Chapter 256:

Our Discord Server: .gg/PazjBDkTmW On the edge of a small forest. Wu Qiankun stood in the shadows, watching Qiao Mu carry King Qin Golden Body and go far away. "This member of the Qiao family unexpectedly has two superb rank levels all at once… This is very unusual," Wu Qiankun muttered to himself. "A superb rank already surpasses the 1st rank experts of this era. Such individuals are rare in the martial world of Jiu Province today, much less having two superb ranks from one family? And their paths are very similar." "Could it be that… this is not just a coincidence? Could it be that in the hands of the Qiao family member, there is also a relatively complete path of superb rank?" Wu Qiankun and Martial Saint once believed that King Qin, as a ‘martial artist who enters the Dao through martial arts,’ had opened up a new path of superb rank martial arts. That’s why they didn’t act when the Martial Arts League rose, but silently watched its growth. But the result disappointed them. The King Qin they had high hopes for turned out to be a fake, while the Qiao family member they didn’t expect much from has now become a pleasant surprise to them? "How come both members of the Qiao family have such outstanding abilities?" Wu Qiankun wondered to himself. "Centuries ago in the martial arts world, there existed techniques like the Absorbing Energy Method that could steal others’ inner strength." "The Absorbing Energy Method was considered powerful a thousand years ago, but in today’s martial arts world, it is actually an outdated and impractical ancient technique with drawbacks." "It’s possible for one or two martial arts prodigies to cultivate their inner strength to a superb level using the Absorbing Energy Method, but it doesn’t seem to be the case for the Qiao family members." Wu Qiankun didn’t understand why, he just watched silently as Qiao Mu left. Qiao Mu was clearly heading towards Great Qin City to retrieve the bodies of the fallen Qiao family members. However, Wu Qiankun chose not to follow him. Before leaving, the Martial Saint instructed Wu Qiankun to keep a close eye on the Qiao family members, so logically he should have pursued Qiao Mu. But this time, he hesitated. Until Qiao Mu and the cat disappeared into the distance, he came out from the darkness and looked at the messy little forest. Dao Zhen’s body on the ground was covered in blood, with twisted bones, clearly dead. Wu Qiankun didn’t hesitate to approach the dead body and carefully searched it. "The storage bag was indeed taken by that person named Qiao Shuanggui," muttered Wu Qiankun to himself. Most cultivators’ storage bags have restrictions, making it difficult for ordinary martial artists to use them. It was not surprising that the storage bag was taken away, but what concerned Wu Qiankun more were not the external items. He stared at the body of Dao Zhen in the pool of blood at his feet. "He just died." "This person’s name is Dao Zhen. I heard he is a Great Tao Golden Pill cultivator. He’s someone you wouldn’t want to miss." He thought back to the teachings of the Martial Saint when he was young and taught three thousand students. The former three thousand students, who were mostly martial arts geniuses who had fought in bloody battles… Hai Wuya was not among them, as he was studying in the heavenly prison while the others were fighting. The title of "seventy two wise men" in the Wuji Association was more like a nickname for Hai Wuya. Apart from the unique ones like Hai Wuya, the former three thousand students were opponents to each other, where the winner lived and the loser died. Therefore, the majority of the former three thousand students had blood on their hands from fighting each other. Among them, Wu Qiankun was considered one of the best and was given the title of "Little Martial Saint" because he was the most fierce of them all, acting in a ruthless manner closest to the Martial Saint. Wu Qiankun reached out and gently touched Dao Zhen’s remains, ignoring the blood on his hands. A strange look appeared on his face as he muttered to himself. "For martial artists, diet and nutrition are crucial, as they can nourish the body and aid in martial arts progress." "Among these, there are two best types of supplements." "The first type is rare treasures from nature, like the Centennial Vermilion Fruit and thousand-year-old ginseng, which are usually controlled by immortal cultivators, and only a few lucky ones manage to obtain them." "Secondly, there are various powerful monsters with strong bodies." "But actually… other martial artists also have strong blood and energy, which can be considered a supplement for martial artists, although not as good as monster beasts, but still useful." For Wu Qiankun and others who have practiced the Martial Saint Spiritual Technique. Other martial artists are also stepping stones that can help them progress further. More than just plundering blood and internal strength, the essence of the Martial Saint Spiritual Technique lies in spiritual refining. Just based on this alone, it is far superior to the Absorbing Energy Method from a thousand years ago. The Martial Saint Spiritual Technique has produced a Martial