Chapter 138: Can It Be Used to Slay Gods?
Danyangzi stood up, watching the battle between Qin Mu and Linxuan Daozhi. As for the half-dragon, half-qilin beast by the mountain gate, it had lost interest in them and was dozing off again.
"Daozhi can't hold on any longer; he's about to go all out." Danyangzi's heart tightened.
Qin Mu's attacks were too fast and too domineering. Once he seized the initiative, he gave no chance to breathe, fighting until the opponent conceded or died!
Linxuan Daozhi could gain no advantage in terms of primal energy, and his techniques were also suppressed by Qin Mu. Having sealed his Six Harmonies Divine Treasury, many of his moves and divine abilities were unusable. His only chance now was to unleash the Dao Sect's sect-suppressing sword technique.
Only the sect-suppressing sword technique could change the current situation and turn defeat into victory!
But even Danyangzi didn't know if Linxuan Daozhi could execute the sect-suppressing sword technique at the Five Luminaries Divine Treasury realm.
The Dao Sect's sect-suppressing sword technique had extremely high requirements for primal energy and consumed a great deal. Danyangzi judged that Linxuan Daozhi could probably only use one move of the sect-suppressing sword technique before his primal energy was completely drained.
Just as he thought this, the dust strands in Linxuan Daozhi's hand began to change—a wondrous transformation. Part of the dust strands turned black, part turned white, spreading through the air. Black and white flowed slowly, like a Taiji diagram floating in the sky.
The first form of the Dao Sect's sect-suppressing sword technique, the Fourteen Chapters of the Dao Sword: "One point pierces through the vast movement; within the two polarities, yin and yang revolve!" ①
Linxuan Daozhi's arm vibrated, and the black-and-white diagram pressed down!
Danyangzi breathed a sigh of relief, quite gratified. Linxuan Daozhi, after all, was the Daozhi. With his profound cultivation, he had managed to execute the sect-suppressing sword technique at the Five Luminaries realm.
It was worth noting that many in the Dao Sect practiced the sect-suppressing sword technique, but few mastered it, and almost none of those who did could execute it at the Five Luminaries realm. The consumption of this sword technique was too great; even at the Divine Ability realm, it was hard to perform.
Moreover, cultivating this sword technique required extremely high talent and comprehension, with one of the biggest demands being mathematical skills.
Just the Ten Classics of Calculation alone were enough to give people headaches, and beyond that, there were profound mathematical texts like the Great Derivation Total Number Technique and the Four Element Jade Mirror. ②
But Linxuan Daozhi was an outstanding talent among them, proficient in mathematics. He had achieved great success in mathematics at a very young age. With this foundation, learning the Fourteen Chapters of the Dao Sword was easier for him than for others.
The Fourteen Chapters of the Dao Sword grew harder with each chapter. By the fourteenth chapter, almost no one could master it, not even the current Dao Lord had mastered the fourteenth sword.
However, the Dao Lord had high hopes for Linxuan Daozhi, believing he might one day master the fourteenth sword.
The Dao Lord had once lent the Fourteen Chapters of the Dao Sword to the State Preceptor of Yanguo for reference. In the State Preceptor's treatise on swords, it was mentioned that the Dao Sword and the Son of Heaven's Three Swords clearly bore the shadow of the Fourteen Chapters of the Dao Sword.
Thus, one could imagine how formidable Linxuan Daozhi's move was!
Under the black-and-white diagram, Qin Mu was startled. The sword technique pressing down from above was no longer a mortal sword technique. Yin and yang, the two polarities, intertwined, and the energy erupting from it made him shudder even before it reached him.
His fingers flicked. The move "Flicking Fingers Startles Thunder" made each of his fingers explode with a thunderous roar, sharp and unmatched. But even such top-tier combat techniques as the Eight Forms of Thunder Sound, when they touched the black-and-white Taiji diagram, were useless, like a clay ox sinking into the sea, stirring not a single ripple.
Crack—
The azure dragon beneath his feet soared into the sky, then suddenly disintegrated. Countless sword lights swarmed and converged into his hand, forming a long sword.
