his momentum sweeping across mountains and rivers. Once more unleashing the Arhat Fist, he met the spear head-on in an unyielding clash, sending violent shockwaves blasting in every direction.
His fist was like an anvil and his aura surged, violent momentum rippling between every punch and palm strike.
The clash of fist and spear left the onlookers below aghast. Even the Nascent Soul cultivators showed stark changes in expression; none of them felt confident they could withstand such a high-frequency barrage of attacks.
"Is he truly only in the early Golden Core stage?"
"I've long heard that disciples of the immortal sects defy all common sense, and seeing it today proves it!"
"I'm afraid even ancient geniuses were no greater than this."
"Even with prodigies rising everywhere in the struggle of the Golden Age, surely few could stand shoulder to shoulder with talents like them?"
This was the first time Bai Ming had encountered a cultivator of the same realm capable of going toe-to-toe with him after he unleashed the Five Elements Revolving Spear Technique.
He gave a cold sneer, levering his spear against the stage. An earthen dragon surged from the ground like a roaring tsunami, descending to crush Lu Yang.
Lu Yang used Shrinking the Earth to launch a sneak attack from below. Bai Ming extended his divine sense, tracking Lu Yang's movements with crystal clarity, and thrust his spear downward.
"Right here!"
Then, an astonishing scene unfolded before Bai Ming's eyes: Lu Yang's body shrank abruptly, evading the strike.
"Size Manipulation?!"
Although Bai Ming had expected Lu Yang to know various divine abilities and spells, Size Manipulation caught him completely off guard. Spells generally followed structured systems; learning one allowed a cultivator to draw analogies and grasp similar techniques.
Lu Yang, on the other hand, used Heaven-Swallowing Earth-Devouring, Shrinking the Earth, and Size Manipulation—none of which shared any connection—not to mention a hair-loss technique Bai Ming had never even heard of.
"So what!"
Bai Ming thrust his spear eighteen times in rapid succession, but Lu Yang dodged every blow. Just as he prepared to deliver the nineteenth strike, his body suddenly sank, and his surroundings plunged into pitch-black darkness.
While thrusting at Lu Yang, Bai Ming had failed to notice the shrunken youth circling him.
It was just enough for Lu Yang to cast Drawing a Prison.
"Another unknown Earth-element spell!" Incensed at being bested in Five Elements spells, Bai Ming cast a technique to drill up through the surface—only to take a solid punch from Lu Yang square on the jaw.
"Drawing a Prison!"
Lu Yang locked Bai Ming back into the underground prison.
Bai Ming fought to keep his head clear. Since he could not emerge straight up, he would escape from another direction. Trapped underground, Metal, Wood, Water, and Fire spells were useless; the only option left was Earth spells.
He tried to burrow elsewhere. Just as half his body slid out, he heard Lu Yang's voice from above.
"Drawing a Prison."
Bai Ming was snapped right back to his original position.
"Earthen Dragon..." Bai Ming formed incantation seals with both hands to summon an earthen dragon.
"Drawing a Prison."
Bai Ming's body jolted. He vanished and reappeared in the same spot, his hand seals forcibly interrupted.
"This isn't an Earth spell; it's a spatial spell!" Bai Ming finally realized the truth.
"I don't believe this! Earthen Dragon..."
"Drawing a Prison." Lu Yang squatted on the ground, drawing circles as he monitored Bai Ming with his divine sense. The moment Bai Ming made a move, Lu Yang interrupted him with Drawing a Prison.
After several attempts that yielded the exact same result, Bai Ming lost all his fight.
"Fine, I concede!"
Left with no choice, Bai Ming threw in the towel. When he emerged onto the surface and saw Lu Yang's beaming face, his anger flared anew.
"If your casting speed hadn't been faster than mine..."
Bai Ming spoke through gritted teeth. He had been completely suppressed by casting speed; the Earth-element spells he had mastered were large-scale attacks with relatively slow casting times.
If only he could have completed a spell before Lu Yang cast Drawing a Prison, he would have escaped to fight again, and the outcome would still have been up in the air.
Lu Yang merely smiled without a word. In his mind, the plan provided earlier by the Invincible Core resurfaced:
*Bai Ming's spear technique is the surface, but his Five Elements spells are the root. His moves will inevitably rely on Five Elements spells. The five elements generate and overcome one another; when combined, their power multiplies. It is not advisable to give him an opening.*
*Recommendation: Use the Arhat Fist to enrage the opponent and make him lose his composure, then find an opportunity to cast Drawing a Prison to trap him underground. Forcing him underground limits him to Earth-element spells. You can then exploit your superior casting speed to repeatedly interrupt his spells until he is forced to surrender.*
*This is the most efficient and effortless solution.*
Chapter 360