If You Wish to Improve, First Examine Yourself
Snap! Snap! Snap!
As soon as the bookshelf was placed on the ground, it shattered the ground into pieces, just like a solid object!
"Hmm? From illusion to reality? You've only condensed the Earthly Soul, how could you possibly do that?"
Upon seeing this, the ten-zhang giant was first taken aback, then a sinister smile appeared on his face. He suddenly lifted his leg and pulled his foot out of the corroded and collapsing ground, and then his whole body was filled with Yao Qi!
The Yao Qi was dense and concentrated, condensing in mid-air into a gaseous Rhinoceros that charged downwards, crashing into Qiu Yan's Living Soul!
"No matter how skillful you are, brute force can overcome any technique! Before my Xi Ji, it's all in vain!" As he spoke, the gaseous Rhinoceros crashed down, crushing Qiu Yan's Living Soul along with the Masters Section Bookshelf beneath it!
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The ground cracked and split, and endless Yao Qi dissipated, shattering a large area of the ground into dust!
Rising!
Dust and smoke billowed into the sky, reaching up to the waist of the ten-zhang-tall giant.
"Hahaha!" Seeing this, the giant laughed wildly, "No matter what transformations you make, I will break through them all by myself! These are the words of the master, how could you, a mere Soul Refinement cultivator, possibly understand them?"
Sudden!
Buzz!
A whooshing sound rang out, and a figure burst out from the billowing dust—it was a scholar in a blue robe!
The ten-zhang giant was stunned upon seeing this, and then became furious.
"Who is this? Hmm? The aura on his body is the same as that of that Living Soul? When did that Living Soul return to the body? And it was able to withstand a Qi-gathering attack, not simple! It's a pity that he still wants to challenge it, then there is only one way out: death!"
With a roar, the giant raised his palm and slammed it down on the scholar in the blue robe. Instantly, a gale howled, and the enormous palm descended, striking the scholar in the blink of an eye.
But the next moment, a sharp pain erupted in the giant's palm. He roared and blood splattered on the back of his hand, creating a bloody hole. The scholar flew out of the hole, and a three-foot-long green sword appeared in his hand at some point!
"Ya ya ya!"
The ten-zhang-tall giant roared repeatedly, his face filled with disbelief.
"How is this possible? My palm strike was brimming with masculine Blood Qi, and my skin is even harder than refined iron in the mortal world. How come this person not only wasn't injured, but his palm was even cut open? Could it be that his sword is too sharp? No! That can't be!"
Suddenly, a sentence appeared abruptly in the giant's mind, as if it had appeared out of thin air, or as if it had been memorized long ago.
"Wood becomes straight when bound by a rope, and metal becomes sharp when honed on a whetstone!"
The giant opened his mouth and roared those words!
"You were able to tear through my flesh not because you are powerful, but because I wasn't focused enough. If I were to concentrate wholeheartedly and diligently learn, no one could stand against me!"
The roar, as loud as thunder, echoed all around. Ripples spread across the giant's entire body, his flesh turning a grayish-black color and clanging as if it were rock!
"It's done! It's done! Truly, sincerity can move mountains! By refining the Heroic Soul, transforming the bloodline, and leaving a legacy for future generations, even demons can achieve the Human Path as long as their hearts are pure! I never imagined that the Black Iron Body, which I had cultivated for many years without success, would actually be achieved because of you!"
He laughed heartily, feeling exhilarated and carefree. Then, he glanced down at the scholar who was flying towards him and struck him with another palm!
"Now, I'd like to see how you handle this!"
When he struck with his palm, both the palm and the back of his hand turned grayish-black, gleaming with a metallic sheen. It whistled through the air, like a huge ball of black iron flying through the sky! It fell down like a piece of iron flying from Beyond Heaven!
When!
A deafening roar!
When the palm struck the scholar, it produced a heavy, resounding impact, and ripples radiated outwards from the point of impact!
Then, the scholar's body swelled up, growing twenty feet in the blink of an eye, his whole body flashing with cold light, and he actually became Black Iron Body!