Qin Mu's expression turned solemn as he held the sword and met the pressing black-and-white Taiji diagram.
The sword in his hand was like the most delicate brush of a painter, the heaviest step of a traveler, the throat of a singer, the dance of a dancer. He executed the sword technique taught by the Village Chief.
Sword Traversing Mountains and Rivers.
Can it be used to slay gods?
Answer: Yes!
Under his sword, sword light flickered. Light and darkness, lightness and heaviness, speed and slowness, perfectly combined. The fourteen basic sword forms shifted in his hands in an instant, and a magnificent landscape of mountains and rivers appeared in the air!
The Dao Sect's Fourteen Chapters of the Dao Sword was not a mortal sword technique, nor was the sword diagram taught by the Village Chief!
This was a sword technique to slay gods!
Can it be used to slay gods?
The one who wields this sword must have no gods, no demons, no buddhas in their heart. They must harbor great irreverence toward so-called gods, demons, and buddhas, and possess the will to slay them!
Danyangzi's eyelids twitched, and he abruptly stood up. At the same time, the half-dragon, half-qilin beast by the mountain gate woke from its slumber and suddenly raised its head to look!
In the air, the two sword techniques clashed, blindingly bright. The black-and-white Taiji diagram shattered within the unfolding landscape of mountains and rivers. Linxuan Daozhi was struck by dozens of sword strikes in an instant, his body covered in bloodstains!
Suddenly, his eyes lit up: "A flaw!"
Qin Mu noticed his gaze and was startled. The young man's eyes were fixed on his left shoulder—exactly where the flaw of the Overlord Body Three Elixir Technique lay!
"Qi Ke Duo!"
Qin Mu raised his hand and formed a seal: the Demon God Mighty Strength Seal!
This seal blocked his left shoulder, while with his other hand, the sword light surged, thrusting toward Linxuan Daozhi!
Chi—
Linxuan Daozhi's sword pierced through his palm, the tip striking his left shoulder. It was stopped by the brocade robe on Qin Mu's body and didn't pierce into the flesh, but the sword light penetrated, causing pain in Qin Mu's shoulder.
At the same time, Linxuan Daozhi's body shook violently, dozens of blood holes appearing on his body in an instant, and he collapsed to the ground!
Qin Mu dispersed the sword formed from his primal energy and bowed respectfully: "Daozhi, you yield."
Linxuan Daozhi struggled to his feet, blood still flowing from the holes in his body. Danyangzi rushed forward to apply medicine, but Linxuan Daozhi raised his hand to stop him, straightened his robes, and returned the bow: "Thank you for the instruction." Only then did he take the medicine.
Danyangzi quickly applied the wound medicine to stop the bleeding. After treating him, the old and young Daoists stood up, bowed to Qin Mu, and Qin Mu bowed in return. The two Daoists put on their bamboo-woven hats, turned, and left.
Qin Mu watched them go, his expression suddenly changing. He clutched his left hand, sucking in cold air: "It hurts! It hurts like hell! That old Daoist Danyangzi is so stingy, he didn't even offer me any wound medicine."
The pain in his left hand and shoulder was excruciating; Linxuan Daozhi's sword had injured the bone. Qin Mu sucked in cold air and was about to go up the mountain when he stumbled. He quickly reached out and grabbed the half-dragon, half-qilin beast chained beside him.
He had passed by the mountain gate several times without noticing this beast, always thinking it was a stone carving of a dragon-qilin. But when he touched it, he felt something soft under his hand and was startled.
The dragon-qilin beast glanced at him, then stretched out its tongue and licked his shoulder.
Qin Mu felt a coolness on his shoulder, and the pain gradually faded. He quickly lowered his head and pulled open his collar to look. The small sword wounds on his shoulder, over a dozen of them, were slowly shrinking and healing.
Qin Mu was amazed: "Is this dragon saliva? Or qilin saliva? Either way, it's excellent medicine!"
He quickly raised his palm, and the beast licked it again.
Qin Mu watched as the flesh in his palm slowly grew back. The flesh around the sword wounds sprouted like tender leaves, quickly healing the wounds. The injury to the bone seemed to heal as well, and his skin soon closed up.
