Chapter 133: Nine Dragons Emperor Art
Qin Mu turned his head and saw that the prince who had been standing beside Ling Yuxiu had somehow come up behind them. He seemed to be Ling Yuxiu's second brother, his face as calm as still water, also watching the duel in midair.
Ling Yuxiu had also followed him down from the jade cliff and was standing behind the second prince.
The moment Qin Mu turned around, Kun Ziyu fell from midair and landed with a thud on the ground.
In his close-quarters fight with Lin Xuan Daozi, the instant their palms clashed, his primal energy was shattered by the other's Innate Grand Mystery Art. Then his techniques were broken, and he fell from the sky.
Shen Wanyun's eyelids twitched, and his heart turned cold. "I'm probably no match for him. His combat power is too strong. Even if he seals his other divine repositories and only keeps the Five Luminaries realm, it will be very hard for me to defeat him! No, the more he reveals, the more likely I am to see his flaws! I'll keep observing for a while; maybe I can find his weakness!"
Innate Grand Mystery Art.
This was the first time Qin Mu had seen a cultivation art that could stand alongside the Overlord Body Three Elixir Art.
The art that this Lin Xuan Daozi used was extremely powerful. His cultivation base at the same realm was not as deep as Qin Mu's, but the quality of his primal energy was exceptionally high, far surpassing his peers. Qin Mu had noticed earlier that Lin Xuan Daozi's primal energy was purified to an unbelievable degree, which was why he had asked that question.
The Great Nurturing Heavenly Demon Sutra was known as a classic that could lead one to become a god or a demon. The Dao Sect's Innate Grand Mystery Art was renowned alongside the Great Nurturing Heavenly Demon Sutra, which showed its extraordinary nature!
The Dao Sect and the Heavenly Demon Cult, one righteous and one demonic, were the two great holy lands of the righteous and demonic paths.
If one added the Great Thunderclap Monastery of the Buddhist Sect, that would make three holy lands. Besides these three major sects, there were also some hidden holy lands that were not well-known but occasionally sent people out into the world.
"The Dao Sect's Daozi has appeared. I wonder if the Great Thunderclap Monastery will also come to block the gate and give the National Teacher a good slap in the face?" Qin Mu thought to himself.
The second prince took a deep breath and walked toward the mountain gate. Ling Yuxiu quickly asked, "Second Brother, what are you going out for?"
"I am also a student of the Imperial Academy, and I carry the blood of the royal family. How can I not fight?"
The second prince's eyes blazed with light. "Our Ling family became emperors through battle, not by being propped up by civil and military officials!"
His voice was firm and resolute. Qin Mu couldn't help but admire him. It was no accident that the Ling family could become emperors and rise to become the exalted royal clan.
"Imperial Academy student Ling Yushu requests the Daozi's instruction!"
The second prince walked up to Lin Xuan Daozi, bowed respectfully, and raised his head solemnly. "Does the Daozi need to rest and recover his primal energy?"
Lin Xuan Daozi nodded. "Please wait a moment, Senior Brother Ling."
Qin Mu clapped his hands in admiration. "If it were me, I would also rest a bit."
Hearing this, Lin Xuan Daozi followed the sound and looked toward the mountain gate. His gaze fell on Qin Mu's face, and when he saw Qin Mu's eyes, he felt a chill in his heart. Qin Mu responded with a smile. Lin Xuan Daozi also smiled and nodded, then said to the old Daoist beside him, "Uncle Master Danyangzi, I saw a formidable person. His eyes have two extra layers of pupils compared to ordinary people, as if he can see through my strengths and weaknesses..."
Danyangzi's expression was calm. "Keep your heart like still water, unmoved by externals. Don't let yourself be unsettled. The National Teacher of Yinkang is known as the number one under the gods, so naturally there are some formidable figures in this Imperial Academy."
Lin Xuan Daozi continued to adjust his breathing and recover his cultivation. As he activated the Innate Grand Mystery Art, a small spirit embryo emerged from between his eyebrows and sat before him on a mysterious altar.