"What!"
The ten-zhang-tall giant was startled again, a chill creeping into his heart, but suddenly another thought surfaced in his mind—
"The student surpasses the teacher, yet is bluer than the teacher; ice is made from water, yet is colder than water! You may seem stronger than me on the surface, but as long as I forge ahead bravely, I will definitely surpass you! Roar!"
The ten-zhang giant roared, and its body expanded again, slowly but firmly, filling him with ecstatic joy! Then, without further ado, he raised his fist and charged forward.
Ding! Ding! Ding!
The two giants were locked in combat in the blink of an eye!
Qiu Yan's Living Soul drifted about, his senses already encompassing the enormous Rhinoceros ahead.
This Rhinoceros was the prototype of the ten-zhang giant, but now it lay motionless in the mud, clearly unconscious.
"Whether practicing martial arts, pursuing knowledge, or even dealing with people, one should have an indomitable spirit and a steadfast heart to move forward. However, the prerequisite should be self-reflection. Only by understanding one's own limitations can one truly benefit from learning. Everyone has their strengths and weaknesses; learning from others' strengths to compensate for one's own shortcomings is the right path. The Sage' Exhortation to Learning is not about blindly pursuing novelty, but about first consolidating one's own abilities and identifying one's goals. Otherwise, one will sink into vain and never find liberation."
Beside the soul-stirring figure, four bookshelves circled and hovered, with the Masters Section Bookshelf prominently among them. Yet, it had never flown away. The fragments of bamboo slips placed on those bookshelves were rising up, revealing an illusory scene that reflected the image of two giants battling.
"If you can't see this through, you won't be able to escape. This Rhinoceros Demon only seeks power but has no intention of cultivating it, so it can only wander aimlessly on the side paths."
It turned out that when the giant transformed from the burly man with the protruding forehead stumbled and fell on the broken ground, he was startled and his mind was breached. Qiu Yan took advantage of this and struck him with the fragments of the Sage's bamboo slips, thus causing him to fall into an illusion.
All that had happened before was an illusion. After the ten-foot giant immersed himself in it, he gradually succumbed, his State of Mind wavered, and the words of Sage penetrated his heart, trapping his soul and separating it from his spirit. His Fleshly Body was also out of control. Without control, he could only revert to his original form.
"If it weren't an illusion, how could the Earthly Soul Bookshelf have landed and shattered the stone? I can only achieve this in dreams and illusions. But judging from what this demon just said, it seems to be at a realm above Soul Condensation, and can indeed cultivate to the point of transforming reality into illusion."
Earthly Soul are formed from experiences, and can construct illusions with memories and experiences. If one breaks down the guard of others, one can also draw on their memories, supplementing and advancing the illusion. When dealing with Third Young Master Pan, Qiu Yan was only trying it for the first time, but now he is already very skilled at it.
Then, his Living Soul began to ripple, and his senses expanded rapidly, covering an area of seven or eight miles.
"This robe-shaped magical Law Artifact is truly wondrous. It seems to use Spiritual Qi to draw upon the surroundings, creating a series of magical Method Formula. Could it be some kind of Qimen Dunjia and strategy)? Hmm? It's finally here!"
The Living Soul was still thinking when suddenly its thoughts changed, and with a swift movement, it rushed to the side!
Immediately afterwards, a "rip" sound, like rustling leather, was heard, and the thin mist covering the sky cracked open, revealing a figure falling straight down—a man with disheveled hair!
As soon as he landed, he saw the Rhinoceros lying silently on the ground and cursed under his breath, "Idiot!" Then, his gaze shifted to the Living Soul, and he let out a thunderous roar and threw a punch!
The fist bounced, directly compressing the air, the force exploding and creating a vacuum, then it shot out rapidly!
However, before this mass of vacuum had flown more than a few feet, a burst of emerald light suddenly erupted from the ground!
P. S.: Thank you to reader "Perfect Zhongzhou" for the donation! This is the second update today...