Talisman arts and formations, though each had its own merits, ultimately led to the same destination. As external objects, they were both means that could help a cultivator overcome a superior, allowing the weak to defeat the strong. A single ninth-grade formation was enough to allow Lu Yang to gain the upper hand when fighting someone.
And a single ninth-grade talisman, even if it could not compare to a ninth-grade formation, was enough to make Yun Miaozhen treat it with the utmost seriousness; it was by no means something that could be dealt with casually.
To say nothing of the fact that Lu Yang had just scattered nearly five hundred talismans with a wave of his hand. Activated all at once, their might was truly enough to make heaven and earth change color.
Although talismans would inevitably turn to ash after being activated in battle, leaving not a single trace behind, making them consumables, many people were therefore extremely protective of their talismans. Lu Yang, however, was not among them.
If his talismans were used up, the worst that could happen was he would have the banner spirits work overtime later to rush-produce a new batch.
Boom! Rumble!
In an instant, sword qi shot across the sky and the sound of thunder rolled. Countless talismanic lights, as swift as lightning, swarmed around Yun Miaozhen, as if a thousand knives and axes were descending upon her body. Seeing this, Yun Miaozhen could only helplessly shift to defense.
The next second, a qi light steamed forth, transforming into a silver treasured canopy that firmly protected Yun Miaozhen beneath it, blocking all the talismans on the outside. However, this was only temporary. The talismans did not consume Lu Yang's magical power, whereas Yun Miaozhen's use of the Supreme Taiyi Golden Flower Pill Scripture was a massive drain.
As one side waned and the other waxed, the qi light around her body was immediately diced and shredded by the countless talismans. She could only manage to raise another essence light to barely protect herself.
"Slash."
Lu Yang naturally had no thoughts of pitying the fairer sex. The Sword Qi Talismans and Five Thunders Talismans fell in unison, instantly tearing apart the protective rosy garment on Yun Miaozhen's body. In that moment, the rosy garment shattered, scattering like rain and revealing a large expanse of snow-white skin.
"Ah!"
Yun Miaozhen was so furious her pretty face turned crimson. Her skin, like suet-white jade, trembled violently. She subconsciously wanted to cover herself, but Lu Yang's attacks kept her too occupied to free a hand.
"Demon! You court death!"
Yun Miaozhen's expression twisted. At her young age, she had already stepped into the ninth level of the Qi Refining Realm and had even mastered a Great Divine Ability of the Jade Pivot Sword Pavilion, ranking among the True Disciples. As a Foundation Establishment seed of the sect, she had always been high and mighty, cold and proud.
When had she ever fallen into such a sorry state? Seeing this, the corner of Lu Yang's mouth lifted slightly.
"Daoist, you are truly a beauty of national grace."
Although Yun Miaozhen tried her best to cover up, it was merely an act of self-deception. She could not hide from his discerning eyes at all. He took in everything he was and was not supposed to see.
Yun Miaozhen was extremely sensitive to being watched and instantly grew even more frantic. What infuriated her even more was that Lu Yang actually revealed a look of disgust.
"In broad daylight, what is this behavior? Daoist, do you call this a famous righteous sect?"
While speaking, Lu Yang continued to manipulate the talismans to attack Yun Miaozhen. His verbal provocations were merely a tactic to disturb her state of mind. His sole objective was to kill the enemy.
As expected, being so humiliated by Lu Yang, on top of the fact that she had clearly held the upper hand moments before, only to be beaten until she was barely clothed by his profligate spending, these various emotions finally ignited the heart-fire within Yun Miaozhen, causing a tiny flaw to appear in her Dao heart.
"Now is the time...!"
Lu Yang naturally did not miss the instant Yun Miaozhen's Dao heart wavered and her mind fell into a trance. He immediately formed a hand seal, and a round halo of light suddenly appeared behind his head. As the round light shone through, the scene in Lu Yang's eyes changed abruptly.
In the place where he and Yun Miaozhen had just been fighting fiercely, countless auras belonging to Yun Miaozhen suddenly appeared. These were all the traces she had left behind.
"Profound Yin Form-Seizing, nail the head and claim the life..."
With a thought, the round light immediately shone upon a cluster of Yun Miaozhen's aura, seizing it and then reflecting her graceful figure. The next second, Lu Yang did not hesitate. He formed a sword with his fingers and slashed.
It was still a vertical chop. The round light split into two, and the figure of Yun Miaozhen within the light was also divided. An invisible force then swiftly acted upon Yun Miaozhen's true body.
Crack!
Suddenly, with the faint sound of splitting skin, a clear line of blood appeared on Yun Miaozhen's snow-white and delicate forehead, which was like carved ivory. Immediately after, the line of blood began to widen...
"... Don't you dare!"
In an instant, Yun Miaozhen's pupils shrank drastically. A blush spread across her snow-white skin, her elegant eyebrows shot up, and a golden light suddenly burst forth from her beautiful eyes.
The next second, Yun Miaozhen actually withdrew the "divine light" that was in a stalemate with the Heavenly Demon Transforming Blood Divine Light, and then also gathered the "qi light" and "essence light."
At this moment, the three brilliant lights instantly became one, transforming into a magnificent golden light that shot up from the ground, making her look like a goddess descending from the nine heavens. The three lights united, Supreme Taiyi Golden Flower!
In that moment, Lu Yang felt that the Yun Miaozhen before him had suddenly grown "taller"... not "taller" in a physical sense, but on a dimensional level.
‘This is a Great Divine Ability!?’
If before Yun Miaozhen had only been using the several superior divine abilities that made up the Great Divine Ability, now she had managed to activate the true Great Divine Ability. This was a completely different feeling.