This spirit embryo breathed and inhaled, and five canopies appeared around it, drawing intense star power from the starry sky!
Beneath the canopies, five terrifying gods and demons faintly appeared. This was the manifestation of the Five Luminaries Divine Repository.
After the five canopies appeared, six circular wheels also formed around him, the manifestation of the Six Harmonies Divine Repository.
Qin Mu narrowed his eyes. The Innate Grand Mystery Art was indeed extraordinary. This Lin Xuan Daozi's cultivation art was different from others, but it was more orthodox, grand and majestic. Its complexity was not inferior to the Overlord Body Three Elixir Art.
"The Dao Sect, the number one righteous sect, is truly remarkable!"
After Lin Xuan Daozi finished recovering, he stood up and bowed respectfully to the second prince, Ling Yushu.
Ling Yushu returned the bow. As he straightened up, his primal energy suddenly exploded with the roar of dragons and tigers. In an instant, almost everyone at the mountain gate felt a dragon's might erupt from within this prince's body!
The second prince, Ling Yushu, moved his feet, his form flowing like a swimming dragon. He spread his five fingers, each like a dragon, and five streams of dragon qi shot out, twisting and transforming in the air with fierce ferocity, charging at Lin Xuan Daozi!
Five Dragons Strangling!
Ling Yushu's five fingers hooked downward, enveloping Lin Xuan Daozi within the five dragon qi streams. The dragons coiled around Lin Xuan Daozi's body, and the five great dragons strangled him, opening their mouths to spew true fire at this youth, blazing fiercely!
His speed was extremely fast. The moment the five dragons pounced, his form had already reached Lin Xuan Daozi's side. He gathered qi into a sword with a flick of his hand, the sword body coiled with a dragon, and stabbed it into the Five Dragons Enclosure!
Inside the Five Dragons Enclosure, Lin Xuan Daozi was drenched in the blazing true fire, but his body revealed a jade-like luster. The five dragons' true fire could not harm him at all!
The second prince's sword stabbed into the Five Dragons Enclosure, and Lin Xuan Daozi raised his horsetail whisk to meet it. The whisk threads wrapped around the dragon sword. The second prince stamped his foot, and the earth trembled. Great dragons burst forth from the ground, charging upward at Lin Xuan Daozi from below.
Lin Xuan Daozi broke through the Five Dragons Enclosure with a palm strike, leaping into the air. Strands of whisk threads cut through the air like swords, slicing through the heads of the great dragons, then he dodged the sword light shooting up from below.
"Spellcasting style!"
Qin Mu was surprised. The second prince's series of attacks was actually a spellcasting style, but it was as fierce, domineering, and sharp as a combat technique style!
To wield spells so domineeringly and powerfully was truly an anomaly. This was the first time Qin Mu had seen such a fighting style!
"Little sister, your royal family's cultivation art is very impressive," Qin Mu said to Ling Yuxiu.
Ling Yuxiu puffed up with pride. "Of course! My second brother practices the Nine Dragons Emperor Art, which is no worse than the Dao Sect's Innate Grand Mystery Art! My second brother even holds an official position—he's a fifth-rank Roaming Cavalry General!"
The second prince leaped into the air, two streams of dragon qi beneath his feet taking the form of dragons, swaying their heads and tails as they raced through the sky toward Lin Xuan Daozi. The exquisite nature of his spells was breathtaking.
This was not surprising. The Imperial Academy itself was built at the center where nine dragon veins converged, and the nine dragons' qi was incredibly dense. Coupled with the second prince's royal identity, he naturally cultivated by drawing on dragon qi. The Imperial Academy was a holy land for others, but for him, it was a holy land within a holy land—gathering dragon qi for cultivation yielded twice the results with half the effort!
His primal energy was abundant and plentiful, and even when using such domineering spells, he showed no sign of depletion. This was the power of the Nine Dragons Emperor Art.
Qin Mu watched for a moment, then said, "Little sister, your second brother is about to lose."
