Outside the Skull Mountain Market, inside a temporarily opened cave residence. Seven-colored rosy light steamed and swirled, and within it, a woman of heavenly beauty was sitting in meditation, regulating her breath. With each breath, the rosy light gathered.
After a moment, all the rosy light finally merged into one. Immediately after, the colors of the seven-hued rosy light gradually fused, finally transforming into a supremely pure and clean, unblemished, pure white divine light that shone down.
"I've succeeded!"
The pure white divine light solidified, and the woman within the rosy light immediately opened her eyes, a look of joy on her face.
"Seven-Colored Pure Light Qi, I've reached Qi Refining Perfection."
The art she cultivated was passed down by an elder of the Saint Sect. The "Seven-Colored Pure Light Qi" she refined appeared pure white, but was actually formed from the fusion of seven rosy lights: red, orange, yellow, green, azure, blue, and violet. Each rosy light signified one refinement.
After seven refinements, the grade of her True Qi was a full fourth grade!
"With this, there's hope for Foundation Establishment."
Fairy Feixia sighed with emotion. As for a fourth-grade True Qi having no chance at the Golden Core, it didn't affect her much. In any case, she never had extravagant hopes for the Great Dao of the Golden Core.
"Finding a piece of Rosy Cloud Gathering Stone this time was truly a fortunate encounter."
"It's just a pity about Junior Brother Lu. Cultivation is an act of defying the heavens. If he had left the market with me, perhaps he too would have had some hope of reaching Qi Refining Perfection."
Having broken through, Fairy Feixia's thoughts changed once again. Previously, she had entrusted herself to Lu Yang because he guarded the market and could rival a cultivator at the great circle of Qi Refining. But now that she had broken through, Lu Yang was no longer that important.
After all, "rivaling" was ultimately not as good as the real thing. Without his formations, Lu Yang's strength seemed rather insufficient in her eyes. Moreover, Fairy Feixia was dissatisfied with Lu Yang's overly cautious behavior before, feeling that it was just an excuse for his lack of strength.
Rumble!
Just then, the ground suddenly shook violently. Above in the sky, a spiritual tide surged, and rolling spiritual energy swept over, nearly causing Fairy Feixia to stumble and fall.
"What's happening!"
Fairy Feixia quickly rode her escaping light into the air, looking towards the distant center of the abnormality where the spiritual tide was surging. Her pretty face then changed abruptly.
"The market?"
Rummmble!
A second loud bang, and another wave of the spiritual tide, as if someone had detonated a spiritual energy bomb. Fairy Feixia hurriedly protected herself with her Seven-Colored Pure Light Qi. However, compared to the vast might of heaven and earth, her Seven-Colored Pure Light Qi was ultimately lacking that most crucial step.
Her fourth-grade True Qi struggled to hold its ground. For a moment, she was like a small boat in a violent storm, constantly swaying. The divine light, originally pure white, was even beaten until it gradually revealed its seven colors.
"This is... the aftershock of a fight!?"
While bringing out her Rosy Cloud Gauze Hood to stabilize herself, Fairy Feixia's face showed terror.
"To be able to cause such a phenomenon... someone is fighting fiercely in the market?"
Junior Brother Lu can't be dead, can he? Fairy Feixia's heart grew cold. She immediately flew towards the market, only to see from afar that at the center of the spiritual tide, a figure was being besieged by a group of people.
There were three attackers. After recognizing them, Fairy Feixia's expression became even more shocked.
"The 'Supreme Taiyi Sword' Yun Zhiqiu from the Jade Pivot Sword Pavilion, the 'Heaven-Toppling Strongman' Ouyang Feng from the Divine Martial Sect, and the Rogue Cultivator 'Demon-Subduing Zen Master' Ming Chan... They're working together!?"
Where her gaze fell, above the Skull Mountain Market, a blood-colored sword formation blotted out the sky. Myriad streams of blood light transformed into a lifelike eight-clawed true dragon with distinct scales and claws. It charged left and right, whipped its tail and swung its horns, and finally let out a sudden dragon's roar.
It was this roar that stirred up the spiritual tide.
"Break!"
Each eruption of the spiritual tide would force Yun Zhiqiu, Ouyang Feng, and Ming Chan to retreat temporarily, but they would soon rally and press forward again.
"Amitabha Buddha, I did not expect Benefactor Lu to have such a fortuitous encounter... Third-grade True Qi!"
Ming Chan placed his palms together, a trace of surprise showing on his usually calm face. Third-grade True Qi... that was already at the level of a True Disciple of the great sects! Thinking of this, Ming Chan's expression grew even more compassionate.
"Benefactor, you truly have a karmic connection with this humble monk. This time, as I send you into the cycle of reincarnation, I must ask for your third-grade true art. When you reincarnate and return in the future, I can then return the cultivation technique to you intact, fulfilling the master-disciple fate between us."
"Bald donkey, you're courting death!"
Lu Yang sneered, and the great dragon formed from his True Qi roared once more. At the same time, the Blood Sun Sword Pellet also appeared, and the sword formation on it expanded with a boom.
