Daily Intelligence: From Water Snake to Jinghe Dragon King

Although Taiyi Zhenren had only exchanged one blow with Liu Qing, the shock he felt was beyond words.

He originally thought that with his late-stage Great Luo Realm cultivation and numerous spiritual treasures, he could capture Liu Qing instantly and then use the power of a great victory to force Liu Qing to agree to release Nezha.

But to everyone's surprise, the moment they clashed, Taiyi Zhenren's plans fell through.

This snake demon who dared to join the Jie Sect had an extremely ordinary background and had not been cultivating for long, so why does he now possess such terrifying combat power?

They actually managed to fight back and forth.

The great supernatural powers of three heads and six arms, the great supernatural powers of law and earth, as well as various spells and the profound Shangqing magic power, each of which left Taiyi Zhenren speechless.

More importantly, Liu Qing's divine power was extremely terrifying. Every move he wielded with his magical treasures seemed capable of destroying the heavens and the earth. To defend himself, he had to exert almost all his strength.

It should be understood that when powerful beings in the Three Realms cultivate to the end, their combat strength depends partly on their cultivation level, partly on the spiritual treasures they possess, and partly on their physical strength.

Don't underestimate this power. It seems ordinary to everyone from mortals to demons to immortals. But if you cultivate this power to its limit, it becomes extremely terrifying. Moreover, if you use this power as the Dao fruit and attain enlightenment, it will definitely be the most supreme Dao in the Three Realms.

Pangu was able to create the world by following the path of strength. If our ancestors and masters hadn't lacked good fortune, how could they have only followed the path of merit and virtue instead of the path of strength?
The reason is that the path of this Great Path of Power is too difficult. It requires not only a great deal of good fortune and luck, but also a strong will. Constrained by these two aspects, since Pangu, no great power in the Three Realms has ever dared to walk this Great Path of Power.

Otherwise, as the top, or even the number one, Dao, how could it not make many powerful figures envious? They simply don't have that ability.

Unexpectedly, he now saw the rudiments of the Great Dao of Power in Liu Qing.

Although it is still in its infancy, the terrifying divine power it displays is enough to make its combat strength extremely frightening.

He was able to fight on equal terms with me, a veteran powerhouse in the late stage of the Great Luo Realm, despite having the cultivation of a Divine Realm cultivator and spanning three major realms.

Fighting the strong with the weak, and crossing borders in battle—this is the rudimentary form of the great principle of power.

Taiyi Zhenren was in a state of shock, feeling pressured by the combat power displayed by Liu Qing, rather than fearing defeat. After all, no matter how terrifying the Great Dao of Power was, or how strong the combat power displayed was, it could not last.

What Taiyi Zhenren was worried about was that today's events would be difficult to resolve amicably.

If he couldn't subdue Liu Qing by force, then he couldn't force Liu Qing to let Nezha go. Was he just going to stand by and watch his beloved disciple Nezha fall into Liu Qing's hands and be destroyed, soul and body?
How could Taiyi Zhenren not know what was happening today? He had been deceived by Nezha, and he knew that Nezha was not a person who respected his teacher. Yet, for some reason, he had liked him very much from the first time he saw him, and even now, he still regarded him in his heart as the cute boy he first met a thousand years ago.

During the Investiture of the Gods, all the disciples of the Chan Sect treated their new disciples as substitutes for calamities, but only Taiyi Zhenren treated Nezha as a true disciple and genuinely cared for him.

With a thousand thoughts racing through his mind, Taiyi Zhenren was not fully engaged in the battle, and thus gradually, Liu Qing gained the upper hand.

Liu Qing let out a cold shout and, taking advantage of Taiyi Zhenren's distraction, suddenly added another Warrior Talisman, instantly boosting his combat power once again.

The Panlong Eight-Tone Cone, with the momentum of creating the world, smashed down with a single thrust. The Qiankun Ruler split water and fire, slashing down. The two halves of the golden cymbal came together, emitting a sound that shook the soul. The Human Seed Bag emitted boundless suction.

