Mad Beast gave a chuckle, the corners of his mouth curling upward. "It's perfectly normal that you've never heard my name, because I'm not a martial cultivator of this era at all. When I was born, humanity was still living through an age of chaos, slaughtering demons and battling demon beasts for dominion over this land."
"Not a martial artist of this era?" Tang Jie was overcome with shock.
Tang Jie thought of the records in Moro's diary. Decades ago, Shaolin Temple had been massacred by a mysterious martial artist. The one who destroyed Shaolin had been a martial artist, and Moro had fought him—only to be effortlessly defeated.
Could it... have been this man calling himself Mad Beast?
"Were you the one who destroyed Shaolin Temple decades ago?" Tang Jie immediately asked.
Mad Beast was slightly taken aback, evidently surprised, but he nodded readily. "That's right. I woke up once several decades ago and heard that the martial arts holy land of the world was something called Shaolin Temple. I immediately went there, eager to issue a challenge, but I was disappointed... Those people who called themselves Martial Arts Grandmasters were all a bunch of useless trash. Killing them was as boring as crushing an ant!"
"I left in disappointment, though afterward I met a rather interesting little monk. I found another place to sleep... This era truly is a golden age for martial artists. We may even have a chance to break through the Immortal Gate and ascend to the Immortal Martial Realm that no one has ever reached!"
A trace of excitement colored Mad Beast's voice, but the words he spoke were shocking enough.
Shaolin Temple had been wiped out decades ago, and for a time, rumors had run wild. Some believed cultivators had destroyed Shaolin. Only a very few people knew that the culprit had not been a cultivator at all, but a martial artist—a peerless martial artist who had appeared out of nowhere and single-handedly annihilated Shaolin, which at the time had more than ten Martial Arts Grandmasters, along with its several thousand other disciples!
And now, the culprit who had destroyed Shaolin had appeared right before Tang Jie!
While shocked, Tang Jie was also puzzled by certain things revealed in Mad Beast's words.
"What do you mean by 'we'? Are there more martial cultivators like you?"
Tang Jie frowned.
Mad Beast clearly did not belong to this era. When he had been born, humanity had still been fighting demons and demon beasts for control of this land. That might have been more than ten thousand years ago, in an age when even figures like Bodhidharma had yet to be born!
"That's right... When I was born, I was raised by a demon beast. I was naturally gifted in martial arts and achieved the realm of a martial cultivator in an incredibly short time, roaming invincibly in every direction. I even used Innate Qi to undergo transformation. Even powerful cultivators were no match for me!"
"But I could see no hope of advancing any further. When I was a thousand years old, I received a letter... It said that after countless tens of thousands of years since the birth of martial artists, the strongest and most outstanding martial artists would all gather in a single era. When that time came, an unprecedented golden age of martial arts would arrive, and we would all be able to contend for the supreme Immortal Martial Realm!"
The excitement on Mad Beast's face grew increasingly intense.
"So I followed the method in the letter and entered slumber, waiting for the golden age of martial arts to arrive... He didn't lie to me! He didn't lie to me!" Mad Beast laughed wildly, almost roaring. His laughter was filled with exhilaration and joy, and tears streamed down his face—tears of wild delight.
It was no wonder Mad Beast was so agitated. Before he was even a hundred years old, he had become a martial cultivator. By using Innate Qi to transform himself into an innate body, he had entered the realm of an Innate Martial Cultivator. After that, he challenged many cultivators, yet no matter what he did, he could not break through.
This made Mad Beast realize that perhaps he had been born in the wrong era. There were too few powerful martial artists. Without tempering oneself, how could one ever reach the summit?
After a thousand years of bitter cultivation, Mad Beast had perfected his martial arts, but he could no longer make any progress or break through his current realm.
Then, one day, Mad Beast received a letter. It told him that a golden age of martial arts would arrive, and that he would have the chance to break through to a higher realm when it did!
Although Mad Beast had been skeptical, he had been unable to break through for so long. Thus, he followed the instructions in the letter and began his slumber, allowing his lifespan to stop flowing as he waited for the golden age of martial arts.
However, Mad Beast woke once during that time. From others, he heard that the martial arts holy land of the present day was Shaolin Temple. This immediately sent him rushing there to issue a challenge, hoping to see whether the so-called golden age of martial arts had already arrived.
