The Daoist Seal - Chapter 43

The Thirteen Swords of the Clear Moon was the Emperor’s Heaven Sect’s Jade Purity Cultivation Method’s only killing technique. Only those who had reached the ninth heaven of Micro Realm could cultivate it. This point alone proved just how powerful this technique was.

Yet, in the face of such a powerful attack, Ying Tianyang directly countered it with his physical strength.

*Pff*

Regardless of his cultivation level, the man known as the sect’s number two core disciple was indeed extremely strong. With just a punch, he smashed Jiang Xiaofan’s sword qi into specks of light. Neither slowing down nor decreasing his power, he charged at his opponent.

Although Ying Tianyang did not have Jiang Xiaofan’s mystical Diamond Sutra’s body tempering technique, he had already reached Phantom Saint long ago. Despite his cultivation being suppressed to the Micro Realm, his body strength remained at the realm of Phantom Saint.

Regardless of whether it was his combat experience, the quality of his spiritual energy, or his physical strength, Ying Tianyang had an absolute advantage over Jiang Xiaofan. Therefore, this duel was never fair to begin with.

Jiang Xiaofan, of course, knew of all these. He wasn’t dumb. Just because he, as Ye Yuanxue had said, was usually indecent and flippant did not mean that his mind was slow. His acceptance of this duel meant that he naturally had some tricks up his sleeve and was capable of winning.

His figure now appeared illusory, and the entire platform was full of his blurry shadows. This was the first time that he had used his Shadow Steps to its maximum.

Such a scene stunned many people. Even the stony-faced leader of the Hall of Spiritual Cultivation revealed a hint of expression on his face. Having such frightening agility at this level of cultivation defied all reasoning.

“Stop scurrying around like a rat!”

Ying Tianyang coldly snorted *hmph*. A powerful qi then exploded forth from his body and swept to every corner, followed by dark green rays of light illuminating the entire platform. Even those who at the Realm of Dust were amazed by Ying Tianyang’s display of might. Even though his cultivation was now at the Micro Realm, it was unimaginably frightening that he could release such a power.

Ying Tianyang wanted to use his powerful qi to pressure Jiang Xiaofan out of hiding. Under normal circumstances, this was an effective method. Against the maximum use of force, even the speediest agility would be futile.

To his disappointment, not only was his immense release qi unable to force Jiang Xiaofan out of hiding, it was unable to shatter the blurry shadows on the platform. This prompted Ying Tianyang’s expression to turn unsightly.

*Bang*

In the next second, Ying Tianyang felt a strong force coming from his back. Jiang Xiaofan finally appeared behind him, and ferociously punched out. This time, Jiang Xiaofan showed no mercy, using nearly all nine heavens of his strength.

Because he cultivated the sacred Diamond Sutra’s body tempering technique, the strength of his physical body was already beyond that of the Micro Realm. With a solid, heavy punch to his body, even Ying Tianyang could not withstand the full force of it. His stance faltered, and blood trickled down the corner of lips.

However, the extent of Ying Tianyang’s might was beyond what Jiang Xiaofan had expected. Assuming that he was just an ordinary person and taken such a powerful punch, even if it did not result in a serious injury, it would take a while for him to come to his senses. Instead, Ying Tianyang rapidly turned and ferociously kicked backward at Jiang Xiaofan square on his chest.

“Truly outstanding!”

Jiang Xiaofan was caught off guard. If he hadn’t mastered the Shadow Steps and was able to dodge in the nick of time, he surmised that he would’ve taken the full brunt of that kick and suffered a serious injury. Even so, he could still pain radiating from his chest. It really hurt.

Silence settled in. Earlier, countless spectators thought that Jiang Xiaofan would be unable to fight tit for tat against Ying Tianyang whose cultivation had been suppressed to the Micro Realm. However, they now second-guessed themselves.

Ying Tianyang roughly wiped the blood from his lips. The look in his eyes was frostier than before, his expression full of savagery, and his long, black hair danced wildly in midair. He scowled, “Jiang Xiaofan, you have thoroughly angered me!”

Jiang Xiaofan smiled scornfully, looked at Ying Tianyang as if he was an idiot, and jeered, “Ying Tianyang, I admit that you are very strong. However, I must remind you that you’re the one who set up this life-or-death duel. You’re the one who wrote the challenge letter. So don’t talk about me angering you and such bullshit things. You’ll just make everyone condescend you.”

Ying Tianyang’s complexion immediately darkened. Without saying any further, he lunged at Jiang Xiaofan. To prove that he was really outraged, another green energy sword condensed in his right hand. It was multiple times stronger than the sword from before and emanated a terrible aura across the platform.

Still, Jiang Xiaofan’s speed was too fast for him. Ever since he had reached the ninth heaven of Micro Realm, his Shadow Steps seemed to have evolved to another level. Because of his suppressed cultivation, Ying Tianyang lost a considerable amount of his powerful spiritual energy and his muscle memory could not keep up with the decline of his physical strength. As a result, it was exceedingly difficult for him to match Jiang Xiaofan speed for speed.

After Jiang Xiaofan had transformed into a streak of green light and backed up from where he stood, his lips curved up in a smile. “I also need to remind you of this. Arrogant people never live long. Even though this doesn’t always apply, sometimes, however, it makes perfect sense!”

*Swoosh*

At that moment, his figure was finally fixed and visible. With his right leg forcefully stamped on the floor, he propelled himself forward like a cannonball. Dense, green light enveloped his entire fist. He then forcefully chopped down on his opponent before sending him flying with a kick. Ying Tianyang nearly tumbled down the platform.

