The Genuine Samadhi True Fire

Great Daoist Master Zhao Wendao, unable to sit still any longer, suddenly stepped in and gave the eighteen Qingliang Temple Taoists, who had been left awkwardly stranded, a precious way out.

They bowed in unison, each one red-faced as they left in disarray. Their once well-drilled formation had become noticeably ragged.

Second Daoist Master Li Jin Dan's face was flushed crimson, yet he remained rooted where he stood, glaring viciously at Li Bai. The impressive display he had painstakingly created had been completely ignored by the other man. Worse still, Li Bai had unexpectedly swung his sword and severed all eighteen expensive peachwood swords, turning the Nine Palaces Eight Trigrams Limitless Demon Subduing Array into a joke.

Li Bai was not some demon, and the Nine Palaces Eight Trigrams Limitless Demon Subduing Array was merely a ritual with the nature of a magic trick. The former would not devour people, commit evil, or bring disaster upon the masses, so naturally, the latter possessed no genuine miraculous power to subdue demons.

Li Jin Dan had been humiliated on the spot mainly because, at the right time and in the right place, he had chosen the wrong opponent.

Had the person surrounded in the center by the eighteen Qingliang Temple Taoists been anyone else present—even Goddess Yan, who was livestreaming—the dazzling array setup, burning talismans, thunder and lightning, and incantations would likely have overwhelmed them with the audiovisual effects and psychological shock displayed by the Nine Palaces Eight Trigrams Limitless Demon Subduing Array. They would have lost all ability to judge rationally, with only one thought remaining: fall to their knees and shout, "Immortal Master!"

Most of Qingliang Temple's wealthy patrons had been acquired this way. The three Taoist masters of Qingliang Temple were exceptionally skilled at this trick.

Great Demon Li cultivated both the mystical arts and martial arts. Releasing talismans or calling down lightning was child's play to him. If he was in the mood, he could even summon flying swords and unleash monsters after shutting the doors.

Second Daoist Master Li Jin Dan's shaman-like display was nothing but a joke before him.

A paper tiger was still a paper tiger. One light poke was enough to tear it apart.

"Second Daoist Master Li Jin Dan of Qingliang Temple, formerly known as Li Jinfeng, started out as a self-employed businessman. He claims to excel at Qi Gazing, talisman-making, and array formation..."

Having finally recovered her wits, beauty anchor Dong Keyan quickly regained her composure. Standing before the cameraman's lens, she began mercilessly kicking a man when he was down, exposing Li Jin Dan's past without restraint. Laughter soon returned to Goddess Yan's livestream room on the online streaming platform.

Hearing Dong Keyan expose his history, Li Jin Dan, who had been locked in a standoff in the square, became angry from shame but could do nothing about it. He stomped his foot in rage, covered his face, and fled in embarrassment.

But in the next moment, the scene behind Dong Keyan set the viewers and fans screaming again.

With every step Great Daoist Master Zhao Wendao took across the square, he left behind a black footprint. After he had walked several steps away, white smoke suddenly rose from the prints before they vanished. His wide sleeves trembled slightly, and clusters of golden flames appeared out of thin air around him, chasing after his footsteps.

Cries of astonishment rose one after another from outside the scene. The Nine Palaces Eight Trigrams Limitless Demon Subduing Array had been nothing but flashy posturing, but now this old Taoist with white hair and beard seemed to possess genuine cultivation.

"Fellow Daoist, you have fallen into the demonic path and possess wicked arts. Why do you still refuse to turn back?"

An inexplicable pressure entered Zhao Wendao's voice. He was still trying to intimidate Li Bai. In a sense, Qingliang Temple's "Taoist arts" and Zhu You Shu were fundamentally similar, except their purposes were entirely different: one was for making money, the other for healing illness.

In the course of studying "Taoist arts," Qingliang Temple had developed quite a few techniques rich in sound, light, and color. Though most were flashy but impractical, they were highly intimidating. Still, some techniques did possess destructive power and could not be used casually. The three Taoist masters called them forbidden arts and rarely employed them.

Li Bai had not been frightened by Second Daoist Master Li Jin Dan's Nine Palaces Eight Trigrams Limitless Demon Subduing Array. Instead, he had broken it with ease. Great Daoist Master Zhao Wendao, who controlled Qingliang Temple, could no longer remain seated. He was already hesitating over whether to use those forbidden arts.

After all, Qingliang Temple was merely a Taoist temple for making money, not some underworld gang. Scamming wealthy people out of a little spare cash was one thing, but they did not dare casually cross the line of the law. Yet their opponent was pressing them relentlessly and intended to smash the livelihoods of the three Taoist masters. That was something Zhao Wendao could never tolerate.

"I am the shore itself. Why would I need to turn back?"

Li Bai paid no attention to the hidden meaning and faint threat in the other man's words.

He remained unchanged in the face of all changes, waiting to see what other tricks the other side had. Let them use whatever they had.