But the result disappointed Mad Beast. Those Shaolin martial artists who called themselves Martial Arts Grandmasters were utterly helpless before him. This sent Mad Beast into a furious rage, and he slaughtered the entire Shaolin Temple before leaving.
Mad Beast had destroyed Shaolin for no other reason than having woken unexpectedly midway through his slumber. Later, he fought Moro when Moro came looking for him. As an invincible martial cultivator from tens of thousands of years ago, Mad Beast naturally defeated Moro with ease.
But Mad Beast also recognized Moro's potential and believed that Moro had a chance to become a martial cultivator. Since worthy opponents were so hard to find, Mad Beast took out a wisp of precious Innate Qi and saved his life. Afterward, Mad Beast found another place to continue sleeping and waited for the golden age of martial arts to arrive.
It was only recently, when Tang Jie returned from acquired to innate and broke into the realm of the Innate Martial Dao, that the resulting commotion awakened Mad Beast. At the same time, chain reactions occurred throughout the various lands. Mad Beast understood that the golden age of martial arts had truly arrived!
After taking a brief nap, Mad Beast woke and learned some information from various places. He then headed straight for Peerless City. It was known as the holy land of martial artists, and the so-called strongest martial artist under heaven currently stood guard there. Naturally, Peerless City was Mad Beast's first target.
"He... What is he talking about?" In the sky, the long-haired man and the other cultivators had also heard Mad Beast's words. They were all somewhat bewildered. What Mad Beast said was simply too absurd, and they even suspected that he was insane!
"Who left you the letter?" Tang Jie asked with a deeply furrowed brow. He too doubted whether Mad Beast's story was true, but instinct told him that it was probably true.
At the same time, Tang Jie was very curious about the person who had left the letter and made Mad Beast enter slumber. To think of gathering the strongest martial artists from countless different eras into the same age—and to actually accomplish it—this person was certainly no ordinary individual!
Mad Beast shook his head. "I don't know... That isn't important. What matters is that we all have a chance to advance further and break through our current realms!"
Mad Beast did not know who had left him the letter. He lived in the Savage Mountain Range, and the other party had managed to leave a letter right under his nose without being detected. That person was undoubtedly extraordinary, but Mad Beast did not care about his identity.
Even Innate Martial Cultivators had lifespans no shorter than those of cultivators, yet they would eventually die all the same. If there was hope of entering a higher realm, Mad Beast was willing to take the gamble.
As he spoke, Mad Beast's face burned with fervor. "Kid, you're the second martial cultivator I've ever met. Today... let's have a thoroughly satisfying battle. Let me see just how strong the strongest martial artist of this era can be! Perhaps... the others have grown impatient waiting as well!"
Tang Jie also cast a faint glance into the distance. He could sense an extremely faint gaze coming from that direction.
More than ten miles away, atop a mountain peak, two people sat beside a cliff, watching what was happening here. One was a tall man dressed in Daoist robes, his powerful build stretching the robe until it bulged slightly.
The other was a black-robed monk with refined features and a gentle smile at the corners of his mouth. He looked no more than twenty-something.
"It seems they've discovered us," the black-robed monk said softly.
"So what if they have? Is that young man the strongest martial artist of the present age? Like you, he seems to belong to Bodhidharma's lineage."
The burly Daoist did not care in the slightest.
A gentle smile appeared on the black-robed monk's lips. "Indeed. I never expected to meet a martial cultivator whose aptitude and comprehension are no inferior to mine."
"Hahaha! Let's first see what methods this martial cultivator, older even than True Man Sanfeng and Patriarch Bodhidharma, possesses!"
The burly Daoist was excited.
This truly was a golden age of martial arts. There was Tang Jie, the most outstanding martial cultivator of the present age, as well as ancient martial cultivators like Mad Beast, who had been born even earlier than Bodhidharma and True Man Sanfeng!
The strongest martial cultivators born in different eras had now gathered in the same age. Every one of them had been invincible among martial artists in their own era. Some had even founded their own lineages. Each was a peerless genius, and with so many of the strongest martial cultivators gathered together, who would become the true strongest among them?
The true number-one martial artist throughout the ages!
"Come on. I also want to see whether you can make me excited."
Hot-blooded battle intent blazed in Tang Jie's eyes as he stared at Mad Beast. Facing this second martial cultivator—one even older than Bodhidharma and True Man Sanfeng—Tang Jie's own battle intent surged. He wanted to fight him to his heart's content and see who was truly the strongest!
