Daoist Competition

These spiritual energies dissipated in just a day or two. For small sects of Loose Cultivators, it was a rare blessing; even Hua Dan Cultivators could benefit from it. However, for Nascent Soul cultivators from such Great Sects, it was of little use, hence they paid it no mind.

After exchanging a few more words, the four bade each other farewell with polite gestures, and Huo Xuan and the others returned to the peak first.

Zhang Yan intended to leave as well, but after taking one step, an idea suddenly emerged from the depths of his mind. He halted, turned back, and squinted his eyes slightly, staring into the water.

The reaction of the array power was indeed fierce, but anyone with enough fighting experience would try to avoid misfortune. Luo Canghai being a disciple under that sinister master’s tutelage wouldn’t be unprepared; there were many suspicious points.

Especially since he had crossed paths with this demon before, the opponent was truly cunning and sly. Even though Zhang Yan exposed the reincarnation method, it was almost too easy to capture him.

His gaze flickered slightly, and suddenly with a snap of his finger, Xuanming Heavy Water shot out with a thud, plunging underwater toward the White Python lurking at the riverbed. As it was about to touch the creature, the giant python suddenly twisted its body and managed to dodge it.

Zhang Yan laughed aloud and said, "Luo Daoist, such clever trickery, you almost fooled me."

With a splash, the water surface opened up, and the White Python shot out, riding the clouds in the air, its claws gripping the cloud as it looked down from above, speaking in human tongue, "Zhang Yan, I thought this Divine Skill was flawless, how did you see through it?"

The skill he used earlier was a family-inherited divine power known as "Reincarnation."

Skills like those of the Demon Sect often result in a significant reduction in Daoist cultivation upon execution.

But his Daoist Skill, after a pair of brothers were born from the mother’s womb and one son was left in the world, the other was refined into a vessel for life transference. In perilous situations, as long as they were within a hundred zhang of each other, he could transfer his Divine Soul into another body, without losing an ounce of cultivation, and even old injuries would disappear, akin to being reborn.

With this Divine Power Skill, disciples of the Luo Family effectively had an extra life but would never use it lightly unless facing true life-and-death situations. Yet somehow, even such a mysterious detail was seen through by Zhang Yan.

Zhang Yan chuckled softly and said, "Though fellow Daoist lost the Four Symbols Sky Shuttle, your final act was too poor, as if inviting slaughter, which raised suspicion. If you had fought valiantly then feigned defeat, it might have truly gone undetected."

Luo Canghai stared at him for a moment and suddenly shook the python body, transforming back into human form, showing no sign of weakness in his demeanor,

Then, shimmers of light danced, four tunneling lights appeared suddenly, encircling Luo Canghai, revealing that Huo Xuan and others had detected the commotion here and returned midway.

Huo Xuan’s expression was stern as he said, "Such clever tactics, if it weren’t for Junior Brother Zhang’s discernment, you would have surely deceived us."

Elder Chen also looked displeased, feeling that as a respected elder, he was embarrassed for failing to see through the flaw.

The White Python had been seen by them all previously, presumed to have grown exceptionally large due to its long lifespan, without any cultivation, taken only as a mount. To them, it was an irrelevant being, thus paid it little attention, only to realize Luo Canghai possessed such a skill which was truly unexpected.

Luo Canghai glanced around coldly, sneering as he activated his cultivation technique, forming Gang Cloud atop, transforming into a massive black cloud spanning a hundred zhang. Fountains of water surged, waves swirled endlessly, with sounds of tides echoing.

He initially intended to break the prohibition after Zhang Yan and others departed, and escape while leaving mocking remarks, but ultimately failed in the end without any backup plan remaining. Yet he refused to surrender willingly, even if defeated, he intended to fight to the last.

Luo Qingyu suddenly stood forth and said, "The recent talisman retrieval was handled by the two senior brothers; this person can be left to the junior brother."

Amongst the three disciples from the Mingcang Sect, he had the most resilient cultivation technique and wielded the array map that traps the opponent, making it difficult for onlookers to perceive its intricacies.

Huo Xuan contemplated briefly; judging by Luo Canghai’s Daoist cultivation, he wouldn’t necessarily best Luo Qingyu at his peak. As the Four Symbols Sky Shuttle was gone, his claws lost, whatever skills remained, Luo Qingyu wouldn’t have difficulty dealing with, thus he assuredly said, "Alright, let this demon be handled by Junior Brother."

Luo Qingyu bowed courteously, then raised his finger to perform Qi Jue. Instantly, a vast spread of green light appeared beneath his feet, revealing a scroll painting-like landscape in ink colors, ethereal mist looming, real and unreal, faintly accompanied by ancient zither music, wandering mysteriously and elegantly.

Zhang Yan had entered the "Green Level Smoke Array Map" before, and wasn’t entirely unfamiliar with it. Yet it appeared quite different from what he had witnessed before, with numerous mysterious changes, seemingly refined to a higher level of depth.

Luo Canghai was trapped in the center, unable to escape, seeing himself pitted against just one opponent, exactly what he desired, thus did not struggle, and let the array map draw him in with a cold snort.

Soon, the scroll painting was rolled up, and both figures vanished, leaving only a mass of Clear Qi, towering like a mountain, deep and sinister, still lingering at the original spot.

After about a quarter-hour, waves within the green energy fluctuated, auspicious clouds slowly dispersed, a faint green spirit light shot forth, paving a path.

Luo Qingyu, clad in green, gracefully strode out on the Cloud Light, stepping elegantly back to the crowd, while Luo Canghai was nowhere to be seen. He arrived before everyone, bowed and said, "Respected fellow sect members, the junior brother has captured the demon."

...

...(To be continued. If you enjoy this work, feel free to visit Qidian (qidian.com) to cast recommendation votes or monthly votes, your support is my greatest motivation.)