Under the empowerment of the Supreme Taiyi Golden Flower, Yun Miaozhen seemed to have broken away from this mortal world, gradually ascending to stand at a completely different height from Lu Yang. The two of them, one high, one low. Lu Yang was extremely familiar with this kind of disparity.
Although it was far from as terrifying as that day, it still gave him a bit of the chilling feeling he had when he first met Daoist Hongyun! Just then, Yun Miaozhen moved.
She gently raised her fair hand, and the Profound Yin Form-Seizing Great Art that was originally acting upon her was immediately and forcefully deflected onto another person with a similar aura. Her twin sister, Yun Miaoqing!
The next second, the line of blood on Yun Miaozhen's forehead healed rapidly, while Yun Miaoqing, who was outside the cave-heaven and still unconscious, suddenly split open.
"Ruthless enough, decisive enough."
Seeing this scene, Lu Yang immediately mocked, "Daoist, you act quite swiftly. The moment you face danger, you decisively kill your own kin to protect yourself. Is this the righteous path of the Sword Pavilion?"
"This is Miaoging's tribulation. Do not twist black and white."
Yun Miaozhen's tone returned to indifference.
"You harmed her cultivation, causing her to fail her tribulation. That is why she faces today's calamity. You are the true culprit."
Lu Yang burst out laughing.
"Daoist, you are quite thick-skinned. Your talent is wasted in the Sword Pavilion. You really should come to my Saint Sect!"
Yun Miaozhen remained unmoved, but the killing intent in her beautiful eyes grew even more chilling. She said coldly, "Sharp-tongued demon. Today, I will enact justice on behalf of Heaven!"
The next second, the Supreme Taiyi Golden Flower that Yun Miaozhen had condensed collapsed with a roar. Like toppling a golden mountain and pushing down a jade pillar, it fiercely swept towards Lu Yang and all the talismans he had activated.
In an instant, Lu Yang's figure, along with the hundreds of talismans, were all swept away as if they were a mantis trying to stop a chariot! This change was like words in a book being wiped away by an eraser.
There was no corpse, no residual aura, not even a trace was left behind, as if he had never appeared in this world to begin with. Immediately after, the Supreme Taiyi Golden Flower vanished, revealing Yun Miaozhen's staggering figure. However, at this moment, the face of this favored daughter of heaven was ashen to the extreme.
"Pfft! Ugh..."
As soon as Yun Miaozhen landed, she violently spat out a mouthful of blood. Then, the brilliant light all over her body collapsed with a boom, and she could no longer condense even a sliver of it.
"It's gone... all gone."
Yun Miaozhen's red lips trembled slightly, showing no joy of victory. This was the price for using a secret art to forcefully activate the Supreme Taiyi Golden Flower when her cultivation level had not yet reached the Perfection of Qi Refining.
The three brilliant lights of her essence, qi, and spirit had all shattered, and decades of arduous cultivation had been utterly consumed by fire. The once clear Immortal Path to Foundation Establishment was now cast in a layer of gloom.
Yun Miaozhen sighed in lamentation and was about to leave the cave-heaven, but just then, she saw an unbelievable figure suddenly appear.
"Daoist, the outcome is not yet decided. Are you leaving already?"
Lu Yang appeared, handsome and elegant, his wide sleeves fluttering. Although his True Qi was also greatly depleted and his magical power severely consumed, there was not a single injury on his entire body!
"This is impossible!"
Yun Miaozhen's beautiful face lost all color, and her usually crisp and pleasant voice became sharp.
"That was the Supreme Taiyi Golden Flower! How could you possibly have blocked it?"
Lu Yang, of course, would not tell her. He was right. Relying on his own divine abilities alone, Lu Yang could not have blocked that Supreme Taiyi Golden Flower.
A true Great Divine Ability already possessed a sliver of the might of the Foundation Establishment Realm. What blocked it was a talent.
[Purple Talent: Got a Trick or Two] [Got a Trick or Two: No matter how terrifying the attack you encounter, as long as it is within the limits of your ability, you can handle it with ease for two moves.]
This was the talent he obtained in his previous life after he drew his sword and angrily slew the Heaven Mending Peak Master, then started over! If Yun Miaozhen could have controlled the Supreme Taiyi Golden Flower to sweep four or five times in a row, he would have undoubtedly died. But she could only do it once...
In that case, he could not be blamed for using a cheat! Although it was only for two moves, those two moves were truly something else! Lu Yang smiled calmly.
He first snatched the Supreme Firmament Mirror into his hand, then walked up to Yun Miaozhen and used the mirror's light to immobilize her entire body on the spot. Yun Miaozhen subconsciously began to struggle, glaring at Lu Yang.
"What are you going to do!?"
"To be honest, I am very interested in the Supreme Taiyi Golden Flower Pill Scripture."
"I will not tell you anything!"
"Rest assured, you will tell me."
Lu Yang gave a cold laugh.
"I am a disciple of the Saint Sect, after all..."
"... A pity, it's not the complete version."
Lu Yang closed his eyes and comprehended for a moment, then shook his head helplessly.
"Only one-third. The remaining parts have restrictions on them, I really can't get them."
The next second, he looked at Yun Miaozhen again. Seeing this, Yun Miaozhen clenched her silver teeth, yet she dared not show the slightest resentment. She could only force a fawning smile.
"You've already gotten the cultivation technique, isn't that enough..."
Lu Yang's face was filled with disgust.
Boom!
Before Yun Miaozhen could finish speaking, Lu Yang shook the Supreme Firmament Mirror. In an instant, wind and thunder raged, blasting her graceful and delicate body into fine powder on the spot.
(End of this chapter)