Everything instantly came to a standstill, and the atmosphere grew dead silent. Not knowing how much time had passed, everyone finally turned their focus back to reality. The scene then erupted with bursts of amazed gasps.

“Oh Heaven! Did my eyes deceive me?! Ying Tianyang was knocked flying!”

“Gods! This can’t be real! How?!”

No one wanted to believe in what had happened before their eyes, but they had to because the truth was displayed right there. Aside from unwillingness and perplexity, their remaining feelings left were shock and wonderment.

Beyond the main platform, the leader of the Hall of Spiritual Cultivation quickly turned stony again after revealing a slight change in his expression. As for Ye Yuanxue, she excitedly waved her fist while the little bird on her shoulder chirped loudly as if cheering for Jiang Xiaofan.

Beside Ye Yuanxue was Liu Cheng’an who was quite surprised at Jiang Xiaofan’s performance but eventually nodded in satisfaction. Because he was once an elder, he could accurately see through someone. He knew that Jiang Xiaofan was a good young man from the way that he treated him.

Lin Quan and Tang You were present as well. Exhilarated, they nearly clapped their hands and shouted, “Good job!”

While they were happy on this side, there were others who mourned at the turn of events to the other side. The expressions of a few inner disciples from the Heavenly Sun Peak turned very ugly. In particular, the leader of the peak became gloomier as he icily locked his eyes on the platform.

Ying Tianyang stood up again. His clothes were covered in dust, and blood continued to trickle down from the corner of his lips. However, he didn’t care. With eyes full of ferocity, he stared daggers at Jiang Xiaofan.

“You are going to die today!”

After he had spoken, Ying Tianyang gradually walked forward. His movements were slow, but each step was steady and powerful as if he was following some strange rhythm. The entire platform slightly quaked.

Jiang Xiaofan’s expression turned grave. The man before him was very frightening, as expected of a Phantom Saint cultivator. Even though his cultivation had been suppressed to the Micro Realm, he was still able to release that terrible might. This type of aura definitely didn’t belong to that of a Micro Realm cultivator.

*Boom*

A dense, horrifying qi broke out. Its power surpassed that of before.

In the next moment, Jiang Xiaofan could sense danger coming. His hair stood on end, just like when he experienced the assassination at the Forest of Scorching Flames. He couldn’t see anything, but he believed in his instinct. Without further ado, he reflexively retreated with his Shadow Steps and appeared nine meters backward.

*Hah*

Almost at the same time, a dazzling ray of light about the size of a thick tree branch shot downward from the sky. Without any warning, it landed where Jiang Xiaofan had previously stood before he retreated and created a deep crater in the floor with long cracks radiating from its center.

Jiang Xiaofan’s complexion turned ashen. Other spectators were dumbstruck as well with their eyes widened. That ray of light was spine-chilling. If Jiang Xiaofan had gotten struck by it, even if he did not die from it, he would be severely injured.

“How dare you use spirit channeling in a Micro Realm battle?! You’re so low!” Indignant, Ye Yuanxue angrily shouted at Ying Tianyang.

Lin Quan and Tang You were equally vexed. The spirit channel was a mystical technique that could only be cultivated at the Realm of Dust and higher. The duel from its very start was already unfair. With Ying Tianyang’s use of spirit channeling, the scales tipped even more.

The inner disciples of the Heavenly Sun Peak immediately glared at Ye Yuanxue. With his expression completely frosted over, the leader of their peak chided Ye Yuanxue, “Disciple of the Heavenly Maiden Peak, shut your mouth. There’s no rule dictating that spirit channels cannot be used in this battle.”

“Old guy, how about you shut up instead?!”

Even more irate, Ye Yuanxue waved her fist at him. On her shoulder was the multicolored, feathery little fellow who angrily chirped at the Heavenly Sun Peak’s leader. At first, it hadn’t gotten used to Ye Yuanxue, but soon, Ye Yuanxue had won over the heart of the little fellow. Naturally, it turned angry upon seeing someone threatening her.

“How dare you disrespect someone senior to you?! Completely preposterous! I will teach you a lesson in place of your peak’s leader!”

The leader directly extended a large hand which grabbed for Ye Yuanxue. The sky suddenly darkened, and winds began to pick up. That intimidating power was beyond the realm of Phantom Saint.

The scene down below caught Jiang Xiaofan’s attention right away. Without even glancing an eye at Ying Tianyang, he hollered, “Old dog, what are you doing?! If you dare to even touch a strand of her hair, I’ll castrate your son and annihilate your entire family!”

*Fwoosh*

Suddenly, two figures appeared in front of Ye Yuanxue. Ye Qiyu was as captivating and elegant as ever. However, her peerless, beautiful face was now cold and there was a hint of murderous intent in her doe-like eyes.

Next to her was the figure of a graceful, resplendent middle-aged woman. With a gentle wave of her lithe hand, she blocked the Heavenly Sun Peak leader’s large hand. His intimidating spiritual energy abruptly dissipated without a trace.

“Yu Wuyan, good timing! Teach your disrespectful disciple some manners!” The Heavenly Sun Peak’s leader frostily snorted *hmph* and no longer attacked Ye Yuanxue.

The middle-aged woman named Yu Wuyan flatly replied, “Ying Xianling, you know that she’s my disciple, so why did you still raise a hand against her? You are the one who crossed the line. I don’t believe that she violated any of the sect’s rules, yes?”

“And you!” The middle-aged woman cocked her head to look at the leader of the Hall of Spiritual cultivation. “As the leader of the Hall of Spiritual Cultivation, the one in charge of upholding the rules, did your eyeballs fall out of your sockets and get lost somewhere?! Why didn’t you stop him?!”

Her tone was calm, but there was strong oppression in her voice that startled many cultivators on sight.