Saint unparalleled in spiritual refining methods. But that’s not enough yet. Wu Qiankun calmly closed his eyes, his palm reaching towards the head of Dao Zhen’s corpse on the ground. …………………….. "The recipe for Martial Saint Spiritual Technique is not wide enough." "A fierce tiger can eat cattle and sheep, can eat jackals and wolves, but cannot eat this darn sky." "So, I shall name this technique…" "Taotie Swallowing Heaven Skill." Sitting on the collapsed Sky Boat, Martial Saint held the distorted Elder Qingzhuo in his hands and calmly said. The description of Elder Qingzhuo being distorted is not an exaggeration. His features are twisted, his limbs deformed, but Martial Saint’s hands have an invisible suction force, firmly holding him down. "You call this being a martial artist?" Elder Qingzhuo’s expression was cold, with anger in his eyes, but no fear. "When can martial artist’s skills be a match for a dharma body?" Elder Qingzhuo was indeed not in his true form. His cultivation was damaged, ever since he returned from the Hundred-mile Desert, his real body has been hiding inside the Great Dao Sect’s cave, never leaving, only letting his Nascent Soul Dharma Body act on his behalf. Although the Nascent Soul Dharma Body is not as strong as a cultivator’s real body, it is not too far off either. Elder Qingzhuo’s cultivation was damaged, even his real body is not as strong as other Nascent Soul Immortals… so he is more cautious in his actions. This Nascent Soul Dharma Body is actually not made of flesh and blood, but was crafted by Elder Qingzhuo at a great cost. His Nascent Soul Dharma Body was created by refining the essence of the five elements, not a physical body. Normally, if a Nascent Soul Immortal wants to craft a dharma body, it takes hundreds of years, even for a Nascent Soul Immortal, it is not something to be easily discarded. The Martial Saint didn’t say much to him. Qingzhuo’s body was swiftly elongated and distorted by an invisible force, before it strangely entered the Martial Saint’s mouth and nose, disappearing without a trace. "Isn’t this a physical body, not a real one?" the Martial Saint frowned. The bodies of these cultivators appear weak compared to their powerful techniques, so the higher their level and the longer they live, the more unique ways they have to protect themselves. The Martial Saint let out a breath, visible heat rising above his head, his skin slightly turning red. After a while, he returned to normal, the unusual signs disappearing from his body, with a glint of light in his eyes. "Even if it’s not my real body, it’s enough," said the Martial Saint, opening his eyes and smiling slightly. By killing a Nascent Soul Immortal’s illusion body and consuming it, it proved that his Taotie Swallowing Heaven Skill was effective. The curve of his mouth grew wider, and he burst into laughter, the sound echoing in the surroundings. If the earlier Martial Saint was like a fierce tiger, he was now like a beast that had devoured a whole mountain, reaching the peak. Sacrificing a whole generation of martial artists would not be enough to create a powerful martial artist capable of overturning the chessboard. So if he wanted to keep moving forward, he only had two options. One must acknowledge that they are on a one-way path and patiently wait for future martial artists to pave a new way. As for the second… it is like him, transforming from a fierce tiger to a voracious beast, reaching for the immortals dwelling in the clouds. This is destined to be a bloody and thorny path. Without consuming immortals, he cannot progress in martial arts. If he clashes with immortals, he will surely incur the wrath of the Nine Immortal Gates. Lurking for forty years, the current Martial Saint has a momentum of swallowing the sky. ………………. Great Qin City. This newly established city was already empty, with deserted streets where not a single soul could be seen. After witnessing a member of the Qiao family using martial arts to defeat the immortals, even those who considered themselves wise and independent believers were thrown into chaos. Without needing great foresight, even an ordinary person could tell that something astonishing had occurred within Great Qin City. King Qin, who was granted a title by the imperial court, was killed, and it seems like the Immortal Gate Great Dao Sect is involved. The leaders of the Great Dao Sect were killed by a martial arts expert from the Qiao family. In the battle, Qiao Miao used powerful magic to defeat them. The bodies of the leaders fell like rain, including a couple of powerful cultivators. At the entrance of Great Qin City at this moment, the last group of refugees fleeing the city left, leaving the entire city in a state of eerie silence. At this moment, it was almost nighttime. The large newly built city had very few lights, and it was very quiet. Wei En stood on the top of a small hill outside the city, quietly looking down at the silent Great Qin City below, watching as people fled with torches in hand, saying nothing. "The world is in chaos… Well, when is it not chaotic?" Wei En’s face turned serious. Soldiers facing soldiers, and the Qiao family members charging towards King