CHAPTER 255: 174. THE CELESTIAL MASTER’S SWORD REAPPEARS

The Altar of Wanfa Sect was activated, and thousands of dazzling glories soared straight through the clouds. Simultaneously set in motion was the entire Mountain Defense Array of Longhu Mountain Celestial Master Mansion. The Altar of Wanfa Sect was precisely where its hub lay.

As the array unfolded, an endless and magnificent brilliance interwove into intricate and mysterious array patterns. These layers intertwined, seemingly constructing an enormous, Connecting Heaven and earth-penetrating, Three-tiered Dharma Altar. This Altar enveloped the entire Dragon Tiger Mountain, isolating it from the outside world.

Within the Supreme Pure Thunder Mansion Cave Heaven, streaks of purple Nine Heavens Divine Thunder fell, connecting with the massive Altar, causing lightning to sparkle on its surface, integrating offense and defense.

The last time the Great Formation was activated and the Altar covered the mountain was six years ago, when the then Celestial Master Li Qingfeng was still alive. Since the fall of Li Qingfeng, the Great Formation had not been fully activated until now.

The emergence of the Three-tiered Dharma Altar immediately isolated the Great Scholar of the Chu Clan. Despite his Sword Qi being boundlessly overwhelming, at this moment, it was dissolved into nothingness, unable to penetrate Dragon Tiger Mountain by even a hair’s breadth.

Seeing the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder shining on the massive Altar, the Chu Clan’s Great Scholar had no choice but to temporarily stop his attack, his gaze fixed on Dragon Tiger Mountain enveloped within the Altar.

Within the mountain, Supreme Elder Li Song was not surprised by this display; his expression was usual, donned in the Celestial Master Robe, with Nine-colored Radiance floating in all directions. Under the Nine-colored Radiance, it seeped from within, permeating the Mountain Defense Array. Once engulfed by the Nine-colored Radiance, the Great Formation’s operation became abruptly sluggish.

Li Song was indeed relying on the treasured Celestial Master Robe to contend with Yuan Mobai for control over both the Altar of Wanfa Sect and the Great Formation. Even if he couldn’t truly seize success, his interference immediately affected the operation of the Great Formation.

At this very moment, Yuan Mobai sat cross-legged at the center of the Altar of Wanfa Sect, his hands forming a spell in front of his chest, his demeanor as ever serene. High above the mountain, the purple Thunder Dragon overwhelmed the cyan Fire Tiger.

Li Ziyang, while suppressing Yao Yuan, looked toward Yuan Mobai and sighed at length. "Junior Brother Yuan, why bother? In former years, both my father and my elder brother placed great hopes on you and cared for you deeply."

Yuan Mobai smiled and nodded. "Master treated me well, but he did some things wrong, not beneficial to the Celestial Master Mansion, nor beneficial to the Li Clan."

Li Ziyang said, "It’s one thing for those with other surnames, but you alone... I always believed we could always be without a rift, composing a beautiful tale together."

Yuan Mobai nodded. "I believe you. I have no desire for the position of Celestial Master, nor do I have the strength to compete for it."

He looked up at Li Ziyang. "But that would not benefit Our Sect’s Taoist Heritage."

Li Ziyang asked, "Is the current situation what you wished to see?"

Yuan Mobai replied, "It was you who crossed the line first."

Li Ziyang sighed deeply. "Pressed at every step, what else could be done?"

As he sighed, his Mana grew further. The colossal form of the Ninth Heaven Thunder Ancestor Dharma fully descended to suppress Yao Yuan’s Nine Abyss Flame Ancestor Dharma.

Yuan Mobai said no more, his smiling face fading away, his expression indifferent as he remained seated within the Altar of Wanfa Sect.

Li Song, draped in the Celestial Master Robe, sat outside the Altar of Wanfa Sect, facing Yuan Mobai from afar. Neither of them made a move directly again but instead, across the Altar of Wanfa Sect, engaged in a contest for control over the Mountain Defense Array.

Li Song’s pale complexion now showed a slight flush. The intense battle earlier with Tang Xiaotang had exacerbated his still-unhealed injuries. Just now, he even dared not engage in close combat with Tang Xiaotang using the Destiny Star God of the Human Talisman Life Skill and could only manage with the Yang Thunder Dragon. It wasn’t until Li Hongyu took his place that Li Song finally had a chance to catch his breath. Yet, from his Spiritual Soul to his physical body, he felt both weak and powerless, as well as a tearing pain. However, at this critical moment, he had to endure the discomfort and wrestle with Yuan Mobai for control over the Mountain Defense Array.

