Chapter 590: Young Master Qi Jiuyi
Qi Jiuyi’s brows slightly lifted. He did not repeat his own words as Qin Mu had suggested. His mind was exceptionally sharp, and he fully understood the hidden barbs in Qin Mu’s words.
Qin Mu was a master of psychological warfare, skilled at mental suppression. When facing the strong, he knew when to yield and when to flee. But when matched against an equal, from the very first moment they met, he would launch a mental assault!
He would first attack from the opponent’s mental and psychological state, suppressing them. Any seemingly casual action or word was meant to impose psychological pressure on the other party. This pressure would cause the opponent to subconsciously place themselves in a weaker position, and their momentum would be subtly suppressed.
Once their momentum was suppressed, they would fall into his rhythm, and the balance of offense and defense in combat would shift imperceptibly.
From there, a slight advantage would gradually expand, eventually becoming the key to determining victory or defeat.
Both Banguocuo and Xu Shenghua had experienced Qin Mu’s style of combat.
After going through this kind of fighting, some would develop mental and psychological barriers, and Qin Mu would become a shadow over their Dao heart. Others would turn the shadow Qin Mu cast over their lives into a driving force, pushing themselves to advance courageously and climb one peak after another.
The former was represented by Banguocuo, the latter by Xu Shenghua and Zhe Huali.
After being defeated by Qin Mu once, Banguocuo had essentially lost the courage to face Qin Mu in a decisive battle. Whenever he encountered Qin Mu, he would involuntarily place himself in the position of a loser, retreating before even fighting.
Xu Shenghua, on the other hand, grew braver after being defeated by Qin Mu, even creating a method to unify the Six Harmony Divine Treasury and Seven Star Divine Treasury, which forced Qin Mu to humbly seek instruction, thus giving him a slight upper hand.
After being thwarted by Qin Mu, Zhe Huali went further and further down the path of entering the Dao through his blade technique. He even took the initiative to rescue Qin Mu when he was in danger. This showed significant progress in his Dao heart, putting immense pressure on Qin Mu, which in turn drove Qin Mu to walk the path of entering the Dao through his cultivation techniques.
Mental combat, though not flashy, was a severe test of the Dao heart.
“His mental offensive style was learned from this blade master.”
Qi Jiuyi looked at the Butcher, thinking to himself: “This Blade God is about to fight Yang Xingjun, yet he voluntarily returns Yang Xingjun’s hand bones. This is an extremely clever blade technique to strike at the opponent’s Dao heart. It appears to be returning bones, but it is actually severing the Dao heart. Yang Xingjun appears to be asking about the flesh and blood on the hand bones, but he is actually breaking the blade technique. This Qin Mu learned from him.”
The next stage after learning and applying was integrating knowledge and action, and Qin Mu had clearly achieved this.
Qi Jiuyi smiled faintly: “This place is not suitable for your battle. Ahead lies the demon army. They can destroy this seemingly magnificent divine city in the blink of an eye, crushing all of you effortlessly. The demon army can charge straight in and annihilate you with ease. Meanwhile, Yang Xingjun is also worried that you might join forces to kill him and then slay me. You fear for your lives, and he fears for my safety. It would be better to change the battlefield.”
At these words, Blind, Mute, and the others all looked at him. Qin Mu also re-evaluated him, showing a look of admiration and seriousness. He had initially thought this youth was merely Yang Xingjun’s disciple, but from his words, it was clear he was not that simple—he had an extraordinary background.
Moreover, his words defused Qin Mu’s earlier inquiry, showing he had extremely high attainment in the Dao heart!
Such a refined Dao heart even surpassed Xu Shenghua when he first clashed with Qin Mu.
At that time, Xu Shenghua’s Dao heart had nearly collapsed under Qin Mu’s assault!
“Mu’er, this person will be a formidable opponent for you.”