Ling Yuxiu's heart trembled. Suddenly, the duel in midair came to an end. The second prince, Ling Yushu, faced a counterattack from Lin Xuan Daozi. Lin Xuan Daozi used spells of his own, matching spells with spells. The power of the Dao Sect's divine abilities was in no way inferior to the Nine Dragons Emperor Art!
At the same time, the horsetail whisk in Lin Xuan Daozi's hand flew out. The strands suddenly spread out, lengthening into countless fine swords that spun and slashed, furiously attacking Ling Yushu. Ling Yushu tried to block with his dragon sword, but he couldn't withstand so many fine swords. In an instant, he was wounded in several places and had to land and concede defeat.
Ling Yushu's defeat caused a great stir in the Imperial Academy. After all, he was the royal second prince, exceptionally talented, and with the deliberate nurturing of the Imperial Academy and the royal family, he was one of the top figures in the academy!
Even he had been defeated by Lin Xuan Daozi. There was almost no one left in the Imperial Academy who could stand against this Daozi!
Yue Qinghong looked at Qin Mu and said, "Hey, fifty-fifty. Our Imperial Academy has already been blocked at the gate. Aren't you going up?"
Qin Mu was puzzled. "Why should I go up?"
Yue Qinghong snorted, trying to provoke him. "Didn't you say that against this Daozi, your chances of winning or losing were fifty-fifty?"
Qin Mu shook his head. "I just became a student of the Imperial Academy. I've only attended one class in the Hanguang Hall and haven't learned any of the academy's martial arts. Even if I win, what does it prove? It wouldn't count as the Imperial Academy's skill. Besides, I'm an abandoned child from the Great Ruins. You all wanted to drive me away at first, and now you want me to stand up for the Imperial Academy? Since when do such good deals exist?"
Yue Qinghong was speechless with frustration.
Monk Yun Que said, "But you are a disciple of our Imperial Academy! When the academy is in trouble, how can you not help?"
Qin Mu laughed. "Hasn't the Imperial Academy produced a single genius in all these years who can match the Daozi? And hasn't the National Teacher's disciple appeared yet? The National Teacher is the number one under heaven, so his disciples are naturally extraordinary. With his disciple here, why should I overstep my bounds?"
Everyone's hearts trembled, and a glimmer of hope arose. The National Teacher was hailed as the number one under the gods, and every one of his disciples was outstanding. If one of the National Teacher's disciples came forward, they might be able to defeat this Dao Sect Daozi!
Ling Yuxiu frowned slightly and said in a low voice, "But the National Teacher's disciples are not students of the Imperial Academy..."
As they spoke, several more Imperial Academy students stepped forward, but all of them were defeated without exception.
Some even tried a wheel battle tactic, hoping to exhaust Lin Xuan Daozi's primal energy and cultivation without giving him time to rest. But this idea was too underhanded, and officials from the Imperial Academy soon stepped in to stop it.
Lin Xuan Daozi had won over a dozen consecutive matches, but his expression was unusually grave. He said to Danyangzi beside him, "Uncle Master, the Imperial Academy is very formidable."
Danyangzi nodded slightly and said softly, "These Imperial Academy students are all very strong. If these students grow up, no sect will be able to contend with them."
Those in the know could see the truth. Although the Imperial Academy had not yet produced anyone who could defeat Lin Xuan Daozi, every student who came forward to challenge him was extremely powerful, among the top-tier experts at the same cultivation realm.
What was most terrifying was that such experts were everywhere in the Imperial Academy!
A major sect like the Dao Sect could nurture one or two outstanding figures like the Daozi, but top-tier experts like Qu Ping and Kun Ziyu were not so numerous. In the Imperial Academy, however, such experts were everywhere. That was truly terrifying!
Lin Xuan Daozi's gaze passed over the crowd and landed on Qin Mu. Qin Mu seemed to sense it and looked back, smiling and nodding. Lin Xuan smiled in return, puzzled. "There are outstanding figures among the Imperial Academy students, but why doesn't he come forward to challenge me?"