Taiyi Zhenren hurriedly used his skills to defend himself, but he was distracted just now and in the rush, he was caught off guard and was hit on the shoulder by Liu Qing's Panlong Bayin Cone, which caused him excruciating pain.

"Stop, stop—"

"The Chan and Jie sects are originally one family. Junior Brother Liu Qing and Junior Brother Taiyi, please stop fighting immediately for the sake of your senior brother and don't fight amongst yourselves."

Guang Chengzi appeared hastily, holding the Soul-Sinking Bell in one hand and the Heaven-Turning Seal in the other.

The sound of the Soul-Sinking Bell repelled Taiyi Zhenren, and the Heaven-Turning Seal blocked Liu Qing's Panlong Eight-Tone Cone and Qiankun Ruler.

Taiyi Zhenren's expression turned pale. He withdrew his Dharma form and stood silently to the side.

Seeing this, Liu Qing also put away his magical treasures and looked at Guang Chengzi, frowning as he shouted, "Senior Brother Guang Chengzi, are you perhaps showing favoritism?"

"How dare I? I rushed here not to favor my junior brother, but to apologize to Junior Brother Liu on behalf of Junior Brother Taiyi, hoping to resolve the karmic entanglement between you."

Liu Qing said coldly, "Since Senior Brother Guang Chengzi has mentioned cause and effect, he must already know the origin and destination. Please tell me, Senior Brother, how to resolve this?"

Guang Chengzi gave a wry smile: "Junior Brother Liu, don't be angry. I will give you an explanation."

He then turned to look at Taiyi Zhenren. Unlike his gentle demeanor towards Liu Qing, Guang Chengzi's expression became serious: "Junior Brother Taiyi, I already know everything. Today's events are all because you protected Nezha."

Taiyi Zhenren moved his lips a few times, but didn't utter a word of explanation, lowering his head in silence. Facing his senior brother Guang Chengzi, words of explanation were useless; his senior brother represented their teacher and couldn't be fooled like Liu Qing.

"You hand Nezha over to Junior Brother Liu for punishment!"

Guang Chengzi said coldly, and Taiyi Zhenren suddenly looked up, his expression somewhat flustered, and quickly transmitted his voice:
"Senior Brother, why are you favoring Liu Qing today?"

"What do you mean by bias? It was your disciple Nezha who was caught in the calamity and blocked the journey to the east. He deserved this calamity. If you hadn't disobeyed your senior brother and insisted on coming to protect him, would we be in this situation now?"

"If you hadn't been so protective of Nezha when you arrived, and had said a few kind words to Junior Brother Liu Qing, perhaps things wouldn't have escalated to this point for the sake of our two sects."

“That Nezha is full of lies. You know he is lying, yet you still protect him. First, you bullied Sun Wukong, the Bull Demon King, and others because you were stronger than him. Then you attacked Junior Brother Liu Qing. Junior Brother Liu Qing is the current acting leader of the Jie Sect. In terms of status, he is the same as me. How dare you do this? Do you want to start a war between the two sects?”

Taiyi Zhenren's expression changed, and he sighed, "Then let's hand Nezha over to Liu Qing. I ask that you, senior brother, guarantee that Liu Qing will not harm Nezha's life. Just punish him a little; he's still a child."

Upon hearing this, Guang Chengzi's eyebrows shot up in anger, and he said in a loud voice, "He's still a child? How could you say such a thing?"

"In your early years, because of him, you had a major falling out with the Dragon Clan of the East Sea. Later, because you protected Nezha, you caused the death of Lady Shiji of the Jie Sect, which forced my Chan Sect to stand on the opposite side of the Jie Sect. Although it was not entirely because of this incident, it was one of the reasons."

“Think about it yourself. Ever since you took Nezha as your disciple, how many times have you been implicated by him? Now you still want to protect him. If you ‘punish him a little,’ he will kill you. How can you expect him not to kill you?”