Blind whispered: “He can see the true nature of the divine city painted by Deaf! Even Fuluri and the other demon gods couldn’t see through it, which means this person has astonishing skill in the way of divine eyes!”
Qin Mu nodded. This youth’s ability to see through Deaf’s painting was indeed extraordinary, so he asked, “May I ask your name, sir?”
Qi Jiuyi smiled faintly, and Yang Xingjun said, “This is Young Master Qi Jiuyi.”
Qin Mu was surprised and said leisurely, “Yi means young and intelligent, noble and outstanding. Jiuyi means so intelligent that one head cannot contain it, requiring nine heads to hold his wisdom. I’ve heard that Jiuyi often refers to Cangwu, the tree where phoenixes perch, the habitat of the phoenix. Therefore, Jiuyi is often used to refer to the phoenix. Young Master Qi is not human?”
Qi Jiuyi looked at him, surprised, and said, “Brother Qin is well-learned. May I ask who your teacher is?”
Qin Mu raised his hand to indicate Deaf and said solemnly, “My teacher is the Painting Sage, Deaf!”
Qi Jiuyi bowed to Deaf and praised, “Since he is the Painting Sage, this city must be his work. It is magnificent and worthy of my bow.”
Deaf accepted the bow calmly, his expression proud.
Qin Mu smiled slightly and said, “Young Master Qi says this place is unsuitable for a duel. So where do you think our battlefield should be?”
Qi Jiuyi said leisurely, “I’ve heard that Brother Qin is the Heavenly Demon Cult Leader of Yankang. Since this place is unsuitable for combat, why don’t we go to Yankang? Fighting on your turf should put your mind at ease.”
Qin Mu’s eyes flickered: “Brother Qi, Yankang is quite far from here. It would take several days to get there. Right now, the demons are attacking Taihuangtian, and we cannot leave. Let me choose the battlefield instead.”
Qi Jiuyi frowned slightly and said, “Then where does Brother Qin choose to duel?”
Qin Mu pointed behind him.
Qi Jiuyi smiled and said calmly, “Inside this city? This city was painted by Master Painting Sage. Aren’t you afraid it will be shattered, revealing your bluff?”
Qin Mu shook his head and said, “I’m not pointing at the city. I’m pointing at the front lines between the two armies. You came for me, didn’t you? Since you came for me, let me choose the battlefield! I choose the space between the demon army of a million and this divine city as our battleground! Do you dare, Brother Qi?”
Qi Jiuyi raised his brows.
Mute, Blind, and the others exchanged glances, feeling a hint of unease.
Qin Mu said it was between the two armies, but it was really just in front of the demon army. After all, this city was only a painting. The million demon gods and countless cannons inside were fake. The true essence cannons between the battlements and the Sun-Shooting Divine Cannons in the city were all useless paintings with little power.
In other words, if the demons attacked, they would be instantly overwhelmed by the demon army, with no chance of survival!
The Butcher laughed heartily: “Mu’er has spirit! Good! I’ll also fight this heavenly god on the front lines! Do you dare, you bird god?”
Yang Xingjun hesitated and looked at Qi Jiuyi. Qi Jiuyi pondered for a moment, then suddenly laughed: “Since Brother Qin dares, why wouldn’t I? Yang Xingjun, you’re being too cautious and overprotective of me. With that mindset when facing a master, you’ll easily lose the initiative. Adjust your mentality now!”
Yang Xingjun felt a chill in his heart.
Qi Jiuyi said cheerfully, “Since Brother Qin invites me, then… please!”
Qin Mu turned and walked toward the divine city, thinking to himself, “This Qi Jiuyi is indeed extraordinary. I wonder what his background is, to have honed his Dao heart to a level no less than mine. Truly remarkable!”
The Butcher strode after him, walking ahead. Granny Si, Mute, and the others followed behind, exchanging glances and frowning slightly. Deaf whispered, “Should we gang up and kill that so-called Yang Xingjun and the nine-headed bird? If we all act together, it won’t be hard to get rid of them. We could stab them to death in no time!”