Compared to the quiet between the two of them, on the other side, at the highest point of the heavens, the fiercest battle unfolded. There, the golden Fire Tiger and the purple Thunder Dragon fought tumultuously, even bursting out of the Great Formation’s bounds, clashing over the vast expanse of the three-tiered gigantic Dharma Altar.

The Chu Clan’s Great Scholar stood with his sword drawn, his Sword Qi surging, but for a moment, he felt there was nowhere to begin his attack. His gaze suddenly sharpened. Because, apart from the gold and purple, an additional cyan color abruptly joined the fray. An immense cyan Nine Abyss Earth Fire appeared above the heavens at that moment. A huge cyan Fire Tiger roared as it opened its mouth. It stood beside the purple Thunder Dragon. A tiger crouching, a dragon coiling.

The Yin Fire Tiger belonging to Li Hongyu!

After successfully breaking through to the Eightfold Heaven Realm, Li Hongyu cultivated the Fire Dharma Earth Script Talisman, refining her personal Yin Fire Tiger. Henceforth, the Yang Thunder Dragon and the Yin Fire Tiger were both embodied within her. After the former Celestial Master Li Qingfeng’s demise, Longhu Mountain Celestial Master Mansion finally saw another Taoist Sect practitioner who concurrently cultivated both Heavenly Thunder and Earthly Fire.

And this signified...

"Dragon-Tiger Strike!"

Far away, Lei Jun took a deep breath as he looked at the sky above Dragon Tiger Mountain.

Sure enough, the next moment saw the purple Nine Heavens Divine Thunder and the cyan Nine Abyss Earth Fire blend together, forming a huge Purple-Cyan Taiji Yin Yang Fish, suspended in the sky as if the sun was shining. The Yin and Yang mutually thrived, the Dragon and the Tiger merged. This was called the Dragon-Tiger Strike!

"HA!"

However, suddenly, laughter rang out between heaven and earth.

Lei Jun looked from afar, only to see that next to the golden Fire Tiger, another giant cyan Flame Tiger, majestic as a small mountain, appeared amidst the clouds. Two Fire Tigers, together roaring at the Purple-Cyan Tai Chi Diagram. Then, the next moment, the tiger roars gradually shifted. In addition to the roar, a Dragon Chant emerged.

Lei Jun’s eyes suddenly brightened. The Chu Clan’s Great Scholar’s pupils constricted. Around Dragon Tiger Mountain, everyone’s gaze was transfixed, looking up at the sky.

That golden Fire Tiger was gradually transforming, becoming a gigantic gold-lit dragon! As it transformed, the brilliance exploded non-stop, and from within the flames, it began to intermittently exhale strands of golden lightning serpents. Though not completely transformed into a golden Thunder Dragon, the sheer forceful and yang energy was unmistakably revealed.

And the golden Thunder Dragon, together with the cyan Fire Tiger, at this moment, began to intermingle and fuse, slowly forming a massive Golden-Cyan Tai Chi Diagram. It clearly embodied the perfect harmony of Yin and Yang, a Dragon-Tiger Strike.

It was Tang Xiaotang’s Dragon-Tiger Strike!

In the convergence of Yin and Yang, it was not as stable as the opposing Purple-Cyan Tai Chi Diagram. But it was even more fierce. As they clashed head-on, neither would yield. From a distance, at that moment, the firmament seemed to be twisted by the two Tai Chi Diagrams.

"...Dragon-Tiger Strike?!" Li Song, on Dragon Tiger Mountain, raised his head to look at the sky, his expression curious. "A Dragon-Tiger Strike like this?"

Clearly, he wasn’t talking about Li Hongyu.

Outside Dragon Tiger Mountain, Lei Jun suddenly laughed.

He suddenly remembered the time when he had discussed the Thunder Law Heavenly Scripture Talismans with Tang Xiaotang.

Tang Xiaotang wasn’t just talking big.

She had indeed been contemplating creating her own version of the Thunder Method.

A brand new Thunder Method not inferior to the orthodox Nine Heavens Divine Thunder of Dragon Tiger Mountain.

Looking at it now, it still wasn’t fully mature.

But one could already see its impressiveness and potential.

Most people knew of Tang Xiaotang’s rarely seen Immortal Body.

But her Comprehension was also extraordinary, achieving Serene Insight, a level surpassing Clear Insight.

What does it mean to be overwhelmed by talent?

This situation right here might just be it.

Lei Jun watched the Golden-Cyan Tai Chi Diagram, and at this moment, he too couldn’t help but indulge in reverie.

If I could indeed enhance my Comprehension and talent once more through the Wilderness Enlightening Jade and reach Comprehension at the Tranquil Level, many obstacles and brilliant ideas on the path of Cultivation might also reveal new perspectives.