"Taiyi, how long are you going to protect Nezha? You're still so stubborn. Nezha is clearly taking advantage of you like a fool. What use is such an unfilial, disloyal, unrighteous, and unjust disciple to you?"

Guang Chengzi said, word by word, "Taiyi, as the sect leader, I order you to immediately hand over Nezha to Junior Brother Liu Qing for disposal. Whether he lives or dies is entirely up to Junior Brother Liu Qing!"

Taiyi Zhenren looked at Guangchengzi in disbelief: "Senior brother, you are not the same as before. Why are you helping outsiders? No matter what, Nezha still calls you Uncle-Master!"

Guang Chengzi's eyes darkened slightly: "Our martial uncle, Daoist Yu Yu, is probably watching this place right now. If we don't comply with Junior Brother Liu Qing's wishes, which of us can withstand a sword strike from our martial uncle?"

"Or you could have your martial uncle settle accounts with our Chan Sect regarding the karma of the Investiture of the Gods?"

“Our Chan Sect has already suffered a great loss of vitality since the Investiture of the Gods, and we cannot afford to suffer another heavy blow. Junior brother, I, your senior brother, have swallowed my pride and tried every means to please the Jie Sect, just to try to resolve the karma we owed during the Investiture of the Gods, so that our Uncle-Master would not be able to target us fellow disciples.”

"Senior brother, do you understand my good intentions, Taiyi?"

Taiyi Zhenren's face turned redder and redder, and he was speechless.

After a long while, he gritted his teeth and said, "Fine, fine, I'll hand Nezha over to Liu Qing to deal with."

"Currently, within the Three Realms, the Jie Sect has my senior uncle above and Liu Qing below. Although it is temporarily in decline, it has already shown signs of revival. Once the journey to the East is successful, it will surely flourish again. At that time, our Chan Sect will have to rely on others. I hope you can understand, junior brother. Everything I have done is for the sake of the Chan Sect's lineage."

"Senior brother, please stop. I am ashamed. I will hand Nezha over to Liu Qing for disposal."

"It is only right that you have severed your karmic ties with Nezha. I imagine that your cultivation, which has been slow to improve, will surely make some progress."

Taiyi Zhenren opened the portal to his own inner world and threw Nezha out: "Nezha, our master-disciple relationship has come to an end. You may leave now."

Nezha was taken aback and looked around. Sun Wukong, the Bull Demon King, and others were all glaring at him fiercely. Liu Qing, the leader of the Jie Sect, was filled with disgust for him, while his senior uncle Guang Chengzi was indifferent.

Nezha's heart skipped a beat, and he had a bad feeling. He hurriedly knelt down in front of Taiyi Zhenren and pleaded, "Please, Master, don't expel me from the sect. Nezha knows he was wrong and will never dare to lie to you again."

"Waaah, Master, can you really bear to watch your disciple die and be annihilated?"

Taiyi Zhenren closed his eyes in anguish, two lines of tears sliding down his cheeks. Fearing further complications, Guangchengzi quickly used the Soul-Suppressing Bell to suppress Nezha and handed him over to Liu Qing.

"Junior brother, Nezha has been expelled from the sect by Junior Brother Taiyi and is now at your disposal. Please, for the sake of your senior brother, settle your karmic debt with Junior Brother Taiyi here."

Liu Qing nodded: "Now that Nezha, the culprit, has been handed over, I and Senior Brother Taiyi will naturally have no further karmic ties."

When Liu Qing had that thought, he crudely and simply refined the innate spiritual treasure, the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Cover, so that he could use it temporarily. He then used the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Cover to capture Nezha and activated the nine fire dragons to refine Nezha.

Unable to break free from the nine fire dragons' restraints, Nezha could only endure their burning, letting out a piercing scream as he repeatedly kowtowed to Taiyi Zhenren, begging for help. (End of Chapter)