Chongming Xianzong

Chapter 435 Appearance
When Yang Wuwei entered, Fu Neng's anger had subsided somewhat.

The latter, being a direct descendant of the Great Temple, was deeply hurt by Jiang Qing's unintentional and malicious schemes. Although he was unable to suppress his anger for the time being, he could not let his resentment control his actions forever.

Yang Wuwei, with his keen eyesight, naturally noticed this. Seeing that the angry expression on the Vajra phantom in front of Fu Neng had mostly disappeared, Yang Wuwei's heart sank instead.

"This will probably be even more difficult to fight now." Yang Wuwei sighed softly and summoned his signature spiritual weapon, the Crimson Scale Wave-Chasing Spear.

This magical artifact is related to Yang Yongcheng's experience two hundred years ago when he hunted a newly advanced third-tier demon beast, the Fire Rock Viper, in the Cold Crow Mountains.

To ensure thoroughness, Yang Yongcheng specially selected two pseudo-core cultivators and more than ten Foundation Establishment cultivators from the direct lineage of the Yang family to accompany him in this battle.

Although in the end they still failed to achieve anything, the Fire Rock Viper Spirit was wounded and fled, and more than half of the dozen or so Foundation Establishment cultivators were also lost, so much so that for a period of time afterward, when the Yang family's illegitimate and legitimate descendants fought, they all showed a mocking expression; however, Yang Yongcheng found the viper skin that the Fire Rock Viper Spirit shed when it advanced.

The viper hide material was already very close to the third-grade low-quality material. Yang Yongcheng did not disappoint. He found a skilled craftsman to carefully craft it, and used this second-grade viper hide as material to create several top-quality spiritual weapons.

The Crimson Scale Wave-Chasing Spear in Yang Wuwei's hand is one of them.

This magical weapon is made by melting various second-tier spiritual metals into the spear body, and then wrapping the spear body with a layer of second-tier viper skin. This not only enhances its protective function, but also improves the circulation of spiritual energy, greatly reducing the energy consumption when Foundation Establishment cultivators use it.

The spearhead was forged from a piece of dragon-patterned iron passed down in the Yang family of Yezhou, with a reverse wave pattern. The tassel was made by tanning viper whiskers. When it was swung, it made a sound like surging waves. It was indeed an extraordinary second-tier spiritual weapon.

Even Yang Yongcheng, who had cultivated to the Golden Core stage for many years, always kept this weapon by his side as a backup, rarely lending it to younger generations. It wasn't until Yang Wuwei was born and gradually became the most outstanding among the younger generation that the Crimson Scale Wave-Chasing Spear was fully handed over to the latter.

When an expert makes a move, Fu Neng's eyes change again.

A crimson glint flashed in the handsome monk's phoenix eyes as he thought to himself, "The first three formations were all mediocre, but who would have thought that the fourth formation, wielding jade axes, would suddenly become so much more skilled, making them formidable opponents."

I could sense that the fellow still had a trick up his sleeve that he hadn't yet used. If it weren't for his righteous cultivation and obvious flaws, it would probably take a lot of effort to defeat him.

The swordsman in the Five Formations, dressed in tight-fitting clothes, was a rare sight. No one could have guessed that a mid-stage True Cultivator from this remote and impoverished place could wield sword energy. That old bird must have been deliberately scheming against me, trying to lure me into a false sense of security. Otherwise, his half-baked sword energy, though fierce, could not have caused me such a great loss.

I thought each subsequent formation would be stronger than the last, but the sixth formation turned out to be all show and no substance, easily defeated. Yet this seventh formation, led by Yang Wuwei, seemed to be an extremely difficult opponent.

Fu Neng sighed inwardly, but outsiders could not hear it. Even this direct descendant of the great temple had his own unspeakable suffering. Before coming here, he never thought that he could overturn his carriage in a mere mountain road.

These disciples, who were at most from wealthy families, caused him a great deal of trouble, shattering his plan to force the group to surrender as soon as he made a move.

"We can't delay any longer. The longer we drag this out, the faster I'll lose my temper, while the people behind me will become more emboldened. This imbalance is too disadvantageous for me."

After figuring things out, Fu Neng stopped talking and simply put his palms together in response. Yang Wuwei dared not be negligent and prepared for battle, holding his Crimson Scale Wave-Chasing Spear in a defensive stance to counter Fu Neng's impending attack with his strange Buddhist teachings.

