Heaven and Man

"..."

"..."

"..."

Dead silence. Utter dead silence.

The battlefield, which moments ago had been blazing fiercely, its combatants locked in an inextricable struggle, had fallen into terrifying silence because of one man's appearance.

No one dared move. No one dared speak. Even their breathing had involuntarily stopped, for fear of shattering this fragile balance.

This... was the deterrence of a Grandmaster?

No, more than a Grandmaster. The man before them was far more than merely a Grandmaster!

Everyone present was a renowned expert of both the righteous and evil paths, of the Buddhist and demonic sects. Each possessed cultivation at Spirit Condensation Dao Integration. Though they fell short of Grandmasters, the gap was not so vast as to be beyond remedy.

Take "Heavenly Lord" Xi Ying, one of the Eight Great Masters of the Demonic Sect. In his early years, his title had clashed with that of "Heavenly Saber" Song Que, who had pursued him with blade in hand for a thousand li, forcing him to flee in disgrace to the Western Regions. Only in recent years had he returned to the Central Plains.

Though the Song Que of those days was not as powerful as he was now, he had still been a saber Grandmaster. Yet Xi Ying had nevertheless escaped alive from his thousand-li pursuit.

This showed that while Grandmasters were powerful, they were not absolutely invincible. After all, everyone stood within the realm of Spirit Condensation Dao Integration. So long as one had not broken through, no matter how strong one was, there were limits.

But this man...

A mountain so lofty one could only gaze up at it, beyond the reach of intent!

A sea like an abyss, unfathomably deep!

They could not beat him. Absolutely could not beat him!

They could not move. They absolutely must not move!

This was the warning in their hearts, the instinctive cry of terror.

Experts such as themselves might distrust others, might even distrust themselves, but they could never distrust such instincts and premonitions.

So, they did not dare move. Not in the slightest.

Just then...

"Wanwan!"

A woman flew over, graceful and incomparably beautiful. It was none other than the Yin Queen of the Demonic Sect, Zhu Yuyan.

Zhu Yuyan flew out of the forest and arrived at this strangely tense battlefield. She immediately sensed that something was wrong. Her gaze landed on her disciple in the field, then focused upon the young man of unknown origin.

"M-Master!"

Though she bore the brunt of the pressure and faced even greater deterrence, upon seeing Zhu Yuyan arrive, Wanwan still forced her weak body to turn and gave Zhu Yuyan an expression uglier than tears.

"Queen Zhu!"

"Sect Master!"

"Demoness, don't run!"

"Leave the Sarira behind!"

At this moment, the experts of both the righteous and evil paths, of the Buddhist and demonic sects, also rushed out from Duke Yang's Treasury.

The moment they arrived, everyone's eyes gathered upon the man in the field, staring at him with uncertainty and alarm.

Xu Yang was still examining the Evil Emperor's Sarira in his hand.

He could clearly sense that this sarira, resembling yellow jade, contained an immensely powerful energy.

It was the Essence of generations of Evil Emperors!

It was said that this wondrous object was the supreme treasure of the Demonic Sect. Before their deaths, every Heavenly Evil Dao Master would pour their lifetime of cultivation into it.

By now, this sarira had absorbed the Essence of who knew how many Evil Emperors. It was a holy relic coveted in the dreams of all Demonic Sect members, even though almost no one knew how to use it.

Though it had not been his primary goal on this journey, this was still a fine gain.

Xu Yang smiled, put away the sarira, and turned his gaze toward the uneasy crowd. "What are you waiting for?"

"..."

"..."

"..."

Though his words were soft, they struck terror into their hearts. The crowd fell silent, then...

"Retreat!!!"

The Demonic Sect experts did not hesitate. They directly shot into the air and flew backward.

This action left everyone dumbfounded.

The Demonic Sect experts, who held the deepest obsession with the Evil Emperor's Sarira and were determined to obtain it, had actually chosen to flee at the first opportunity?

What was this?

Was this man really so terrifying?

The righteous path experts scoffed inwardly, then...

"Retreat!!!"

In the instant that thought passed, after their disdain faded, the experts of Cihang Jingzhai and Jingnian Zen Sect also rose into the air and rapidly retreated.

Retreat? Of course they had to retreat. If they could not win and still refused to retreat, would that not be seeking death?

The martial world had long reached a settled conclusion: only a Grandmaster could contend against a Grandmaster!

Since such a figure had appeared, experts of the same level would naturally deal with him. Those beneath that level had to leave quickly. Otherwise, staying here would only get in the way and add to the casualties.

Even the Demonic Sect, which was dead set on obtaining the Evil Emperor's Sarira, understood this. How could the righteous path experts fail to understand?

So—retreat!

The crowd was startled into motion and withdrew, leaving only one person unmoved.

That person was Wanwan.

She wanted to flee as well, but as she looked at the man before her, her trembling body could not muster even a thread of strength.

Xu Yang paid her no heed. He raised both hands slightly and sent his qi forth.

In an instant...

"Gulu Gulu!"

The sound of rushing water rose, and an unusual disturbance suddenly appeared within the Qu River.

"Roar!!!"

The river water boiled, dragon roars rang out, and more than ten Dragon Shadows surged up from the Qu River, shaking all directions with the force to Overturn Rivers and Stir Seas.

Xu Yang

Lifespan: 29/520

Cultivation: Divine Gang Realm

Skills: Butchery, Eating, Sleep, Breathing, Medical Arts, Walking, Archery, Reading, Teaching...

Martial Practice (Diligence Makes Up for Lack of Talent, Marrow Cleansing and Meridian Washing, Eternal Spring and Agelessness, Martial Path Reaches Divinity, Ancestor of Martial Scriptures, Unity of Heaven and Man)

...