"Then let me show you the martial arts I perfected over a thousand years of cultivation!"
Mad Beast licked his lips, fierce light flashing in his eyes.
Mad Beast's life had been utterly legendary. He had been born in a chaotic age when demons, the Demon Race, and humanity warred against one another. Abandoned in a desolate forest, he had been raised by demon beasts.
Mad Beast could be called a natural-born martial artist. By observing various demon beasts, he had created a martial art of his own, cultivated internal energy, and step by step become a martial cultivator!
The martial art Mad Beast had created himself was called the Mad Beast Way. After a thousand years of tempering, he had cultivated it to its peak.
"Die!"
Mad Beast roared. His terrifying voice shook the clouds in the sky into churning waves, and the few cultivators above felt as if they were about to plummet from the heavens.
Mad Beast panted heavily, his eyes blood-red. His body tore through the air, leaving a string of afterimages. In less than one percent of a blink, he appeared before Tang Jie, one fist smashing straight toward him.
Mad Beast Way: Savage Bear's Wrath!
A several-zhang-tall phantom of a Savage Bear appeared behind Mad Beast. Its paw slammed down with tremendous force, crushing the void and effortlessly smashing a small mountain into fragments!
The moment Mad Beast attacked, Tang Jie judged that he was, like himself, an Innate Martial Cultivator who had cultivated Martial Dao True Essence. Instead of being alarmed, Tang Jie was delighted. Only an opponent of this caliber could make his blood boil.
Demon Prajna: Divine Elephant Fist!
Tang Jie likewise gathered his strength and threw a punch. The roars of dragons and elephants shook heaven and earth, boundless divine might condensing into that single fist.
Tang Jie had already cultivated Demon Prajna to the fifth layer, possessing the power of five dragons and elephants. Even a casual punch could shatter the earth and mountains, much less one thrown with his full strength!
"Boom!"
The two fists collided heavily. The earth within nearly a thousand meters shook violently, and an earth-shattering boom exploded like a deep-sea bomb. The shock waves sent the rocks on the ground flying in all directions like bullets.
Flowers and trees were ripped from the earth, shaken into powder that scattered through the air. Sand and dust rose dozens of meters into the sky under that tremendous force!
The shocking sight left the cultivators in the sky dumbfounded. It was difficult to imagine that such power could erupt from flesh and blood. Even a Body Cultivator should be no more than this, right?
"Roar!"
The roar of a bear and the Dragon Elephant roar shattered the clouds in the sky.
Tang Jie and Mad Beast's bodies both trembled slightly before they neutralized the force they had received.
This kid... What tremendous strength. He can actually meet me head-on?
Mad Beast was secretly startled by the power transmitted from Tang Jie's fist. The Mad Beast Way he cultivated specialized in close-quarters combat. Even top Body Cultivators found it difficult to clash with him head-on.
Yet Tang Jie had endured his fierce blow without retreating an inch?
Even with the power of five dragons and elephants, I can't overpower him?
Tang Jie was secretly shocked as well. After cultivating Demon Prajna to the fifth layer, he could shatter mountains and rivers with every gesture. Yet Mad Beast's body was no weaker than his own!
"Hahaha! Good! Good!"
Mad Beast burst into wild laughter. Only an opponent like this could allow him to verify his martial arts and advance further.
Mad Beast Way: Mad Ape's Palm Strike!
Mad Beast's aura changed. A moment ago, he had been a clumsy, thick-skinned Savage Bear. Now, he was like a nimble giant ape of immense strength!
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!"
Mad Beast's broad, callused palms struck toward Tang Jie in rapid succession. He stood over two meters tall, with long arms and thick legs. Every palm could crush mountains and sever peaks, each one as fierce as thunder. His hands struck out in a relentless chain, completely enveloping Tang Jie and sealing off every avenue of escape.
Dragon Scale Body: Prajna Palm!
Tang Jie entered the state of Dragon Scale Body. The power of Demon Prajna spread throughout his body, forming layer upon layer of hard, black, heavy dragon scales. He struck out with both palms as well, meeting Mad Beast's ferocious attack head-on, an attack that seemed capable of tearing heaven and earth apart!
Tang Jie was using Prajna Palm, one of the palm techniques among the Seventy-Two Peerless Techniques. The technique was profoundly mysterious, capable of both hardness and softness, and equally suited to offense and defense.