"Om!" With a loud Buddhist chant echoing through the training ground once more, the Vajra phantom, its body coated in a layer of bluish-purple karmic fire, attacked again. The vajra in its hand had also been restored to its original form. Although its aura had weakened considerably compared to its peak, it was still not to be underestimated.

At the same time that King Kong attacked, a loud noise also came from a corner of the training ground.

Yang Wuwei plunged his Crimson Scale Wave-Chasing Spear into the crack in the ground, the tip carving a deep pit in the jade brick. Three viper-like lights shot into the sky, swirled in the air for a while, and then fell back onto the spear, coiling around it endlessly.

Dark red scales appeared on the viper skin of the gun, merging with the viper's spiritual light to deflect the vajra wielded by the illusory image opposite.

"There's something to it!"

Fu Neng sat cross-legged on the lotus seat and murmured, and the Sea-Absorbing Ice Marrow Bowl was once again upside down, spewing out a large amount of ice mist.

With a rumble, ice walls rose up again from the jade bricks, but this time, they were somewhat different.

Within each ice crystal, sparks of bluish-purple karmic fire danced, a wondrous use that Fu Neng had acquired after mastering the two handy spiritual artifacts.

In the blink of an eye, the training ground was transformed into a fiery inferno, with icy shards and flames almost completely encroaching upon the vast training ground, leaving no blind spots.

Just as Fu Neng flicked his finger, a golden Sanskrit character fell from his fingertip and landed silently on the jade brick. However, this caused the karmic fire ice wall to surround Yang Wuwei from all four corners of the training ground.

The latter was not afraid. He simply formed a mysterious hand seal, causing the Crimson Scale Wave-Chasing Spear to emit spiritual light and suddenly tremble!
Suddenly, a sharp whistle came from the tip of the spear, and three viper-like beams of light once again broke free from the spear, growing to ten zhang in length.

The second-tier viper spirit rubbed violently against the ice crystals, and the rising purple mist corroded the ice wall, making it hiss and unable to withstand it; the thin mist coated with golden light on the Purifying Spirit Bottle also cracked into countless fragments of brilliance after a series of crisp "crack" sounds.

Fortunately, the Pure Land White Lotus remained as resilient as ever. The second-tier viper spirit, with its overwhelming momentum, landed on it but still returned empty-handed.

After witnessing this, Yang Wuwei frowned even more deeply, while Fu Neng's smile deepened. The hand seals in his hands suddenly changed, the Pure Karma Sweet Spirit Bottle tilted at a much greater angle, and the blood-red lotus unfolded its petals, oozing out large plumes of red mist.

A golden dewdrop once again flowed from the Pure Karma Sweet Spirit Bottle, mixing with the blood lotus mist and rising into the dark clouds overhead, where it condensed into a crimson spiritual rain.

Every drop of rain burned holes in the long jade brick. Yang Wuwei knew something was wrong and immediately formed a magic seal. His skin, which was originally as delicate as that of a courtesan, instantly sprouted countless blue scales, which gleamed coldly and were terrifying.

Yang Wuwei thought that this would be a complete solution, but he still looked pained as he stood in the rain.

As the crimson spiritual rain washed over him, large patches of blue scales and blood peeled off Yang Wuwei's body, and even the aura of this eldest son of the Yang family began to weaken.

"That monk's four magical weapons are not just used in one way; they can be used for both offense and defense! How much effort did the Xianyu family actually put in to make such a big show of things? They probably couldn't even force the monk to reveal his true abilities!"

My cousin has cultivated the clan's secret technique, the "Azure Scale Mountain-Carrying Technique," and has reached the peak of the Foundation Establishment stage for over twenty years. According to the elders, even ordinary cultivators with false cores would find it extremely difficult to harm him. How could this be?

Upon seeing this scene, the cultivators of the Yang family sighed and lamented incessantly, and even the two senior cultivators, Yang Baoshan and Yang Yongcheng, showed signs of distress.

Among the other Golden Core cultivators watching the battle, Wu Feng Shangxiu, due to his background, had traveled extensively throughout his years of cultivation, seeking opportunities. Therefore, although he came from the lowest social class among his peers, his knowledge and experience were not inferior.

With a casual wave of his hand, a wisp of spiritual energy emerged from his sleeve, condensing into a hand shape, and drifted towards the dark clouds above the two people in the arena, easily tearing off a strand.

