I'm already a Great Luo Golden Immortal, how come you're only Martial Saints?

Ning Chen remained calm. A flawed foundation might mean no hope for the Great Dao for others, but for a disciple of Patriarch Bodhi, it was no big deal.

He immediately knelt down.

"I beg the patriarch to guide me on how to break this deadlock."

The patriarch raised his fingers and pinched slightly, his eyes swirling with black and white mystical light.

"In a village seventy miles down the mountain, a demon has been causing trouble recently, killing more than a hundred people. If you can go down the mountain and kill this monster, you can temper your heart through battle, be reborn in the face of calamity, and then you can naturally enter the realm of Qi Refining and Spirit Transformation."

Ning Chen's mind raced; was he about to slay demons and monsters?

I've never heard of Fangcun Mountain disciples having this responsibility.

However, since it was a mission assigned by the founder, he certainly wouldn't harm him.

Just as he was about to agree to go, Ning Chen's mind raced. He would soon be returning to Blue Star to go to the second level of the Journey to the West. Why not take this opportunity to ask for some methods of killing?

He looked troubled.

"Master, you are wise. What I have learned are merely a few minor techniques from mortal martial arts and exchanges with my fellow disciples. I fear they are insufficient to harm the demon's true nature..."

Upon hearing this, the patriarch pointed at him with a half-smile.

"You slippery fellow! You know how to take advantage of the situation to bargain."

After a moment's thought, the patriarch spoke again.

"Alright, I see you are surrounded by evil aura, and you will be indispensable in slaying demons and monsters in the future. Today I will teach you the Dragon Subduing and Tiger Taming Technique. With your talent and comprehension, it will not be difficult for you to master it. This technique can not only subdue dragons and tigers, but also intimidate demons and evil spirits and enhance your physical combat power. It is just what you need right now."

After speaking, the patriarch's eyes shone with divine light, and a wisp of Daoist charm entered Ning Chen's brow.

In an instant, countless profound methods and cultivation principles flooded into my consciousness; these were the essence of the Dragon-Subduing and Tiger-Taming Techniques.

Ning Chen's comprehension was already near its peak, and he understood the principle in an instant.

This method infuses the body with magical power and suppresses evil with intention, temporarily endowing the physical body with the divine might of dragons and tigers, capable of breaking evil and slaying demons.

Ning Chen was overjoyed and thanked him repeatedly.

The patriarch waved his hand.

"Go quickly and return quickly, don't cause any trouble, and don't mention Fangcun Mountain or my existence to outsiders. Oh, and if that monkey insists on coming along, you can take him with you!"

Ah!

Ning Chen slightly opened his mouth. "Can you take care of a monkey? Then what am I afraid of?"

Ning Chen felt even more at ease, knowing Sun Wukong's abilities.

These days, to avoid being discovered by the monkeys practicing Taoist magic, they clamored for him to teach them.

He got several staff techniques from Teacher Luo, such as the Panlong Staff Technique, the Eyebrow-Level Staff Technique, and the Thirty-Six Shaolin Staff Techniques!

The monkey was thrilled with the first practice and became completely absorbed in it. Every day, besides listening to Ning Chen preach and read books, he practiced the staff tirelessly, wielding a bronze staff with impenetrable skill.

Even though he cultivated the Purple Cloud Profound True Enlightenment Technique and his cultivation increased daily, he was still no match for the monkey in a fight.

Even some senior brothers who had reached the Refining Spirit and Returning to Emptiness realm couldn't beat the monkey wielding a stick.

After leaving the cave, Ning Chen found a secluded valley and began practicing the Dragon-Subduing and Tiger-Taming Technique newly passed down by his ancestor.

He circulated his magical power according to the incantation, and his meridians surged like rivers. A powerful magical power rose from his dantian and flowed through his limbs and bones.

He took a deep breath, then exhaled and threw a punch forward!

boom!

Before the force of the punch arrives, the momentum precedes it.

A sudden explosion rang out in the air, and a pine tree several meters away, as thick as a bowl, snapped in two, splinters flying everywhere, as if it had been hit directly by a sniper rifle.

Ning Chen felt his blood and qi boiling all over his body. With the infusion of magic power, his muscles were full of explosive power, and a faint golden light appeared on the surface of his skin. Upon closer inspection, there were shimmering and flowing shadows like dragon scales and tiger stripes.

He stomped down hard, his body shooting out like lightning, leaving a spiderweb-like crack on the bluestone ground.

With each punch and kick, the faint roar of a dragon and the deep howl of a tiger were heard, stirring up the surrounding air into chaos, causing sand and stones to fly and grass and trees to bend low.

In the heat of practice, Ning Chen struck a half-person-high blue stone beside him with his palm. The stone exploded with a roar, and fragments of stone shot out like rain, embedding themselves deeply into the surrounding tree trunks.

The commotion immediately startled Sun Wukong, who was practicing his staff dance in the peach grove not far away.

The monkey's ears twitched, its golden eyes lit up, and it somersaulted several times while holding the bronze cudgel as thick as a child's arm.

