Chapter 858 — Dragons and Serpents Rise in the Southern Wasteland

Talking all the while, the two walked out. Shen Mu urged on the Mystic Body Three-Cinnabar Art, loosening his muscles and bones, while Libationer Bashan drew his Overlord Blade and set it upright before him, opening his mouth to spew wind, fire, cloud and thunder to temper the divine blade.

Yan'er blinked and watched them walk out the door.

The Snow Fox hurriedly jumped down from her arms, and on landing transformed into a little girl of eight or nine. She opened her mouth, and Yan'er just then popped a spirit elixir into it.

"Young Master is going to fight? Can he win?"

Yan'er kept feeding her. "That man just now was very robust; his primordial spirit is remarkably well refined."

The Snow Fox crunched the spirit elixir, crack-crack. "Young Master is remarkable too. Libationer Bashan will have a hard time beating him... Could spirit elixirs be made hollow? If a little fine wine were added inside each elixir, the taste would be even better."

Heavenly Worthy Yu came over to them and opened his mouth; Yan'er fed him an elixir.

Heavenly Worthy Yu said in a muffled voice, "Wine in a spirit elixir? Is it tasty?"

The Snow Fox glanced at him and beamed. "So you are Lan Yutian, Young Master Lan? Last time I was in the capital I heard of you; you are the Young Master's younger brother. Why is your surname Lan? Spirit elixirs with wine added taste wonderful, but I have never eaten them that way. Usually I put spirit elixirs on a plate and eat them with wine. Senior Brother Sanduo has tried it and says it is good too. But I think spirit elixirs with wine inside would taste even better."

Heavenly Worthy Yu was eager to try.

The three walked out of the great hall. Outside, Shen Mu was already trading blows with Libationer Bashan; the two fought from the ground straight up into the sky. Libationer Bashan was the founder of the Fusion of Combat and Dharma, and he had a share of credit in the Jingping Reform as well.

In these years, as Jingping's divine powers erupted, Libationer Bashan's skill in combat arts had grown all the more terrifying.

Though the Southern Wasteland is remote, it is a place where every kind of art converges, the most lawless land of all; and so divine powers and dharma arts advance with astonishing speed. Add to that the Martial Combat Heavenly Master Zhuo Cha, the Heaven Blade Zaifu, the Crimson Bright Divine Son, Xing Han and others coming to lecture, and Libationer Bashan's abilities had grown ever more fearsome; in both martial combat arts and divine powers he had improved beyond all recognition.

He had studied under the Heaven Blade Zaifu, and from Zaifu he had learned the Nine Laws of the Heaven Blade. But Zaifu, having struck a blade at Heaven, had his mortal body severed and feigned death, hiding away in the Desolate Ruins.

He had not been able to learn the Nine Laws of the Heaven Blade in full, and so he created his own Seven Forms of the Overlord Blade, using the Fusion of Combat and Dharma to make up for his shortcomings in the way of the blade.

Later, when Zaifu returned, he said Bashan was worthless, that he had refined his blade art into something third-rate.

And now Libationer Bashan had carried the road he had carved out even farther, far enough to make the Heaven Blade Zaifu look at him with new eyes.

Within his blade art were hidden divine powers of tremendous might. His Overlord Blade was full of overbearing force; in close combat or at range, he was more than equal to it, and his strength was extraordinarily great — every blow Shen Mu took sent him flying a hundred or so zhang before he could steady himself.

Libationer Bashan pressed him step by step, his blade art changing in a thousand ways: now wrapped in divine fire, now in heavenly thunder; now a single slash sent down, and the blade light raised a vast ocean; now a sweeping cut, and primordial magnetism burst forth.

Shen Mu retreated again and again, fighting with extraordinary difficulty.

And within the Lanjiang Academy of Learning, Niu Sanduo and Green Ox stopped beating Dragon Qilin and Water Qilin, looked up, and praised in unison, "Fine blade art, fine divine power! Libationer Bashan is remarkable; the Fusion of Combat and Dharma is truly extraordinary. If it were applied to martial divine powers, it could raise martial might another level!"

Green Ox, both hooves on its hips, was smug. "My lord beats your lord, my godfather makes you yelp. Fat Dragon, let us see how you contend with me from now on!"

The old farmer and Zaifu came over and looked up. The old farmer said, "Your disciple's skill is not bad, but he is going to lose."

Yu Zhaoqing, his robes flowing with radiance, walked over and gazed up at the sky. "Why does the Martial Combat Heavenly Master say so? Libationer Bashan's Fusion of Combat and Dharma is a wonder of Jingping. In sheer power, few among the venerable gods are his match. I saw him contend with the Tiger Venerable, and even the Tiger Venerable could not take him down."

Zaifu explained, "To have brought the Fusion of Combat and Dharma this far is already no small feat. But to enter the Dao through blade art, to enter the Dao through martial arts, to enter the Dao through divine powers — to enter the Dao by all three paths at once is truly difficult. Though he is the founder of the Fusion of Combat and Dharma, his aptitude is not the equal of the Sixth Princess of the Ling family. As soon as Shen'er unleashes a divine power that has entered the Dao, he will be defeated."

The old farmer said, "He is too greedy. To achieve entry into the Dao by a single path already makes one rare in the world; how hard is it to enter the Dao by three? To say nothing else, those who have entered the Dao through martial arts are few. The Shen boy is one of them."

Even as he spoke, a clatter of footsteps came, and several more people climbed the mountain. A handsome youth stood atop a chest, and the chest had six legs and climbed the slope as though walking on flat ground.

Behind this strange chest was a youth with deer's legs, following at the side of a young man in purple.

"Xing Han." Zaifu gave a cold snort, and behind him his divine blade rang clear as it left its sheath.

The chest ran forward and came to a sudden halt before the crowd.

The youth on the chest had been gazing up at the battle in the sky all along; only at the sound of the blade did he withdraw his gaze. He said calmly, "Heaven Blade, you are no match for me."

Zaifu laughed heartily. "Who was it that year who had you running all over the ground? I hear you went to the South Sea to beg the Crimson Bright Divine Son to use his Creation divine power to recast your body for you. So you no longer go about seizing other people's bodies? Your body has only just grown out, has it not? I will not take advantage of you. If you want revenge, you may come find me at any time!"

Xing Han shook his head. "I have no interest in you. I have come to see Cult Master Shen... such a fascinating body..."

A feverish look came into his eyes as he gazed up at Shen Mu, who was trading fierce blows with Libationer Bashan in the sky.

The Crimson Bright Divine Son walked over and said with a smile, "Heaven Blade, do not misunderstand. Xing Han heard that Cult Master Shen had arrived, and he has a difficult problem he wishes to ask him to solve. His attainments in the Creation Mystic Art are not inferior to mine. He went to the South Sea to consult me, and though I helped him solve part of his problem, there were still flaws left in his wish to remake his body. I told him that Cult Master Shen is the highest master of the Way of Creation, and so he came as soon as he heard."

Xing Han said calmly, "In the Way of Creation, Cult Master Shen is first under heaven; the Crimson Bright Divine Son and I are tied for second."