Fu Neng was displeased, yet he still had the energy to look up. His eyes seemed to hold a blood-gold glint, making Wu Feng Shangxiu regret his rash actions.

But since the deed was already done, Wu Feng Shang Xiu knew that regret was useless and that he could not reveal his fear at this moment.

So he simply brought the wisp of dark cloud closer for a look without any expression, and then blurted out: "It really is a rain of rotting bones and blood."

Yang Baoshan recognized the name from the clan's records and exclaimed in surprise, "Isn't that the method used by cultivators of the Snow Region Tantric sect to achieve the Core Formation stage?"

“Yes, even most monks at the pseudo-core stage find it difficult to achieve true mastery in their entire lives.” Wu Feng Shangxiu waved his hand again, and the wisp of black cloud in his hand dispersed into vapor.

Upon hearing this, the Golden Core cultivators from each sect had different thoughts, but none of them spoke again or offered any judgment. Instead, they turned their attention back to the training ground.

Yang Wuwei offered up several high-grade spiritual artifacts, hoping to gain protection and buy himself a moment's respite. However, all his efforts were in vain, and he lost several useful spiritual artifacts in the process.

Left with no other choice, Yang Wuwei gritted his teeth. Just as he was about to perform a Xuanjutsu, the Crimson Scale Spear suddenly trembled violently, and several dazzling inscriptions appeared on the spearhead, which was forged with sea-sinking black gold.

The inscription was so hot that it melted the scales on Yang Wuwei's right hand, which was holding the spear.

Large spurts of blood spread wildly along the gun marks, making the second-tier viper skin even more vibrant.

Yang Wuwei's actions clearly indicated that he was about to unleash a remarkable technique, causing all the Yang family cultivators present who were familiar with the inside story to eagerly await his arrival. Unexpectedly, upon seeing this scene, Fu Neng uttered a Buddhist chant, his expression changing to a solemn one.

A Buddhist chant slowly emerged from Fu Neng's red lips and white teeth, but Yang Wuwei felt no peace, only annoyance.

Knowing that he would be unable to unleash his prepared techniques if disturbed by the Buddhist chants, Yang Wuwei had no choice but to divert his attention. A dazzling spiritual light shone from his sleeve, and a cyan longsword whistled out.

"Another talisman?" The usually stingy Sect Leader Kang couldn't hide his envy in his tone, thinking to himself, "Are talismans so worthless to these young masters? Everyone has one!"

The powerful rain of blood had no effect on the longsword. The azure blade was incredibly swift, and even the Vajra phantom couldn't stop it. The longsword shattered Fu Neng's various techniques and landed on the white lotus.

The unstoppable force of the cyan longsword ceased beyond the glowing petals of the Pure Land White Lotus. Fu Neng continued his incantation, allowing the Pure Land White Lotus to exert its power, causing the cyan longsword to fall silent, losing all its sharpness. Even the usually aloof Cao Xianlu was moved. He watched as Yang Wuwei's technique was about to take shape, but the Buddhist chanting disrupted his concentration, causing him to spit out a mouthful of blood. At the same time, the countless drops of blood raining down from above intensified.

Yang Wuwei's resolve faltered, his mind went blank. The green scales covering his body instantly lost their effectiveness and could no longer protect him, as large patches of blood rained off. Even though this blood rain was short-lived, Yang Wuwei still had no power to retaliate.

Seeing his opponent's defeat, Fu Neng could not feel any sympathy. He dispersed the flower-picking hand gesture, re-formed the Vidyaraja mantra mudra, and shouted "Hum!"

The sound startled Yang Wuwei, who was lost in the chaos. When he came to his senses, he saw a palm print that was ten feet tall come out of Fu Neng's hand.

The handprint had only been ten feet away from Yang Wuwei when it saw the scales on the latter's body fall off and explode.

A handsome young man from a distinguished family ended up with a bloody mess and a disheveled appearance, which is quite touching.

Under these circumstances, Yang Wuwei knew he could no longer fight. Being quite straightforward, he immediately raised his hand in surrender.

When Fei Nanying entered the training ground, Fu Neng did not dare to act rashly. However, seeing that Fei Nanying had casually revealed the Golden Buddha Hand and transferred it to him, he immediately bowed and paid his respects.

By this point, Fei Nanying had already grasped most of Fu Neng's abilities. He figured he would be no match for him before he formed his core, and even after saving Yang Wuwei this time, he was still filled with trepidation.

