The Beggar's Version and Half-Finished Heaven-Opening Seal, the Importance of Talent in Internal Martial Arts

A continuous barrage of leg shadows enveloped Tang Shan's entire body, yet Tang Shan always managed to deflect them effortlessly. No matter how swift Bo Te's attacks were, with fists and legs weaving into a net, they couldn't slow his movements in the slightest.

The First Soul Ring beneath his feet suddenly lit up, and his First Soul Skill, Flash Kick, was activated.

Whoosh! Bang bang!

Bo Te's thigh vanished from its spot in an instant, turning into blurry afterimages the next second, its speed more than doubling.

Speed is power. With the terrifying amplification of his Flash Kick, his leg strikes became increasingly powerful and heavy. Wherever his afterimage passed, the air was torn apart with subtle popping sounds.

Bang bang bang!

Tang Shan remained calm, but his legs suddenly increased in speed, almost keeping pace with Bo Te's afterimage. He touched the ground with his toes and bent his knees to block, catching Bo Te's speed and power attacks with perfect precision each time. The dull thuds of collisions continued, but they never shook his composure.

Bo Te's composure and confidence had vanished completely. Fine beads of cold sweat appeared on his forehead, and his legs trembled slightly from the continuous exertion. He struggled to maintain his attack speed, and the shock in his heart was beyond words.

Too easy. Tang Shan's way of defending against his attacks was as if he were walking in a leisurely garden, and he only used his legs to deal with the attacks from beginning to end, keeping his hands behind his back the whole time, without ever raising them once.

Feeling his Soul Power rapidly depleting like flowing water, Bo Te hardened his heart and no longer hesitated. His Second Soul Ring suddenly emitted a yellow-purple light, and he activated his Second Soul Skill, Instant Kick.

Second Soul Skill - Instant Kick: Both legs are imbued with spatial power, allowing direct space travel to launch attacks, consisting of three kicks. The first kick is the attack.

With 100% power, the power of subsequent attacks increases by 20% each time.

This time, Bo Te's legs didn't just become afterimages; they truly vanished from their original spot, unlike the previous visual illusions—a slight distortion due to spatial fluctuations. His leg shadows had already appeared beside Tang Shan.

Faced with this spatial attack that should have been unpredictable and unstoppable, Tang Shan's eyes narrowed slightly, and he dodged to the side with perfect precision. The thigh that appeared out of nowhere grazed his waist and sliced vertically, the force of which swept across his clothes without touching a single piece of fabric.

Bo Te's eyes widened in disbelief. "What the hell? You can dodge my spatial-traveling kick? Does that even make sense?"

However, once the Soul Skill is activated, it cannot be stopped. Two more Instant Kick were launched in succession, with leg shadows coming from two extremely tricky angles, simultaneously locking down Tang Shan's dodging space and attacking straight at him.

Whew! Whew!

The taut thigh muscles were bursting with explosive power, kicking hard into empty air with astonishing momentum. Apart from creating two whistling gusts of wind, it had no real effect. It didn't even touch Tang Shan's clothes, let alone hit him.

"You can sense spatial fluctuations?" Bo Te couldn't help but ask in a trembling voice; it was the only possibility he could think of.

Tang Shan smiled and shook his head. His opponent had already displayed all his abilities, so there was no need for him to hold back any longer. With a slight shift in his footing, he took a large step and instantly covered several steps, appearing in front of Bo Te. His right leg swept out like a steel whip, carrying immense force, and slashed at Bo Te.

The instant the leg shadow swept out, Tang Shan's Qi and Blood and spirit merged perfectly under the unification of his will, and an extremely terrifying power suddenly erupted from his body.

The Beggar's Version of the Heaven-Opening Seal, activated!

In a daze, the scene before Bo Te's eyes completely distorted. A giant axe, seemingly capable of splitting yin and yang and splitting the heavens and the earth, was slashing fiercely at his waist and abdomen with the power to crush everything. The giant axe had no edge, but it exuded the purest and most domineering sense of power, as if it was declaring to the whole world: Only with power can yin and yang be separated and chaos be opened.

An overwhelming force of will crushed his spirit like a mountain pressing down on him. Despair instantly filled Bo Te's eyes, and he became stiff all over, unable to even muster the thought of resistance. Under this giant axe, he seemed destined only for destruction.