"Good, good. We are carrying out justice on behalf of heaven. Why must you struggle in vain, Benefactor?"
Seeing this, Ming Chan did not fight head-on. He immediately shook his kasaya, and the seven treasures on it, such as the Ruyi Pearl, Mani Pearl, and Dust-Repelling Pearl, instantly burst forth with brilliant Buddhist light. Relying on this protective Buddhist light, he retreated calmly, avoiding being drawn into Lu Yang's sword formation.
In fact, the Blood Sun Sword Pellet was largely responsible for Lu Yang's ability to hold on until now. After all, the grand formation within the sword pellet could guarantee a hit with the Heavenly Demon Transforming Blood Divine Light, which was extremely powerful. Whenever he was at a disadvantage, he could use it to turn the tide.
Of course, if he really failed, there was also the Hundred Skeletons Returning to True Grand Formation to save his life, allowing him to make a comeback. Besides that, there was also the reason that none of the three were willing to go all out. 'They are afraid of my Profound Yin Form-Seizing Great Art.'
Lu Yang knew this well. The more intense the fight, the more likely one's aura would leak. And once he caught it, it would surely be a fatal blow.
Therefore, the plan of Yun Zhiqiu and the other two was simple: to wear Lu Yang down. They were, after all, three cultivators at the great circle of Qi Refining, and their combat prowess was not weak.
At this moment, with the three of them joining forces against someone at the eighth level of Qi Refining, their chances of victory were one hundred percent. Even with Lu Yang relying on two grand formations, it was futile.
"If I were only at the eighth level of Qi Refining, that would indeed be the case."
Lu Yang's gaze shifted slightly. He looked up at the sky, and a sudden realization dawned in his heart: It is today, it is now, I should charge the barrier and break through! The next second, Lu Yang tilted his head back and let out a long cry.
And at this moment, his True Qi expanded violently. He was actually charging towards the ninth level of Qi Refining! Seeing this, Yun Zhiqiu and the others were stunned for a moment, then they sneered, "Ignorant fool!
Breaking through during a fight? You've read too many storybooks, haven't you?" Breaking through during a fight was no different from courting death!
Which cultivator did not sit in quiet seclusion when breaking through? This was because during a breakthrough, True Qi would erupt, requiring one's full concentration. But if you were in a fight, with external enemies disturbing you, how could you possibly focus your mind on breaking through?
However, just at this moment, high above Skull Mountain. From a certain "high and lofty" place, a gaze descended, looking down upon the people within Skull Mountain as if observing dolls on a sand table.
"Interesting. He has guts... and knows how to assess the situation. Not bad."
Daoist Master Yinshan chuckled lightly, then reached out his hand and flicked it gently, as if plucking a string. The situation, which had been certain death, suddenly changed! This change was felt most deeply by Lu Yang alone.
Just a moment ago, he had felt his True Qi in disarray. Forcibly breaking through without enough preparation, it was highly likely he would suffer cultivation deviation. But suddenly, everything changed.
The 'disorder' of his True Qi was just right, as if by a stroke of great luck, it perfectly met the requirements for a breakthrough. The bottleneck was also 'unexpectedly' not as difficult as imagined and was broken through by his charge.
And his state of mind, it was a stroke of genius, as if by 'instinct', he stabilized his cultivation level after the breakthrough. A coincidence, an unbelievable stroke of good luck! Is this what it feels like to be a "Son of Heaven"?
When luck arrives, heaven and earth lend their strength. He didn't even need to do anything intentionally to achieve the desired result!
Rumble!
The next second, under the stunned gazes of Yun Zhiqiu and the other two, Lu Yang brazenly broke through, successfully cultivating the final transformation of the "Nine Transformations Dragon Transformation Art"—the Flying Fish Transformation. And the Flying Fish Transformation's main purpose was to "break through barriers"! Therefore, Lu Yang did not pause for a moment.
The True Qi that had just broken through expanded once more, and under the enhancement of the Flying Fish Transformation, it charged towards the bottleneck of the tenth level of Qi Refining! And then, he 'naturally' broke through again! Nine Transformations become a dragon, Qi Refining Perfection!
"Roar!"
In that instant, a clear and resonant dragon's roar echoed throughout Skull Mountain! The sound washed over Yun Zhiqiu and the others, revealing their stiff and astonished faces.
"This is impossible... No! Is there a Daoist Master stirring up karma?"
The next second, Yun Zhiqiu and the other two finally reacted, their faces showing alarm. Lu Yang stood proudly in the air. He then turned to look at the three of them, revealing a grim smile.
"Understand now? This is what I call carrying out justice on behalf of heaven!"
When a Foundation Establishment Daoist Master has a thought, heaven and earth are henceforth greatly changed! To Qi Refining cultivators, a Foundation Establishment Daoist Master is heaven. Whoever has a Daoist Master as their backer is the true Son of Heaven, the one truly carrying out justice on behalf of heaven!
"Amitabha Buddha..."
The next second, without another word, Ming Chan shook his kasaya. Buddhist light flashed explosively, and his figure was the first to disappear.