Cao Xianlu had served in Yingshan's army for quite some time, and Fei Nanying was well aware of his abilities. Objectively speaking, he was no match for this lewd monk.

After seven consecutive defeats, Fu Neng, despite employing numerous techniques, could hardly be considered to be in a state of decline. Given this situation, the expressions of the onlookers were naturally quite grim. In contrast, the Golden Core cultivators on the sidelines remained calm and composed.

Juntian Bird was the most composed of them all. It glanced at Fu Neng with great interest, as the latter's abilities were clearly much stronger than it had anticipated.

But having done all that could be done, Jun Tianqin had lost interest in the outcome of this battle, only muttering to himself, "The more outstanding this little monk's performance, the harder it will be for him to survive."

He glanced into the crowd and thought to himself, "There might be some real people hiding among them. Old man Grieg's good deeds are going to be ruined. Just don't die in my hands, lest it cause a lot of trouble later."

Cao Xianlu stepped onto the training ground in complete silence. He was in a hurry, and when he entered, the Buddhist chanting in the field had not yet dissipated.

Fu Neng smiled as he plucked a flower, while Cao Xianlu's face hardened. He suddenly waved his hand, and his brocade robes fell away, revealing him naked.

The ghost tiger tattoo spread from his neck to his right fist, and the ghostly energy activated by the "Ghost Tiger Prison Suppression Technique" etched tiger claw-shaped scorch marks into the ground. He stared at the four spiritual artifacts floating in mid-air, grinning to reveal his gleaming white teeth.

Even though Cao Xianlu looked ferocious and terrifying, Fu Neng could not possibly feel the slightest fear.

The Blood-Leaf Mountain Lotus took the lead in attacking, its petals transforming into crimson flying wheels.

Cao Xianlu neither dodged nor avoided, and a ghost tiger leaped out from behind him. The tiger's roar shattered three lotus petals and dissipated most of the remaining lotus petals' power.

The remaining flying wheels tried to embed themselves into his body, cutting him into pieces, but only sent up a string of sparks. Kang Dabao inwardly praised, "This Cao Xianlu also cultivates both body and magic; his physical body is far more refined than mine."

"You bald donkey, you certainly have some skill. Come on, come on, let's have a good fight!" Cao Xianlu laughed wildly, grabbed two lotus petals and threw them back. The sound of them tearing through the air was extremely shrill, like the roar of a demon.

Fu Neng did not shy away; he allowed the white lotus petals to swell up, taking all the red lotus petals into the lotus heart, and then remained silent.

Cao Xianlu's attack failed, and in his extreme anger, he unleashed a black rainbow wrapped around his body, and suddenly stabbed forward!

"Qiang!"

The karmic fire and evil beads narrowly blocked the fist aimed at the throat, while large gusts of bluish-purple karmic fire burned upwards along with the ghostly energy.

Cao Xianlu's right arm muscles bulged, the ghost tiger tattoo on his body glowed at the base of his nose, and he opened one vertical pupil. A burst of green ghost fire erupted from his pupil, forcing Fu Neng's karmic fire and evil pearls, which had been making a great show of themselves, to retreat with a mournful cry.

Exclamations came from the spectator stands. Among the cultivators present who were familiar with the Barbarian Ghost Sect's foundation, there was a clue: this was the "Netherworld Tiger Eyes," which could only be learned after thoroughly comprehending the Ghost Tiger Prison Suppression Technique.

It was only at this point in the battle that Fu Neng began to show signs of weakness. Despite not having the upper hand, the monk remained calm, simply setting aside his four handy magical artifacts and refusing to use them.

With a flick of his wrist, Fu Neng formed a hand seal, and another plain-colored lotus seed emerged from the heart of the white lotus, enveloped in Buddhist light, and fell to the ground. A vast expanse of Buddhist light spread out, causing the green ghost fire to swirl and extinguish, losing its power.

Cao Xianlu's face darkened, and the ghostly tiger phantom flew swiftly across the jade brick, leaving behind a trail of black footprints glowing with ghostly fire.

Before long, if viewed from the air, these footprints would be visible as forming a mysterious rune. They would then burn the remaining jade bricks to ashes and merge into one.

Suddenly, a dark brown light screen, several meters in diameter, appeared on the ground. A large amount of ghostly energy shot into the sky from the light screen and condensed into eighteen ghost soldiers holding spears. These ghostly soldiers moved with strange steps, creating a misty area outside the Buddha's light.

