A murderous aura filled the sky, and clouds rolled and waves surged.
On the ten-mile stretch of the river, the layers of water seemed to become a weapon in the hands of the white-robed eunuch before him.
A punch, a kick, a finger— Yuwen Rui struggled to parry.
Su Gui and Yuwen Rui exchanged dozens of blows, but this was their first fight since the Battle of Fangtou.
The Grand Tutor of Northern Wei felt immense pressure.
Back then, in the fierce battle at Fangtou, regardless of Daoist techniques, he could suppress the person in front of him with martial arts alone. But today, in a real fight, Yuwen Rui felt his hard-earned body surging with Qi and Blood and qi.
His will is as Immovability as Mount Tai, and his spirit as surging as the great river.
I never imagined that the person before me had mastered martial arts to such an extraordinary Ultimate Realm.
Silently recite the mantra with each breath.
Yuwen Rui slowly regulated his breathing, and a vermilion fire pearl appeared above his head. Layers of heat waves swept over him, and a pure white flame appeared in front of him.
A wisp of fire, warm as jade, radiates a light like the finest mutton-fat jade; under the long night, gazing upon it brings warmth to the heart.
"Although I say I entered the Dao through martial arts, I could also say I abandoned martial arts to pursue the Dao. Today, judging solely by martial arts, Su Gui, you are already above me Yuwen Rui."
The fire in Yuwen Rui's hand was burning.
"This fire is Divine Ability I created by extracting the Essence of Li Fire, and it is called Fire Within Stone. Please, Lord Su, give it a try and see if what I have gained by sacrificing my martial arts is worthwhile."
The pure white flames existed for only a moment, then transformed into a stream of fire dragon, carrying boundless heat as it hurtled towards the white-clad man before it.
The terrifying heat of the Essence of Li Fire caused the vast river to boil, and amidst the rising steam, Su Gui, dressed in white, appeared extremely small in the face of the all-consuming power of the true fire.
Daoist arts Divine Ability are meant to change the color of heaven and earth, and make great rivers boil.
Su Gui stood on the surging river, slowly extending a finger. Behind this finger was his martial arts cultivation honed through countless trials.
Above this finger is the eternal waves of the Eastern Sea, the early summer plum rains of Jiangnan, the mighty Yangtze River flowing eastward, the Nine Bends of the Long River, and layers upon layers of extremely subtle Gang Qi.
Because it is extremely soft, it is also extremely strong.
It was indeed Ruoshui Finger.
Using his finger as a sword, he cut and isolated the layers of heat, the rolling heat waves, and the furious Fire Within Stone, as if returning it to another world.
Then the river flowed eastward again, and the misty vapor returned to the cold night by the river.
"Indeed exquisite. There are few in this world who can achieve physical sainthood. Su Gui, I think you will be one of them sooner or later." Yuwen Rui laughed heartily, "People call me the Pillar of the North. With you and Wei Huaiwen in the Southern Kingdom, I am not lonely."
"If you and I were to go all out, even if it didn't have the spectacular impact of a hundred miles of scorched earth from a battle Immortal True Person, the area around Jingkou within a ten-mile radius would definitely be affected. If you're willing, I'd be happy to oblige."
Yuwen Rui looked at the man in white before him. "Are you willing to do that?"
"The Grand Tutor must give the people an explanation."
Su Gui slowly said, "Let alone a radius of ten miles, even if it's a thousand miles of barren land, fighting all the way from Jingkou to the Northern Wasteland, I, Su, will definitely accompany you to the end."
" Little Su, what do you mean?"
"It's nothing significant. Just a word to the Grand Tutor: Marshal Wei's army hasn't marched south, but rather north. Judging by the timeline, they should be nearing Luoyang by now."
Looking at the outstanding figure before him, Su Gui asked, "I only want to know, if the Grand Tutor were not in charge of the Northern Dynasties, would there be anyone among the remaining people who could rival Marshal Wei?"
Yuwen Rui let out a cold laugh.
"I do believe in Wei Huaiwen's abilities, but while he may be invincible, your country's emperor may not have the ambition to unify the world."