Lei Jun’s gaze remained unswerving, fixed on the heavens above Dragon Tiger Mountain. The struggle between the Golden-Cyan and Purple-Cyan Tai Chi Diagrams gradually revealed a victor. The Purple-Cyan Tai Chi Diagram was more stable and enduring. As the Golden-Cyan Tai Chi Diagram failed to shatter the Purple-Cyan Tai Chi Diagram at once, it began to be suppressed in return. Consequently, it became even more unstable, as if it were going to shatter.

However, at that very moment, the cyan light completely dissipated. The golden light reemerged. Pure Gold thunder and Pure Gold flames unleashed their ultimate power at this instant, causing a second wave of impact and striking directly upon the Purple-Cyan Tai Chi Diagram. The already greatly weakened Purple-Cyan Tai Chi Diagram was instantly pierced by the golden light!

In the sky, purple and cyan light rained down, bursting and scattering in all directions. Then followed a deafening and continuous roar, so loud that it shook the wilderness, moving heaven and earth, causing Lei Jun and others who were far outside the mountain to feel a ringing in their ears and a slight dizziness in their Spiritual Souls.

Above the firmament, a figure accompanied by the light rain, fell downwards. She quickly stabilized mid-fall.

It was Li Hongyu.

Li Hongyu looked stunned, glancing back upwards. There, a tall woman, enveloped in golden light as if the Great Sun graced the sky. The woman’s eyebrows and hair had turned pale gold, and at that moment, she was laughing heartily, "HAHA! What does it matter if you don’t teach me the Thunder Law Heavenly Scripture Talismans? I’ve created my own!"

Li Hongyu watched the youthful figure, momentarily dazed.

Once upon a time, she too was this spirited.

But first suppressed by her own elder brother Li Qingfeng, and now after scarcely achieving the Eightfold Heaven Realm and mastering the longed-for Dragon-Tiger Strike, she was defeated by another, even younger woman.

"...I lost, not the Dragon-Tiger Strike," Li Hongyu came back to her senses, a rush of breath stirring in her chest and involuntarily bursting out with such a sentence.

Tang Xiaotang ceased her laughter, not disagreeing, and nodded. "That’s right. My newly created Dragon-Tiger Strike is unstable, and just now it was two of my moves for one of yours. But I can make two moves, and you cannot, so naturally I win."

Li Hongyu said, "I know your personal grudge is with my Third Uncle and Third Younger Brother. But as things stand, the Li Clan prospers or suffers as one. I could leave on my own easily, but what about the other clan members? I cannot retreat."

She waved towards Dragon Tiger Mountain. The Celestial Master Robe, dazzling with Nine-colored Radiance, immediately took flight, landing back on her body.

Li Song did not attempt to stop her but instead, supporting his weak body, stood up again and entered the Altar of Wanfa Sect, approaching Yuan Mobai. Yuan Mobai met him with a calm demeanor, rising to greet him.

Outside the mountain, watching Li Hongyu don the Celestial Master Robe, Tang Xiaotang remained fearless, instead smiling again. She raised her hand upward. Then, strands of Purple Thunder began to gather, with flickers of cold light visible within the thunder.

"I never used to take the saying ’sharpening your axe will not delay your work of cutting wood’ to heart," Tang Xiaotang chuckled. "But today, it feels pretty good."

She had previously spent a great deal of effort searching for the Celestial Master’s Sword but kept missing it narrowly, which frustrated her to no end. But it wasn’t that she came out of it with nothing to show for herself. Tang Xiaotang had indeed obtained some clues for finding the Celestial Master’s Sword.

Only previously, her Seventh Heavenly Layer cultivation was just a bit short. For, as they say, a miss is as good as a mile. But now, she had achieved Eightfold Heaven Cultivation. The clues she had previously grasped began to signify something entirely different, capable of playing a completely distinct role.

Moreover...

"Back when the great battle took place at Dragon Tiger Mountain, it attracted the missing Celestial Master Seal to approach on its own. Now, with another great battle occurring at Dragon Tiger Mountain, the Celestial Master’s Sword, being sentient, might also..." Lei Jun looked towards the distant Dragon Tiger Mountain, his eyes flickering. Would it be of any use?

BOOM!!!

The thunder exploded. Not from above the Nine Heavens. But from beneath the Nine Abysses.

Outside Dragon Tiger Mountain, the earth suddenly undulated like a dragon turning over, extending a long line before tearing open a Deep Valley. Then, with thunderous noise, Purple Thunder broke through the earth and shot out, seeing daylight once more!