Chapter 582 — I Was Originally a Zha

"What a magnificent world!"

Wang Muran, Daoist Master Lin Xuan, and the others gazed about in every direction. The Taikang Heaven was truly splendid—vast altars scattered across the land sent black radiance streaming up to connect with the firmament, and two suns hung in the sky. They could not stop marveling, utterly unaware that those beams of black light were the phenomenon caused by the arrival of the Ancestor of the Demon Clans from Youdu.

"I heard that the sun here was once unbearable to look upon, so I never dared come," said Daoist Master Lin Xuan with a smile. "Now that Imperial Preceptor Jingping has recreated the sun, I finally dare set foot here."

They arrived outside Licheng, where soldiers came forward to interrogate them. Upon hearing they were divine power users from Jingping, the soldiers hastily said, "Demons have been appearing frequently of late, so we must enforce strict precautions. Forgive our offense."

Wang Muran looked around and saw troops drilling outside the city, war banners waving in the air, divine power users darting like wild boars through the massive battle formations. Every one of them possessed remarkable cultivation and formidable combat strength, and he could not help but itch for a challenge.

"Murran, calm yourself," said the Hermit of Qingyou Mountain. "The Taikang Heaven's lineage is complete, a notch above Jingping's. Though you have learned some inheritances from Fengdu, you are still slightly inferior to the divine power users of Taikang Heaven. If you wish to spar with someone, you must find a divine power user one realm below you."

Wang Muran was quite unconvinced. He shook his head and said, "Martial Uncle, among all of Jingping, apart from Sect Master Shen, I yield to no one of my own realm!"

Daoist Master Lin Xuan's brow twitched, and he coughed.

Wang Muran turned to look at him and said unhurriedly, "Does Daoist Master Lin have an objection?"

Daoist Master Lin Xuan smiled faintly. "Without fighting, how do you know you yield to no one of your realm?"

A hazy light gleamed in Wang Muran's eyes. "You have a point. Though you and I are both leaders of the Heaven Alliance, we have never tested ourselves against each other. After all, you are the Daoist Master of the Dao Sect, too lofty in station, while I am merely an apprentice of Xiaoyujing. But your lofty position means you rarely have the chance to act. I very much doubt whether you can still fight."

Daoist Master Lin Xuan said leisurely, "You have fought many people, but all of them were weaker than you. Sometimes, one bout with a strong opponent is worth a hundred bouts with mediocrity. What does Senior Brother Muran think?"

The two men's tempers gradually flared, and they were about to come to blows when suddenly a terrifying boom rang out. Everyone hurried to look, and saw two female generals clashing within the battle formation—none other than Princess Ling Yuxiu of Jingping and Holy Maiden Si Yunxiang of the Heavenly Saint Cult.

These two women belonged to different camps in the drilling battle formation, and the moment they met they fell into fierce combat. Ling Yuxiu stamped her foot heavily, sending earth flying, and instantly countless thunderbolts appeared in the sky. The thunderbolts formed a massive vortex, and one thunder azure dragon after another danced within it.

Boom—

The two women collided, lightning and thunder interweaving. Ling Yuxiu swung her hammer, and countless thunder azure dragons descended from the heavens. Her divine power erupted with a might that made the corners of Wang Muran's and Daoist Master Lin Xuan's eyes twitch.

Ling Yuxiu walked the path of merging combat techniques with Daoist arts, her Daoist divine powers hidden within her combat techniques. She tempered her body with thunder light, and her mana was incomparably profound. Every strike she unleashed carried a fearsome divine power.

Her opponent Si Yunxiang walked the path of hiding swords within divine powers. Si Yunxiang had inherited the Heavenly Saint Cult's advantage of bizarre and unpredictable divine powers. In cultivation she was inferior to Ling Yuxiu, but by combining the Heavenly Saint Cult's various divine powers, her might was by no means insignificant.

"Sect Master is so partial, passing the Ancestral Dragon Supreme Mystery Art to you! Xiuyatou, even if you kill me, I am still the legitimate widow of the Sect Master!"

"Xiangyatou, you the Sect Master's widow? I am the one who was properly married to him in ceremony! Even by rank, you could only be second! The cowherd and I were childhood sweethearts and exchanged tokens of love long ago—this great hammer is the very one he gave me!"

"Bah! What kind of love token is a great hammer? The Sect Master and I were the ones who secretly pledged ourselves to each other—he gave me his Chubao Sword!"

"Bah! The Chubao Sword was clearly extorted from him, and you even sold it!"

…

Daoist Master Lin Xuan, Wang Muran, and the others stared wide-eyed as the two girls unleashed all manner of divine powers and Daoist arts within the battle formation, their might truly terrifying. But the two women had fought themselves into a fury, and though the battle formation shifted and transformed, they did not follow its changes in position, still locked in their private duel.

Suddenly another girl with a long braid charged between the two women, separating them. "Elder Sisters, this is a drill, not a real fight to the death!"

"Sang Hua, you want to interfere too?"

The three women fought until heaven and earth seemed to split apart. Lin Xuan and Wang Muran were aghast. They exchanged a glance, their hearts heavy. They did not recognize Sang Hua, but Ling Yuxiu and Si Yunxiang were very familiar to them. These two girls were also members of the Heaven Alliance—outstanding, yes, but somewhat inferior in strength to themselves.

Ling Yuxiu and Si Yunxiang had entered Taikang Heaven one step ahead of them, by only a month or so. Yet in that brief time, the two girls' cultivation and strength had advanced by leaps and bounds, and they felt the pressure.

"A month apart, and we might already be no match for them. Why should we fight over who wins and who loses?"

Daoist Master Lin Xuan smiled bitterly. "For now, let us honestly play the part of students and learn the Taikang Heaven's way of cultivation."

Wang Muran nodded. "Princess Xiu and Holy Maiden Xiang could improve so greatly in such a short time—that shows Jingping's cultivation system truly has great deficiencies. As long as we remedy those deficiencies, we too will experience a leap in strength!"

The battle formation evolved, and several more armies charged onto the field. Daoist Master Lin Xuan looked and saw that among the drilling troops were many scholars of Jingping—Wei Yong, Shen Yu, Shen Wanyun, Yue Qinghong, and others—whose strength had also advanced by leaps and bounds, their combat power greatly increased, filling them with even more pressure.

"Xu Shenghua entered Taikang Heaven a few days before us. That fellow is clever—he has probably already grasped the profound mysteries of Taikang Heaven's cultivation, and likely can pass the trial of the Suppressing Spirit Pagoda with ease."

They walked into the city and saw many academies of the Heavenly Saint Academy lining both sides of the street. Scholars of the academy were inside listening to Taikang Heaven's gods or powerhouses of the Spirit Bridge realm expound the way of cultivation.

"Sect Master Shen truly knows how to scheme!"

Daoist Master Lin Xuan was stunned for a moment, then looked at the old Daoists and Daoist nuns beside him. "Our Dao Sect is too closed off. The Taikang Heaven's way of cultivation must be learned, or we will be suppressed by the Heavenly Saint Cult and never lift our heads again. Sect Master Shen's method is excellent—if it is useful, then learn it."

Danyangzi and the others all voiced their agreement.