Inside the cave, Jiang Liu sensed the sounds of the action outside and felt waves of energy surging through the air, as if the mountains were collapsing and the earth was splitting. The sound of water would stop for a while, and then it would be like a torrential downpour. The waterfall would sometimes roll backwards, and sometimes the whole spray of water would crash down.
The battle outside lasted less than a quarter of an hour before it stopped; it seemed the Ghost Lord couldn't hold on any longer and retreated. Before leaving, he uttered a harsh threat, saying he would return. Judging from his unwilling tone, he would probably definitely come back. Tianming completely ignored him.
After the Ghost Lord left, Tianming casually grabbed Jiang Liu and pulled him out of the cave.
Jiang Liu struggled desperately, but could not break free from the control of the giant hand of energy, and could only give up helplessly. Then, he was gently thrown onto the grass by the river.
Jiang Liu quickly stood up, brushed the weeds off his clothes, and looked at Tianming with innocent eyes. He saw a middle-aged man dressed as a scholar standing there quietly. If he didn't know his strength, Jiang Liu would definitely think he was just an ordinary scholar.
I thought to myself, "People these days are so strange. Are they all so good at pretending?"
"Little guy, what are you muttering about?" Tianming looked at him with amusement.
"Senior, no! I just didn't expect someone of your skill to be so kind and approachable!"
"You little rascal, you've got a sweet tongue. At your age, to have the strength of an eighth-rank expert is a rare sight in the Jianghu. Give me some instructions!"
"Explanation? There's nothing to explain! I've always been like this, I just kept practicing and eventually broke through! I don't even have a master?"
"Oh? Is that so? Hold out your hand." Tianming said, making a grasping motion in the air and pulling Jiang Liu to his side.
With a touch of his fingers on Jiang Liu's wrist, a gentle surge of vital energy circulated along the meridians within Jiang Liu's body before dissipating.
"Hmm! It's true that I can't detect which cultivation method you're practicing. However, your vital energy is mixed and impure, a jumbled mess without any refinement. But how come you're cultivating nine different methods simultaneously?"
Jiang Liu was startled upon hearing this, thinking there was something wrong with his cultivation, but he felt he was doing well! His combat strength had always been higher than that of his peers.
Busy and anxious, he asked Tianming, "Senior, is there anything wrong with me?"
"The problem isn't too big, but why did you start cultivating other attributes so early? Usually, people only start cultivating other attributes after reaching the ninth rank. And why are you cultivating four special attributes at the same time?"
Is there any difference?
"The difference is huge. The foundation for advancing to the Grandmaster level is the unity of the five elements, and then choosing one of the four special attribute energies as the main attack attribute. But you are cultivating all four at the same time. I'm afraid your advancement will be very slow in the future. What's even more worrying is that the four attribute energies will conflict with each other."
"I've never seen anything like your situation before, but seeing that you're cultivating nine different types of energy and advancing so quickly, you shouldn't have any problem with slow advancement in the future. When you use your Yuan Qi now, do you feel any conflict between them?"
"No, but senior, are you sure that a Grandmaster can only cultivate one special type of elemental energy?"
"This is certain, because since the beginning of the records, it has always been about cultivating only one special attribute."
Jiang Liu was stunned. No one had ever cultivated like this before? Did that mean I'd ruined my cultivation?
No. Is it possible that there are very few people practicing the four special attributes, or that there are no records of them at all?
"Yes, that must be it," Jiang Liu reassured himself.
Seeing Jiang Liu deep in thought, Tianming didn't disturb him. "Alright, little guy, is there anything else? If not, then leave! Don't come here again." Tianming gave Jiang Liu a few words of advice and then disappeared.
Jiang Liu looked at the spot where Tianming had disappeared and thought to himself, "Tianming of the Haotian Sect is quite kind and amiable. The Ghost Lord of the Sun Moon Sect is doomed. What am I thinking? The main thing now is to figure out if there is anything wrong with my fellow cultivator's four special attributes."
However, I've been using all four special attributes without any problems! Especially the Ice Blade, it's perfectly harmonious, so even Tianming probably doesn't know the specifics, because he's never seen it before!
So the Ice Blade I accidentally created has become the best example of how I can cultivate four special attributes simultaneously. Haha! So there's absolutely no need to worry.
After Jiang Liu figured it out, his worries immediately disappeared.
Looking around, he was immediately astonished. The place where they had just fought was a mess, as if it had been hit by a category 12 typhoon. Many trees in the distance had been uprooted, and large areas of grass were bare. The river water level seemed to have dropped a lot.
This destructive power is truly formidable, and this isn't even a full-blown fight! If they were to fight with all their might, the power would be even greater. This battle between the two probably won't end anytime soon, because if the Ghost Lord can't find any other life-extending treasures, he'll definitely come back here.
Therefore, the two will inevitably have a real battle sooner or later.
Jiang Liu quickly spread out, wanting to find a place to stay in the forest before it got dark.
On the small island in the center of the large lake above the waterfall, Tianming sat in a pavilion, accompanied by another middle-aged man dressed in white.
"What? Such a good prospect, you don't want to take him?" the man in white asked.
"Sigh! I don't have the energy for that. Besides, that little guy has his own destiny, so I won't bother him!"
The man in white looked at Tianming's dejected expression and felt a pang of pity. "You still can't let go?"
"Let go? Can't let go? Is there a difference?"
"Alright, let's not talk about this anymore. How are you feeling?" Tianming asked with concern, looking at Ye Junsheng's pale face.
"Sigh! Still the same as before, looks like I'm not going to get better." Ye Junsheng said nonchalantly.
"Don't think like that, I will definitely find a cure for you!"
"I've been searching for so many years without any news. It seems like there's little hope. Let's not waste our time. Anyway, I'm still alive and well, aren't I? Haha!" The man in white finished speaking and laughed loudly, but there was a sense of loneliness in his laughter.
Back in the day, he was a young prodigy who roamed the martial Jianghu, advancing to the Grandmaster level at the tender age of twenty-eight, truly a peerless genius. Now, however, he can only stay here in desolate, recuperating from his illness.
"Alright, Ye Junsheng, there's still hope. We'll find it eventually."
"Find? How can I find him? Even my Lineage has given up on me and doesn't care about me anymore. Otherwise, do you think only Ghost Lord would dare to come here? Haha!"
"You mean?" Tianming asked, his brows furrowing slightly.
"That's right. Don't you find it strange? How dare a mere Ghost Lord of the Sun Moon Sect act so presumptuously in front of a direct descendant of the Ye family?"
Seeing Tianming Ye Junsheng suppressing his anger, Tianming couldn't help but sigh inwardly. As an outsider, it wasn't appropriate for him to interfere in this Lineage feud.
However, it's acceptable to give certain people a proper warning. After all, these are his brothers who have gone through thick and thin with him. Anyone who dares to bully him will be humiliated. Why should I care about his reputation?