Qin as their target. Other people had their own tasks too, so they couldn’t just charge forward recklessly, as that would only lead to death. Wei En, known as the top divine catcher in the world, excelled in light skills instead of direct combat. He had only reached the 1st rank in martial arts, so blindly rushing into the battlefield of the Great Qin City would spell doom for him. He turned around and saw several new graves behind him. Several Qiao family members, Qiao Shui, Qiao Gui, and Qiao Miao, died before and after the battle in Great Qin City. Wei En looked back at Qiao Mu meditating below the waterfall, feeling heavy-hearted and noticing a strange look in his eyes. When he taught Qiao Mu the "Heavenly Dragon Eight Steps," he told him that if they wanted to kill King Qin, they needed to be prepared for the storm that would follow. The Great Yan Imperial Court was in a turbulent time, facing a dilemma whether to kill King Qin or not, feeling like a bottomless abyss with no peace in sight. Little did Wei En realize that… he was not mentally prepared himself. "I thought the Qiao family members were going to assassinate King Qin, but what did they actually do?" "Two superb martial artists appeared, killing many cultivators from the Great Dao Sect, including two golden core cultivators, and even repelling an elder from the Great Dao Sect…." Wei En had only prepared himself for the Qiao family members to kill King Qin and leave, but he never expected that their actions would also cause trouble for the Immortal Gate and the Great Dao Sect. It’s important to note that there are many strong individuals from the Immortal Gate. If one is injured or killed, even stronger elders from the sect will step forward to avenge them, as the dignity of the Immortal Gate cannot be violated. Forty years ago, there were many courageous scholars and martial artists in the Great Yan who feared nothing, and they generally reaped what they sowed. Even the grass on their graves had grown tall. "Wait, how does this sound similar to the actions of the Qiao family members?" Wei En was shaken by the thought. Although knowing that the Qiao family was powerful, he had never compared the Qiao family with the Immortal Gate in his heart. But now, the Qiao family has produced two consecutive superb martial artists, which made Wei En have to reconsider this mysterious and powerful martial arts family. "Where on earth did this Qiao family come from?" Wei En was deeply puzzled. People thought that the Qiao family came from the overseas Hero Island… but Wei En knew very well that this was just a rumor he made up initially, and now he was truly becoming more and more puzzled. ……………….. Great Dao Sect’s sect. Inside the cave, Qingzhuo quietly watched the Message Jade Talisman flickering with light, holding his head with a hand, feeling a bit of a headache. Every cultivator above the Foundation Building level in the sect keeps a Life Jade Slip, once it shatters, the sect will know quickly. Perhaps the sect deacon wouldn’t immediately notice the death of a few cultivators. However, if dozens of foundation building cultivators, along with golden core cultivator Dao Fei, and the potential next Taoist Child Dao Zhen were to die together in a short time, it would undoubtedly be a big enough event to alarm the sect. As the one responsible for this operation, Nascent Soul Elder Qingzhuo would naturally be questioned by the sect. "Qingzhuo." A voice came from outside the cave at this moment, and a middle-aged Taoist with an imposing presence, the current sect leader of Great Dao Sect, had arrived at the door. "Even the sect leader has come to question us." S~eaʀᴄh the novёlF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Qingzhuo sighed, opened the formation at the entrance of the cave, stepped out for the first time in his true form, and then explained the whole situation in detail. This time he didn’t hide anything. Because it was obvious and couldn’t be hidden anymore, trying to hide it from the sect leader was impossible. "Dao Fei died at the hands of a member of Qiao family among mortals, and your spiritual body was destroyed by the Martial Saint?" "The Martial Saint isn’t dead? Didn’t he already die at the hands of Elder Tianxing from Xuantian Sect? What a bunch of useless people in Xuantian Sect, not even figuring out the life and death of a mortal?" In his anger, the sect leader also came back to his senses. "Leaving aside the Martial Saint for now, he was already the leader among mortals in martial arts. Although it was unexpected for him to hide for forty years, it is also reasonable… What’s the deal with Qiao family member? Did they come out of nowhere?" A Martial Saint who can kill a Nascent Soul Dharma Body is undoubtedly powerful, but within the Immortal Gate, there is more than just Elder Qingzhuo, while there is only one Martial Saint among mortals. "Sect leader, I have already investigated this matter," Elder Qingzhuo quickly spoke at this moment. He also had a falling out with Qiao family member and Earth Sword Immortal before, and he had secretly investigated it later. "This Qiao family member comes from a hidden place overseas called Hero Island…"