He landed at the edge of Ning Chen's training area, scratching his head and cheeks, his face full of excitement, marveling at the aura of dragon and tiger intertwined around Ning Chen.

"Good heavens! Junior brother, what amazing skill have you acquired this time? It looks much more powerful than your previous techniques!"

Ning Chen stopped his stance and stood still, the flowing light around him slowly receding as he smiled.

"I have just received a technique from the patriarch to subdue dragons and tigers, and I am currently practicing it."

"Subduing dragons and tigers?"

Sun Wukong's eyes blazed with fighting spirit. He twirled the bronze staff in his hand, eager to try his skills.

"Come, come, let me, Old Sun, test the mettle of your new skills! Take this!"

Before he could finish speaking, the monkey had already leaped up, its bronze cudgel whistling through the air as it struck Ning Chen squarely in the face.

This blow came swiftly and fiercely, the golden staff shadow flashing like lightning, instantly reaching Ning Chen's face. An ordinary cultivator at the Refining Essence and Transforming Qi Realm would probably not even have time to react.

Ning Chen remained calm, instantly activating the Dragon Subduing and Tiger Taming Technique to its fullest extent, his magical power surging and flowing throughout his body.

He let out a low shout, neither dodging nor avoiding, and a layer of solid golden-purple light emanated from his right fist, with a faint dragon shape coiling around it, as he punched upwards to meet the attack!

"clang!!!"

The clash of fists and sticks produced a deafening roar, like the sound of a great bell, which reverberated throughout the surrounding area.

The shockwave suddenly exploded outwards from the two people, flattening all the surrounding vegetation and causing dust to spread out in a ring.

Sun Wukong felt a tremendous force coming from the staff, which made his arm go numb, and the bronze staff was actually deflected.

Instead of being surprised, he burst into laughter.

"Junior Brother Ning, you've got some strength! Again! Again!"

The monkey, no longer holding back, unleashed its full power, its staff shadows like mountains, covering Ning Chen from all directions.

Ning Chen pushed the Dragon Subduing Tiger Technique to its peak, making the dragon and tiger phantoms around his body increasingly clear. His movements were as fast as lightning, weaving through the countless shadows of staffs.

He no longer limited himself to fists and feet, but incorporated the agility of the Ape Strike Technique, the leaping ability of the Cloud Ladder Technique, and the defense of the Golden Bell Cover Technique into the Dragon Subduing Tiger Subduing Technique.

In an instant, figures could be seen intertwining in the valley, surrounded by golden light and purple mist, with the wind of sticks and the force of fists howling and surging.

With each punch Ning Chen threw, a faint dragon's roar echoed through the air, and with each kick, a small pit half an inch deep was left in the ground.

Sun Wukong wielded a bronze staff with impeccable skill, his movements sometimes heavy as a mountain, sometimes light as the wind, fighting Ning Chen to a standstill, his energy overflowing, sending sand and stones flying.

Several nearby boulders were struck by the overflowing energy and shattered with a bang.

This earth-shattering battle quickly alerted the other disciples within the Fangcun Mountain Sect.

Many of the fellow disciples walked out of their cave dwellings and looked towards the valley, their faces showing surprise.

Some senior brothers of the Zhi and Hui generations, who had higher cultivation levels, even rode the wind to come and stop at a distance to watch and discuss in hushed tones.

"Are those Junior Brother Wuchen and Junior Brother Wukong? Their power is truly astonishing!"

"Junior Brother Wuchen, when did you acquire such a powerful technique? It allows you to contend with Junior Brother Wukong's innate divine power to this extent!"

Seeing that they had alarmed their fellow disciples, Ning Chen and Sun Wukong exchanged a glance, then simultaneously withdrew their strength and leaped back to their respective positions.

Neither of them blushed or panted, clearly indicating that they had exerted their full strength.

The turbulent air currents in the mountains and forests gradually subsided, leaving behind only a mess and marks of varying depths.

Sun Wukong slammed his copper cudgel into the ground, driving it half an inch into the rock, and his excitement remained undiminished.

"That was great! Junior brother, your technique is powerful! Much better than those weak and feeble moves we used before! Let's try again somewhere else!"

In this life, under Ning Chen's influence, the monkey also learned the truth that public opinion can be terrifying and people's hearts can be frightening, and he was unwilling to show off in front of others.

Ning Chen regulated his breathing and smiled.

"Senior brother, you're too kind. Let's have another match later when you have time. I need to go down the mountain to take care of something the patriarch entrusted to me!"

"Go down the mountain?"

The monkey's eyes lit up, and it darted forward and whispered.

"Where are we going? What do we need to do? Take me with you. This Fangcun Mountain is wonderful, but sometimes I want to go down the mountain and see the realities of life!"

Ning Chen chuckled inwardly. Just as his master had predicted, the monkey couldn't sit still once he heard about going down the mountain.

He looked troubled and whispered in the monkey's ear.

"Senior brother, you may not know, but there might be danger down the mountain this time. It would be safer for you to stay in the mountains and cultivate!"