Seeing that his opponent refused to take the hint, Zhao Wendao's expression shifted slightly. Gritting his teeth, he shouted sternly, "Since you don't know what's good for you, taste this poor Taoist's Samadhi True Fire." With that, he swept both sleeves, and a dense swarm of tiny golden flames poured from his cuffs.

Taoism's Samadhi True Fire had long been famed throughout the secular world. Even Sun Wukong, the Great Sage Equal to Heaven from Journey to the West, had nearly been refined by this kind of flame.

The specks of golden fire swiftly surrounded Li Bai along with the airflow created by Zhao Wendao's sleeves. A trace of viciousness appeared on the wrinkled old man's face. For the Qingliang Temple he had painstakingly built, he had no choice but to go all out and use the forbidden art, "Samadhi True Fire."

Even if it brought lawsuits upon himself and Qingliang Temple, he could not worry about that now. He had originally counted on the powerful patrons he had befriended over the years to perhaps suppress this matter, but there were simply too many outsiders at the scene, along with the Special Duty police who had appeared out of nowhere.

To be honest, Zhao Wendao, who had no way out left, had no confidence at all. He could only hope that his "Samadhi True Fire" would draw the attention of those important figures and make them take the initiative to help Qingliang Temple survive this crisis.

Pfft!

A meddlesome onlooker boldly approached, gathered his courage, and sprayed out a mist of mineral water in an attempt to extinguish the Samadhi True Fire. But although the vapor enveloped the tiny golden flames, they merely swayed slightly, showing no sign of going out or dispersing.

Several sparks fell onto the ground and, in the blink of an eye, burned into the stone slabs without being extinguished.

The entire scene erupted in uproar.

Chairman Ni of West Capital Department Store, who had been lecturing his son moments earlier, exclaimed in admiration, "See that? Taoism's Samadhi True Fire—how could ordinary water possibly put it out?"

The wonders of Qingliang Temple and its immortal Taoist arts could be talked about for three days and three nights without exhausting the subject.

"Is that real?"

Young Master Ni stared wide-eyed, his face full of disbelief.

An airflow appeared out of nowhere within the square, stirring the golden Samadhi True Fire into a slow rotation as it drew closer and closer to Li Bai.

"Li Bai, get out of there!"

Dong Keyan's face went pale with fright as she shouted at Li Bai, who was surrounded by specks of golden flame.

"Hmph, you won't give up until you hit the Yellow River. Young man, it's not too late to beg for mercy now."

As Great Daoist Master Zhao Wendao spoke, he flicked out another sleeveful of Samadhi True Fire.

"Samadhi True Fire?"

Li Bai suddenly reached out and pinched a spark drifting toward him.

"He caught it!"

"You can't grab it!"

"Let go!"

Not only were the worshippers and cosplay players horrified, even the Qingliang Temple Taoists changed expression at the same time.

"Idiot!"

The other party's rash move made the Great Daoist Master of Qingliang Temple snort disdainfully.

His Samadhi True Fire was no cheap trick—it was genuine Samadhi True Fire.

Even if it fell into water, it would continue burning. If it stuck to someone's body, it would burn straight to the bone, impossible to put out.

It was easy to foresee that the audacious young man would soon lose his fingers, perhaps even have his entire hand burned into an ugly black skeletal claw.

"So it's phosphorus fire!"

With the Glazed Heart sweeping over it, nothing, great or small, could remain hidden. Li Bai, who had pinched the pellet of Samadhi True Fire with a trace of curiosity, suddenly understood. Qingliang Temple's trick really did have some substance to it—no wonder they had fooled so many people.

If this had been ancient times, it truly would have counted as real Samadhi True Fire. The golden color likely came from metal powder mixed in, creating aerosolized white phosphorus components. Achieving this level clearly took quite a bit of thought.

Hearing Li Bai muttering to himself, Zhao Wendao, who had been waiting to watch him suffer the consequences of his own recklessness, suddenly widened his eyes in disbelief.

He had not heard the agonized scream he had hoped for. Instead, he clearly saw that the hand gripping the Samadhi True Fire was completely unharmed. The golden flame had not gone out and continued to burn on its own.

The old Daoist muttered tremblingly, "Th-this is impossible!"

Inside the Three Pure Ones Hall, Daoist Masters Li Jin Dan and He Xunxian wore the same expressions as though they had seen a ghost. They knew the power of Samadhi True Fire. Once those flames stuck to something, even an ox would be burned into a honeycomb. How could they possibly be kneaded flat and rolled round in the other man's hand like putty?

"Is there anything else? Take it out and let me have a look."

Li Bai clenched his hand, directly crushing out the burning golden phosphorus fire. Only wisps of white smoke escaped between his fingers.

At the same time, he swept both arms outward. The golden flames circling his body flared brightly in unison, then fell like meteors to the ground and went out completely.

The old Daoist had forgotten that the other man's ancient-style robes also had wide sleeves, allowing him to stir the airflow just as easily.