Cultivation: I Have a Golden Talisman

Numerous Life Talisman Cultivators native to the Abyssal Marsh had also arrived. For a time, all sorts of auras filled the sky, creating a magnificent spectacle.

Even more Sensing Realm cultivators came to watch the excitement. They didn’t dare fly too high, instead choosing spots on the lake’s surface to observe from a distance.

Some, seeing their elders in the sky, flew up to join them, waiting to watch the duel between Life Talisman Cultivators up close.

「Late in the morning.」

A mass of Gang Clouds suddenly flew out from the direction of the immortal city, rolling toward them.

The crowd looked over curiously. Within the Gang Clouds, an incredibly tyrannical Life Talisman aura was coiled, carrying a ferocious intent. It drew near from the distance at incredible speed.

After a moment, the crowd looked closer and discovered that within the Gang Clouds was a Cloud Beast over a hundred zhang tall. It had horns on its head, resembled both a tiger and a leopard, and had two wings on its back. Its roars were like thunder, and it looked utterly terrifying.

Two people stood atop the Cloud Beast’s head. One, holding a feather fan, was elegant and aloof.

The other was tall and powerfully built, with rugged, bold features. He stood with his hands clasped behind him, a large black staff strapped to his back, his aura deep and unfathomable.

"That’s the Immortal City’s Ten Thousand Beasts Cloud Smoke Technique. It looks like the Third Young Master is here. I wonder which expert he’s invited to back him up?" someone who recognized the massive Gang Cloud beast said aloud.

In an instant, everyone’s gaze converged on the two figures atop the Cloud Beast.

After a short while, the Cloud Beast flew closer and came to a slow stop. It held its head high, standing proudly in the sky, facing off against the three Elders from the Flame God Palace in the distance.

Atop the Cloud Beast, Fang Cheng scanned his surroundings and found the crowd was larger than he had imagined. Many of them were even acquaintances of his.

Numerous Life Talisman Cultivators from the great families of the Abyssal Marsh—the Dongs, the Yes, the Fengs—and many True Disciples of the Yinluo Sect had come.

Cen San Niang glanced at their opponents with her beautiful eyes, then turned her head to Fang Cheng. "The Flame God Palace has a long and storied history. Its members are no ordinary cultivators. You must be extra careful when the fight begins."

Two days ago, she had assumed Fang Cheng would help her by taking on one of the three bouts. To her surprise, he had insisted on fighting all three himself.

She hadn’t been convinced, so Fang Cheng had brought out his Immortal Binding Rope and sparred with her for a few rounds. Each time, she couldn’t even withstand a single move before the golden rope bound her, tying her up in all sorts of intricate knots.

Only then did the Third Young Master realize that the Fierce Tiger Taoist could utterly defeat her not only on the Jade Couch, but off it as well; she was no match for him in the slightest.

Fang Cheng nodded and said coolly, "Let me vent some of this frustration for you."

With that, he stepped into the void and appeared before the opposing group. His eyes were like a hawk’s, a divine light glinting within them as he glanced around. He held the Black Dragon Cloud-Riding Staff behind his back. Upon entering the arena, he swept his gaze across the area with an air of complete indifference to everyone present.

His aura was so transformed that even Ye Yan and Wen Qianqian probably wouldn’t have recognized him as their husband, to say nothing of the other cultivators watching the battle.

Fang Cheng’s gaze settled on the three Flame God Palace Elders as he announced in a resonant voice, "I have long heard of the Flame God Palace’s famed ’Record of Profound Fire.’ This humble, unaffiliated cultivator has come to seek your guidance."

The spectators filling the sky immediately scattered, clearing out an area several li in radius.

Seeing this, the crowd grew excited and began to speculate about Fang Cheng’s origins.

The Divine Pillar Immortal City was fabulously wealthy, and its top families possessed deep foundations. In terms of prestige, it was second only to the three great sects, and it boasted many outstanding cultivators. If they were to truly clash with the Flame God Palace, the outcome would be hard to predict.

On the Flame God Palace’s side, the three Elders exchanged a few glances at Fang Cheng and conferred with one another before sending out Luo Huangqiao, who was also at the Early Life Talisman Stage, to fight.

The two remaining Profound Elders had to be ready to face the Mid-Stage Cultivator they expected the Immortal City to have found.

Luo Huangqiao’s figure flashed as he stepped out of the pavilion and said coldly, "Fellow Daoist, please enlighten me."

The moment the words left his lips, he summoned an Eight-sided Sword Disc cast from red copper, which hovered above his head.

The artifact was just over a foot wide and about a finger thick. It was engraved with patterns of the sun, moon, and stars, interspersed with flaming Profound Patterns. It spun slowly in the air, humming incessantly.

As soon as the Sword Disc appeared, streams of fiery sword light poured from it, blazing brilliantly as they crisscrossed the sky.

Luo Huangqiao gave a soft cry, formed a hand seal to activate the Sword Disc, and then pointed forward. As the treasure spun, it suddenly erupted with thousands of crimson, fiery sword-lights. The sky was instantly covered by countless brilliant flashes, blazing like a sun, so bright that no one could keep their eyes open.

This was the Flame God Palace’s direct lineage Sword Technique, the Celestial Fire Demon-Slaying Sword Technique!

The attack surged across a thousand zhang, the Sword Qi whistling through the air with astonishing momentum. It looked as if it would hack Fang Cheng to pieces, and every spectator watched with rapt attention.

When Fang Cheng saw his opponent was using a Sword Technique, his fighting spirit instantly surged. He laughed. "Excellent!"

The long staff in his hand was a gift from the Third Lady, called the Black Dragon Cloud-Riding Staff. It was a Tier Two Middle Grade Magical Artifact, exceptionally sturdy and astonishingly heavy.

He flicked the Cloud-Riding Staff in his hand, spinning it in a dance-like motion that produced a low WHOOSH. Countless black staff-shadows blossomed forth and collided with the blazing Sword Auras.

RUMBLE!

Amid the earth-shaking explosions, the staff-shadows blocked every last bit of the Sword Aura. No matter how Luo Huangqiao urged his Sword Technique, the blades of light could not break through.

After a moment, seeing that Luo Huangqiao had no new tricks, Fang Cheng said, "You haven’t even mastered Sword Qi Thunder Sound. How could you possibly hope to harm me?"

With that, he let out a great shout. He activated his Heavenly Fire Body Refining Technique, and immense power surged through his body. He brandished the Cloud-Riding Staff and struck at a weak point in the swirling torrent of Sword Aura.

With his attainments in the Sword Dao, he had long since seen the flaws in Luo Huangqiao’s Sword Technique.