"Then Grand Tutor, you may wish to wait and see."
" Lord Su, I don't have that kind of free time."
"I had an agreement with Marshal Wei to keep him for ten days. Grand Preceptor Yuwen, perhaps we should wait a few more days first."
"Instead of keeping me here, you should be more concerned about your own children and nephews."
Yuwen Rui waved his hand, and three pure white flame dragons surged forth.
"I've met Lord Su's nephew. He's pretty much the same in character and talent. Be careful that someone higher up doesn't become jealous and take him away. Such things happen all the time in your Southern Kingdom..."
"My nephew is destined to be Sixfold Azure Dragon, and he has plenty of people to look after him. There's no need for you to trouble yourself, Grand Tutor."
Su Gui straightened his white robes and, facing the three fire dragons on the river, assumed a fighting stance, throwing punches and kicks.
Fire dragons danced wildly, fingers and palms flew.
In this world, the martial arts cultivation is unparalleled by the Martial Confucian Lineage, and Su Gui is one of the few masters who has reached near-perfection within this system.
With intention and energy in harmony, and energy and spirit in harmony, Ruoshui Finger unleashed layers of Gang Qi like a mighty river, meeting the three fire dragons head-on.
Collapse, collapse, collapse.
Like playing the guqin, like playing the konghou.
With a light tap of her Ruoshui Finger caused the three-headed fire dragon to disintegrate, turning into sparks that vanished into the long night.
"I've heard that the Mystic Gate possesses methods and Spirit Manifestation Art. Grand Tutor, you've abandoned martial arts for the Dao, but you still lack some refinement."
"Please take a look, Lord Su."
The fire bead atop Yuwen Rui's head spun slowly, and the shattered waves of fire gathered once more.
"I have Fire in the Air; please, Lord Su, take a look."
Flames flickered on Yuwen Rui's palms, accompanied by faint thunderous sounds. The fist-sized azure flames swirled slightly, emitting melodious bird calls.
A Li Fire Azure Luan leaped from his palm, its size expanding a thousandfold in an instant.
"If this technique possesses a primordial spirit, I have recently trained a fire phoenix; please enlighten me, Lord Su."
Su Gui remained silent, Ruoshui Finger descended from the Ling Kong, its vast martial True Intention harnessing the Gang Qi, sweeping in with overwhelming force.
Two top figures from the North and South clashed fiercely on this great river.
The situation between the North and the South is such that a single move can have far-reaching consequences.
Zhongyuan harbored the ambition to rebuild the Heavenly Court and planned for eternity, using the Mount Zhong Association as its outer shell and other organizations as its backbone, laying out a layered scheme.
This is a game of chess with each move spanning a millennium or a hundred years. The opponents are Mysterious Capital Palace, Spirit Coffin Temple, East Sea Sword Palace, and all the most outstanding cultivators in the world.
The Northern Kingdom Southern Dynasty were in opposition to each other, and there were also those who held the reins of power. Yuwen Rui was able to use his skillful hands to manipulate events. Wei Huaiwen and Su Gui were also able to use each other's strengths against each other. Although this game was not as grand as the Zhongyuan strategy, it was still a game in which the best of their time exerted their wisdom and effort.
Look at the wild geese following the sun; each has its own means of making a living.
Outside Beiyu City, Wei Huaiwen led his troops northward, banners obscuring the sky, his army's advance aimed directly at Luoyang.
On the great river, Yuwen Rui fought fiercely against Su Gui, flames raging and the river water boiling.
As dawn approached, Su Che led Lu Bai to a stop.
His fine steed neighed incessantly.
In the distance, a county town can be seen, its city walls brightly lit and bustling with activity.
Su Che looked out and saw that the county town was shrouded in Yin Qi, with dark clouds swirling in the sky like a funnel, slowly seeping into the town.
"Such heavy Yin Qi."
Su Che soothed the fine horse beneath him.
Is Tian'an County just ahead?
"It is indeed Tian'an County, young master. Could it be that evil spirits from the Yin-Yang Realm are causing trouble there?"
"It's probably more complicated."
Su Che spurred his horse into the stirrups. "Let's go take a look."