"Bang, bang, bang, bang!"
In the space of a single second, the two sides collided more than a dozen times, neither yielding an inch. Their continuous impacts exploded like rolling thunder, tearing enormous cracks through the earth beneath their feet that stretched hundreds of meters.
The fierce collision sent smoke soaring and shattered stones flying through the sky. Sand and rocks whipped through the air, making it impossible to imagine that such a disturbance could be caused by two bodies of flesh and blood.
"This kid's strength is so heavy and solid. It's almost as if every strike is going to shatter my body."
Mad Beast was secretly alarmed by the immense, weighty force in each of Tang Jie's palms. Every collision made him feel as if the bones in his palms were about to break!
The two sides exchanged dozens of palm strikes, shattering the earth. Then a sly glint flashed through Mad Beast's eyes. He suddenly flipped both hands and seized Tang Jie's wrists, restraining both of their hands.
Mad Beast Way: Scorpion Leg!
Mad Beast let out a low growl and abruptly kicked with his right leg. The muscles in his leg gleamed with a metallic chill, while his toes pointed straight ahead like the sharp tip of a scorpion's tail, stabbing directly toward Tang Jie's abdomen.
Because of the body's structure, the legs possessed greater strength than the arms. Mad Beast's kick further concentrated all its force into a single point. He believed that no matter how powerful Tang Jie's body was, if he were struck, his intestines would be torn apart and the kick would pierce straight through him.
Mad Beast had once used this move to kick a hole through the body of a top Body Cultivator.
Mad Beast had seized both of Tang Jie's hands, leaving him no room to dodge!
Great Sun Golden Bell Shield!
Tang Jie's expression turned cold. Without hesitation, he used the Martial Dao True Essence of the Boyhood Art and Innate Art to drive the Golden Bell Shield.
A dark-gold ancient bell emerged, a golden sun blazing above it like a small sun burning fiercely!
"Twelve stages... Golden Bell Shield?"
On the mountain more than ten miles away, the black-robed young monk, who had been watching the battle all along, revealed a strange look in his eyes. He too specialized in Golden Bell Shield, but had not cultivated it to the twelfth stage. As far as he knew, only its creator, Bodhidharma, had reached the twelfth stage. Yet Tang Jie had actually reached this level as well?
"Clang!"
Mad Beast's Scorpion Leg slammed heavily into the Golden Bell Shield, producing a bell chime that reverberated for a hundred miles. The force of Mad Beast's kick was absurdly great. It forcibly caved in Tang Jie's Golden Bell Shield, which had reached the twelfth stage and was driven by Innate Art. Dense cracks spread across the point of impact, and it was almost pierced straight through!
Buzz, buzz, buzz!
Mad Beast himself did not fare well. The enormous counterforce sent him flying backward, while a searing fire force traveled up his leg and entered his body, scorching his internal organs.
This was also the first time either of them had retreated since the battle began!
"Good!" The burly Daoist on the mountain shouted in delight upon seeing this. The heat radiating from the blazing golden flames made even him, a powerhouse skilled in the strongest pure-yang technique, unable to restrain his praise.
"Looks like their warm-up is over. They're about to get serious," the black-robed young monk said, narrowing his eyes. His gaze was filled with anticipation. He understood that Mad Beast and Tang Jie were about to use their full strength!
"Gah... ooh!" Mad Beast was sent flying more than ten meters before landing firmly on both feet and halting his momentum. He opened his mouth and actually spat out the fire force scorching him from within. The flames burned fiercely before dissipating in the air.
"Hahaha! Exhilarating!"
Mad Beast burst into wild laughter.
His internal organs are that powerful too?
Tang Jie was astonished. No matter how one trained them, the internal organs were extremely fragile. Yet after his fire force entered Mad Beast's body, Mad Beast had easily spat it back out, without suffering the slightest internal injury. It was astonishing. Mad Beast truly was like an ancient ferocious beast, with no weakness even in his internal organs.
Mad Beast stared at Tang Jie, revealing a mouthful of enormous, snow-white teeth as he grinned viciously. "To repay you for letting me enjoy myself so thoroughly, I'm going to beat you to death!"
"Then come... and try!"
Tang Jie's eyes turned pitch-black. An aura that made the heart tremble spread from his body, like the gates of hell thrown wide open!
Before you continue