"Senior Brother, do you like sour apricots?"
Qin Mu crouched down, took a jade bottle from his pocket, and placed it under the beast's mouth, smiling: "The kind that's sour, so sour it makes your teeth ache. Don't like it? How about green plums? They're also super sour. Just thinking about them makes your mouth water... Still don't like it? Let me treat you to a lemon..."
The beast gave him two white looks, said nothing, ignored him, and sat there motionless, with no saliva dripping down.
"So, what do you like to eat?" Qin Mu asked.
"There's a big green ox on the mountain. I've had my eye on it for a long time."
The dragon-qilin beast suddenly spoke, still staring straight ahead without moving, and said: "Can you get it for me?"
Qin Mu patted his chest and laughed: "A brother as loyal as you, I'm definitely befriending. Don't worry, I'll get it for you soon!"
The dragon-qilin was overjoyed, and saliva seemed to drip from the corner of its mouth before it slurped it back in.
Qin Mu had to return to the mountain, thinking: "It seems I'll have to get that big green ox to trick some dragon saliva out of it. That green ox, I think I've seen it somewhere before... grazing in front of a courtyard, I think. I'll ask Ling'er; she wanders around this mountain more than I do."
He walked up the mountain. By then, people from the Scholar's Residence, Divine Ability Residence, and Prince's Court were gradually waking up, coming down the mountain in groups, passing by Qin Mu. One prince said: "After the State Preceptor's guidance, I feel my cultivation has greatly improved. I should be able to fight that Daozhi for three hundred rounds!"
The Second Prince, Ling Yushu, shook his head: "Sixth Brother, don't underestimate the enemy. I've fought Linxuan Daozhi before, and I can sense he still has skills he hasn't used. However, the State Preceptor is indeed extraordinary. The three sword moves he taught can be integrated with the other sword techniques I've learned before, perfecting them. At least I have a fighting chance now. But to defeat him, it might be difficult."
Ling Yushu stopped, watching Qin Mu walk past, frowned slightly, then withdrew his gaze.
"Second Brother, what's wrong?" the Sixth Prince asked.
"Seventh Sister has been getting too close to him."
Ling Yushu shook his head and said: "Actually, Qin Mu is good in every way—decent skills, and he's known as a divine doctor for saving the Empress Dowager. But after all, he's an abandoned child from the Great Ruins. Seventh Sister really shouldn't associate with him. Enough of that, let's go meet Linxuan Daozhi!"
They reached the foot of the mountain and heard an uproar ahead. They hurried forward, and someone shouted: "Those two Daoists are gone!"
Ling Yushu was stunned. He pushed through the crowd and looked ahead. Indeed, Danyangzi and Linxuan Daozhi had vanished.
"Did they back down?" someone muttered.
Ling Yushu frowned and sneered. Danyangzi and Linxuan Daozhi had come to block the gate and slap faces; they wouldn't back down and admit defeat willingly. Someone must have defeated Linxuan Daozhi, and they left after conceding!
"The one who defeated Linxuan Daozhi is among us, and they came down the mountain before us!"
Ling Yushu's eyes flickered as he scanned the crowd: "Who could it be? In the Divine Ability Residence, the strongest are three to five people: Sword Fool Xiao Yin, Madman Tian Feng, and Mountain-Bearer Yue Qiu. They're all very skilled and talented. In the Prince's Court, there are a few besides me. Seventh Sister is too playful and doesn't work hard, despite her good comprehension. Then there's Prince Minyue... As for the Scholar's Residence, I've heard Shen Wanyun is quite capable, always sitting in the senior brother's seat. He's also a possibility."
Note ①: Excerpt from Daoist Wang Chuyi's cultivation song, "Man Ting Fang." Interested readers can look it up; it describes the state during cultivation.
Note ②: The Ten Classics of Calculation, the Great Derivation Total Number Technique, and the Four Element Jade Mirror are all ancient Chinese mathematical works. "Four Elements" refers to quaternary equations. Equations, root-finding, and basic calculus can all be found in mathematical classics from the Song Dynasty and earlier.