Over the past two years, aside from comprehending the Longevity Art, diligently cultivating the Martial Scripture, and increasing his power, Xu Yang had also developed a new skill trait—Unity of Heaven and Man!

What was Unity of Heaven and Man?

It was when heaven and man connected as one, using the power of the human body to draw upon the power of heaven and earth.

This was one of the abilities Martial Artists possessed after Spirit Condensation Dao Integration.

Take Yuwen Huaji as an example. After achieving Spirit Condensation Dao Integration, he could drive the gang essence within his body and combine it with the Divine Intent of the Path of Mysterious Ice, entering a state of "Unity of Heaven and Man." Through this, he could summon the power of heaven and earth to form ice crystals and frost.

Thus, whenever Yuwen Huaji unleashed his Ice Profound Force, ice crystals would freeze over and frost and snow would swirl through the air. This was the manifestation of Unity of Heaven and Man. If he were in a land of ice and snow, its might would increase dramatically.

This was the Unity of Heaven and Man that came after Spirit Condensation Dao Integration.

The Unity of Heaven and Man produced by Xu Yang's Martial Practice skill followed the same principle.

It was simply more effective, and could stack with Xu Yang's own abilities.

After all, he himself was also a Martial Artist at Spirit Condensation Dao Integration and possessed the ability of Unity of Heaven and Man.

Thus, his own ability and the skill trait stacked together—two layers of Unity of Heaven and Man...

"Gulu Gulu!"

"Roar!!!"

More than ten water dragons erupted from the Qu River, their terrifying shadows carrying Dragon Might as they shrouded the surroundings.

The dragons roared across the eight desolations, Heaven Shaking Earth Shattering.

That was the scene before them.

The effects of the skill trait and his own ability, two layers of Unity of Heaven and Man, had already surpassed the limits of the Spirit Condensation Realm.

Beneath the shadows, behind Xu Yang, Wanwan watched the more than ten water dragons surge from the Qu River, their cries shaking the heavens. With a "thud," she dropped to her knees.

"!!!!!"

The experts of the righteous and evil paths, who had been rapidly retreating, were even more horrified upon seeing this. They directly squeezed the gang qi within their bodies to its limit and fled at the fastest speed of their lives.

Unity of Heaven and Man?

Of course they knew of Unity of Heaven and Man. But even the Unity of Heaven and Man of a Grandmaster should not have produced a scene this exaggerated, this excessive, this terrifying!

Again, take Yuwen Huaji as an example. Among Spirit Condensation Martial Artists, his cultivation was considered average, perhaps even above average. Yet his Unity of Heaven and Man could at most form a single enormous Mysterious Ice tiger. Even amid ice and snow, where the power of his Ice Profound Force increased severalfold, he could never achieve such a degree.

Forget him—even the Three Grandmasters, the Four Great Holy Monks, the Evil King, and the Heavenly Saber, Grandmaster figures who had reached the utmost limits of Spirit Condensation, could not produce such terrifying might when using Unity of Heaven and Man within a suitably compatible environment.

Such power...

"Roar!!!"

Before their horror had faded and their frightened souls had settled, while their minds were in chaos, a dragon roar split the heavens.

Xu Yang moved both palms, urging his qi outward. The power of heaven and earth followed his momentum. More than ten water dragons surged from the Qu River, transforming into hundreds and thousands of branching Dragon Shadows that blasted toward the terrified crowd as they desperately retreated.

"Not good!"

"Quick...!!!"

The crowd's pupils contracted. They forcibly halted, their gang essence erupting instinctively as they raised their defenses against the Dragon Shadows filling the sky.

Under such an attack, fleeing with their backs turned meant certain death.

Only by defending with all their strength could they seize a sliver of life.

Boom boom boom!!!

A series of explosions rang out like thunderclaps. The more than ten water dragons split into hundreds and thousands of streams, filling the sky as they rained down a frenzied bombardment. They covered a radius of a hundred zhang and swallowed the figures of the crowd.

Rumble rumble!

After the final rumble, the soaring dragon cries were gone. Of the spectacle of Dragon Shadows crisscrossing the air, only scattered water vapor remained, steaming in waves.

The experts of both the righteous and evil paths, of the Buddhist and demonic sects, all those at Spirit Condensation Dao Integration, lay collapsed upon the ground, their lives and deaths unknown.

Only a scant few remained standing, but they too had suffered grievous injuries and swayed on the verge of collapse.

That was only because the water dragons had divided their force to injure everyone.

Had the water dragons not split apart and instead concentrated their strength to kill, the ground would surely have been drenched in blood by now, with who knew how many people exploding to death.

"You... Puh!!!"

Zhu Yuyan pressed one hand over her heart meridian and stared at Xu Yang in shock and fury. She opened her mouth to speak, only to spew out a great mouthful of blood. Her swaying body could no longer hold on, and she crashed heavily to the ground.

As the master of the Yin Gui Sect, a top expert who had cultivated the Heavenly Demon Great Law to the seventeenth level and stood only One Step Away from the Grandmaster Realm, her strength was not to be underestimated. Thus, she had received special attention.

As a result, though she was the strongest among the few still standing at the end, she was the first to fall.

Fortunately, the others could not hold out much longer either. The injuries within their bodies erupted, and they collapsed one after another.

In the end, only Xu Yang remained standing upon the battlefield, with Wanwan kneeling behind him and trembling violently.

Just then...

"Whoosh!"

A figure appeared like a ghost, seemingly from nowhere. Carried by gusts of sinister wind and surging demonic qi, it sped straight toward Xu Yang.