At this moment, Fu Neng finally frowned, spread his white fingers, and connected them. The treasure vase seal was formed on the spot, the pure white lotus suddenly trembled, the Buddha light was dazzling, and the dark mist greatly diminished.

"Break!" Cao Xianlu almost bit off half of his tongue, spraying his blood into the black pupils of the Ghost Tiger tattoo.

The phantom of the ghost tiger swelled dramatically, its tail sweeping the short pestle in the phantom of Vajra in two, its jaws biting the neck of the Vajra image. As the Buddhist light and ghostly energy intertwined to form a black and white vortex, cracks appeared on the red lotus beneath Fu Neng's body.

Fu Neng ignored it and chanted the Buddhist chants. The Buddha's light shone even brighter on the white lotus throne in the pure land, suppressing the group of ghost soldiers who had just appeared, as if their spines had been pulled out. They slumped down and could not exert their power.

The phantom of the ghost tiger was in even worse shape; its body, which had just swelled up, was shrunk back down. The Vajra showed no mercy whatsoever; he came over with his bare hands, grabbed the tiger's head, and pulled hard, severely damaging the long-raging ghost.

Seeing that the ghostly energy was condensing into a ball at the neck of the ghost tiger, and a brand new tiger head was about to be formed, Fu Neng chanted "Om" again. A beam of Buddhist light came out from the heart of the white lotus in the pure land and struck the neck of the ghost tiger without obstruction, pressing the tiger head that had already taken shape and was about to leap out back into its belly.

After all this was done, under the pure white lotus light of Buddha, the cracks in the red lotus beneath Fu Neng's seat had been restored to normal.

Now the monk has regained all his skills, while Cao Xianlu is showing signs of decline.

"Tiger Devour!" Cao Xianlu's arms bulged with veins, and the incomplete ghost tiger phantom enveloped him again. Dense ghost energy rapidly poured into Cao Xianlu's body from his seven orifices, and soon, a layer of tiger-striped black armor covered the body of this battle-hardened warrior.

The eighteen halberd-wielding ghost soldiers roused themselves and charged forward in formation, shrieking as they did so.

No matter how Cao Xianlu changed his appearance, Fu Neng remained completely calm. The monk composed himself, thought, "What a murderous bastard!" Then he flicked his finger and shouted, "Hum!"

The pure white lotus of Buddha's light reappeared, ruthlessly reducing the ghost soldiers to ashes. Cao Xianlu himself was not spared either; the tiger-striped black armor that had been attached to him vanished like the first snow or the blazing sun when it was struck by the Buddha's light.

Even his incredibly strong physique couldn't protect him completely; his skin, flesh, and bones were cracked all over from the Buddha's light. Anyone with eyes could see that if Cao Xianlu continued fighting, he would likely not survive.

Even outsiders can see it clearly, let alone ourselves?
But this battle-hardened veteran gritted his teeth and endured for a while, fighting until no more ghostly energy could be emitted from his body, before finally crushing his iron teeth and swallowing them along with the blood.

Feeling the spiritual light clinging to the broken teeth scraping his intestines to shreds, Cao Xianlu regained a sliver of clarity amidst the intense pain from the inside out. He could no longer hold on; he spat out a mouthful of scalding blood and raised his hand in surrender.

"Damn it, I can't get my hands on the beast core!"

Fu Neng's forehead was covered in sweat, and his monk's robes were soaked through. Fei Nanying, expressionless, picked up Cao Xianlu and took him out of the arena to be treated by the Ying Shan army's medical officer before returning to the arena and calmly saying, "In this battle, Fu Neng wins!"

Having said that, he didn't even spare Fu Neng a moment of rest.

Fei Nanying ignored the sighs and groans of the onlookers and casually beckoned Kang Dabao, who should have been on high alert but was hiding in the crowd, to come close to him.

In an instant, countless eyes fell upon this imposing man.

After observing the eight formations, Jun Tianqin did not say a word to the person facing off. However, he did speak up at this moment, instructing: "Make sure you do a good job. If you win this battle, it may save you a hundred years of wasted time!"

Kang Dabao respectfully agreed, bowed his head in gratitude, and then turned to look at the handsome monk with red lips and white teeth in the center of the room.

"Kang Dabao, the sect leader of Chongming Sect, greets fellow Daoist!"

(End of this chapter)