“If we fight here, the demons will easily see through our bluff.”
Deaf shook his head and said, “This Yang Xingjun is no pushover. With a great sun hanging over his head, he’s probably already attracted the demons’ attention. They’re only holding back because they don’t know friend from foe. If we fight him, even if we suppress him, the demons will see we’re under attack.”
Everyone’s faces darkened. If they couldn’t finish off Yang Xingjun in the shortest possible time, Fuluri would see through their bluff and realize they were using an empty city strategy.
And if Yang Xingjun shattered the divine city during the fight, Fuluri would also see through the ruse.
The best course now was Qin Mu’s choice: challenge them openly in front of the demon army, defeat, or even kill Yang Xingjun and Qi Jiuyi!
Though dangerous, it offered a path to survival!
In the demon camp, demon gods were activating their demon eyes, scanning the divine city opposite. Fuluri could no longer hold back and was about to order an attack on the city at all costs when suddenly the city gates swung open. Fuluri was startled and swallowed his words, raising his hand to stop the demon armies preparing to charge.
Qin Mu, Qi Jiuyi, the Butcher, Yang Xingjun, and the others walked forward, seemingly heading toward the demon camp.
“Only a few people leaving the city? What trick is Pang Yu, the True God, playing?”
Fuluri sneered: “Just a few minor gods! Who will cut them down for me?”
“Wait!”
Lu Li saw Qi Jiuyi and Yang Xingjun’s faces, her expression shifting dramatically. She quickly raised her hand and said solemnly, “Those are nobles from the Heavenly Court. Fuluri, do not offend the nobles!”
Fuluri was startled: “Nobles? Could it be…”
Lu Li’s pretty face darkened, her teeth grinding together as she sneered, “Indeed, a noble has descended. Why would this noble come down to the mortal realm? Could it be that the higher-ups already know about the Qin kid and have come to reap the harvest… It must be that bastard from the Netherworld who sold me out! Damn it, was it Han Lei or Xuan Ming? Or Jue Huang? Those guys are good at stabbing me in the back, but when I need their help, they can’t even be bothered to lift a finger!”
Fuluri said solemnly, “Daoist Lu, that Qin kid is right next to the noble you mentioned!”
Lu Li’s gaze fell on Qin Mu. Qin Mu sensed it and looked up toward the demon camp, not knowing whose gaze it was, but still flashed a bright, sunny smile.
Lu Li snorted: “He’s grown up to be somewhat handsome. When he was little, he was ugly enough to scare ghosts!”
Qin Mu stopped a hundred miles in front of the demon camp and said loudly, “I, Qin Mu, the Heavenly Demon Cult Leader, hereby pay respects to the heroes of the demon race and the elites of the Heavenly Court. Dare I ask if any demon heroes are willing to come and receive my instruction?”
His voice took a moment to reach the demon camp, but it was light yet clear, entering the ears of many demon gods.
The demon gods’ expressions flickered. Among the demon disciples, those at the same cultivation level as Qin Mu had mostly been killed by him already.
“Demon experts at the Heavenly Realm, Life and Death Realm, and Divine Treasury Realm may also come to receive my instruction.”
Qin Mu’s voice continued, ringing out: “Those at a lower level than me may also come. I can seal my Divine Treasury for a fair fight! Is there anyone who dares to fight?”
After a moment, receiving no response, Qin Mu’s voice reached the demon camp again: “The demons have no courage. Brother Qi, it seems you and I will have to go first.”
Suddenly, the demon camp’s gates opened, and a group of furious demon experts rushed out, shouting angrily: “Human brat, do you dare to insult us demons as having no warriors?”
Qin Mu smiled and said to Qi Jiuyi, “Let’s warm up first. What do you think?”
———— Damn, my monthly votes are about to be overtaken! Begging for votes from my brothers and sisters — wailing.