Chapter 674 — The One from the Nether Capital

Ling Yuxiu gazed at the ten-zhang spirit primordial behind Shen Mu, and her heart gave a faint jolt. "The Heaven-Man realm?"

She was a pioneer of the Six Harmonies spirit primordial, and her attainments in the spirit primordial were exceedingly high. It could be said that throughout all Jingping, and even across the countless heavens of the world, the only one whose spirit primordial at the same realm could rival hers was Shen Mu alone.

Shen Mu's achievements in the spirit primordial were somewhat higher than hers, but not by much, for when he cultivated, Shen Mu liked to let his attention wander to other things, now tinkering with this cultivation art, now revising that one; by nature he was flighty and restless.

She, by contrast, was more single-minded, devoting herself wholly to revising and perfecting her Ancestral Dragon Grand Mystery Art, and so in her spirit primordial cultivation she had not fallen far behind Shen Mu.

Yet even so, at the Seven Stars realm she could not manifest her spirit primordial into the form of a Heaven-Man realm spirit primordial.

For the Heaven-Man realm spirit primordial form was exceedingly powerful; set against the Seven Stars realm it was as different as cloud from mud. A Heaven-Man realm spirit primordial could manifest a form outside the body, possessing unmatched power and might.

Even though Ling Yuxiu was one of the founding patriarchs of the Six Harmonies spirit primordial, she could not accomplish this step.

Thus she could tell at a glance that the spirit primordial behind Shen Mu at this moment was a Heaven-Man spirit primordial!

Clearly, during these dozen-odd days of five-thunder tempering, Shen Mu had seized the chance to shatter the wall and leap up to the Heaven-Man realm!

To step into the Heaven-Man realm at twenty, that was truly a meteoric advance, surpassing countless elders before him.

Ling Yuxiu struggled forward, drawing several steps closer, and at last could make out the enormous bulk behind Shen Mu: it was the Dragon Qilin.

In the dozen-odd days since she had last seen him, the Dragon Qilin had grown much thinner, or more precisely, many parts of him had grown thin, as imposing as when he had once guarded the mountain gate of the Grand Academy; only his belly was still enormous, no doubt because the lightning strikes had never tempered his hide.

Suddenly the Dragon Qilin flopped down, rolled half over, limbs to the sky, and opened his great mouth wide, letting the heavenly thunder pound his belly.

"Even this trick? Using it to temper away the fat on his belly?"

Ling Yuxiu did not know whether to laugh or cry. She struggled forward, but her ears were filled with thunder and the Ancestral Dragon's Eight Tones, and she could not make out a word Shen Mu said to her.

Shen Mu leaned close to her ear and shouted, "Careful!"

"Careful of what?" Ling Yuxiu shouted back.

The heavenly thunder bursting from the Five Thunders Pot suddenly grew thick and fierce, the strikes more violent than ever. Ling Yuxiu was scorched outside and tender within, and the Dragon Qilin was struck until he twitched without cease; but the Mystic Water Dragon Pearl and the Qilin Pearl circled around them, and the burns on their bodies healed swiftly.

Enduring the pain, Ling Yuxiu was astonished. "Fat Dragon's Mystic Water Dragon Pearl has this effect too? Of course. Fat Dragon's dragon saliva can swiftly heal wounds, so his Mystic Water Dragon Pearl must serve the same purpose. No wonder they can hold out so long at the very heart of the lightning."

Still, she did not dare send her own spirit primordial out of her body to face the lightning.

Shen Mu had succeeded in shattering the wall and become a Heaven-Man realm divine ability user; his spirit primordial was strong enough that he dared let it endure the lightning strikes. For now, Ling Yuxiu could not manage the same.

Outside, when True God Pang Yu saw the Nine Heavens Cloud Dragon Shroud suddenly swell, his heart gave a lurch. Fearing the shroud would burst apart, he grumbled inwardly, "Sect Master Shen trusts me and my treasures far too much. This Five Thunders Pot is no ordinary treasure. If its power erupts, never mind my Cloud Dragon Shroud, I fear even Taihuang Heaven will be plowed over by heavenly thunder like a field!"

Fortunately the Cloud Dragon Shroud still held, but judging by the look of things it would not last much longer; the Five Thunders Pot's power would soon exceed what the Cloud Dragon Shroud could bear.

Suddenly a deity came up and said in a low voice, "True God, several demon experts have arrived outside, saying they have come to challenge the divine ability users of Taihuang Heaven."

True God Pang Yu laughed. "Ever since the Heavenly Master and Fu Riluo made the Earth Lord's Pact, the two sides have been at peace for a year or two, and demons often come to challenge us; our people go over there to challenge them as well. Nothing strange in it. The elders need not intervene. Let the youngsters fight it out. I must stay here and watch over Sect Master Shen, lest he ruin my treasure."

These two years there had been no war. Fu Riluo had not violated the Earth Lord's Pact; he restrained the demon gods of the demon race and did not take the initiative to start a war, and Pang Yu's side had likewise not started one.

Both sides had their misgivings, and though there was no open strife, there was still covert struggle: disciples of the demon race and the human race would trespass into each other's territory to challenge one another, seeking to slay the other side's young strength in fair combat.

Gradually the traffic between demons and humans increased, until even in human territory one might occasionally see young demon experts swaggering about.

The deity hesitated, then said, "Those who have come this time are no ordinary lot. Many young talents have already been defeated, and some have been killed..."

True God Pang Yu said hastily, "Could the challenger be Zhe Huali, the disciple of Fu Riluo and Luo Wushuang? The Demon Blade Zhe Huali, his cultivation and strength are indeed exceedingly high!"

"Not only Zhe Huali."

"Could Qi Jiuyi be among them too?" True God Pang Yu was alarmed and uncertain.

The deity said, "Besides Zhe Huali and Qi Jiuyi, there are several others. Qi Jiuyi calls them senior brothers and sisters, but by their looks they are demons..."

"Demons?"

True God Pang Yu said in surprise, "Qi Jiuyi is of the Nine Phoenix clan, not a demon. The disciples of the Red Emperor of the Southern Heaven have never included demons! I will go and see!"

He flew swiftly up to the gate tower and looked out. Sure enough, he saw many demon disciples, among them Zhe Huali and Qi Jiuyi, and one unfamiliar face.

Besides these youngsters, he also saw Fu Riluo, Lu Li, and several demon gods, demon gods with unfamiliar faces, never seen before, and Lu Li was chatting and laughing with them.

Pang Yu was alarmed and uncertain.

At that moment Yu He was exchanging blows with one of the young demons, and many young experts of Taihuang Heaven and Jingping were watching the battle in anxious alarm.

Ever since Shen Mu had built the Spirit Energy Translocation Bridge and opened the way between Taihuang Heaven and Jingping, Yu He had studied Jingping's divine abilities and arts, and her strength had advanced by leaps and bounds.

Pang Yu even believed that Yu He might one day become another True God!

Yet at this moment, facing that young demon, Yu He was in dire peril at every turn!

"That is not a demon cultivation art or divine ability!"

Pang Yu's gaze was keen and seasoned, and he saw at once that the divine ability used by Yu He's opponent was not of the Luofu Heaven lineage at all. He knew every demon god of Luofu Heaven; let any demon disciple use a divine ability, and he could name their master and lineage. Yet the divine abilities and arts used by the demon fighting Yu He were the divine abilities of Taihuang Heaven and Jingping!