Call!

Just as the giant axe phantom was about to touch Bo Te's body, Tang Shan's leg came to an abrupt halt less than an inch away, and the terrifying power instantly subsided like a tide.

After a long while, Bo Te's unfocused eyes finally cleared from their daze. The next moment, his legs gave way, and he collapsed to the ground, panting heavily. Beads of cold sweat instantly soaked through his clothes and slid down his forehead.

"How was it?" Tang Shan asked with a smile.

Bo Te didn't say anything, but simply gave a thumbs-up with all his might, indicating his approval.

Tang Shan turned to look at Tai Fen, but before he could speak, Tai Fen had already strode up to him with a burning gaze, his voice hoarse and his words slightly slurred, clearly indicating that he rarely spoke, "What was that just now?"

Tang Shan: "That's my Self-Created Soul Skill."

"Can I use both fists?"

Tang Shan nodded. "Of course."

"Don't hold back, give me your full strength." Tai Fen's voice remained firm, without the slightest hesitation.

Standing to the side, Golden Crocodile Douluo's lips twitched violently. How could this person be so arrogant? He's not even holding back a punch; is he trying to send me to my death and drag the Crown Prince's Residence down with him? Recalling Tang Shan's full-force Heaven- Heaven-Opening Seal, the bottomless chasm left in the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, if he really took that blow, it would be hard to say whether Tai Fen could even keep his whole corpse.

After Tang Shan awoke, he had naturally heard Golden Crocodile Douluo talk about the power of his full-power Heaven-Opening Seal, so he decisively ignored Tai Fen's request. "Full-power is impossible, but the power is definitely stronger than what I used against Bo Te."

"Okay." Tai Fen's answer was still concise, just one word, but it conveyed an undeniable firmness.

Bo Te, who was resting on the ground, heard the conversation between the two and shuddered. He quickly scrambled several steps away, not wanting to experience that fear of facing death again, let alone a more powerful version.

Tai Fen said no more. Two Yellow Soul Ring lit up at his feet at the same time. He activated his Soul Skill at full power, and his palms expanded rapidly at a visible speed. In a short while, they were twice the size of before, with muscles bulging and full of explosive power.

He clenched his fists, his large fists protecting his face. His eyes were calm and sharp, like a bottomless pool, but at the bottom of the pool burned a cluster of fanatical flames—the burning desire to see the road ahead.

Seeing the almost obsessive longing in Tai Fen's eyes, Tang Shan's heart stirred slightly. He abandoned the idea of using his fists to Heaven-Opening Seal and decided to try a different approach, giving him a half-finished version.

Be careful.

Tang Shan gave a casual reminder, then slowly formed hand seals. The three distinct energies within his body— Soul Power, Mental Power, Qi and Blood— were drawn together by his will and frantically converged and merged towards his palms.

Boom!

The roar did not come from reality, but exploded directly in everyone's mental world.

In a daze, everyone saw an ancient god draped in chaos, standing tall and firm, slowly raising a giant axe in his hand. On the axe blade, boundless power intertwined and flowed, about to split the heavens and the earth.

Even though Bo Te was standing several steps away, he was enveloped by this terrifying will. He felt as if he were the pure and turbid energy about to be split apart by an ancient god. His consciousness instantly fell into a blur and chaos, and he could not even control his body.

"Move!"

His consciousness struggled frantically, trying to break free from this overwhelming will, but it was all in vain. It was as if his fate and trajectory were predetermined, allowing no room for resistance.

Tang Shan's handprint finally stopped three inches in front of Tai Fen's fists, without moving forward even an inch. At this moment, Tai Fen's eyes had become empty, clearly still immersed in that terrifying sense of creation, and had not yet awakened.

But Tang Shan could clearly sense that a nascent will, full of violence and brutality, was slowly surging within Tai Fen's spiritual world.

Condensation—that is his own will—once this nascent will has fully taken shape, that will be the moment he awakens.

"One's a pervert, the other's a madman."

Bo Te, who had run to the side, looked at the scene before him and couldn't help but shudder, muttering to himself. Although he wasn't the direct recipient of this Half-Finished Heaven-Opening Seal, he had already personally experienced the power of the beggar's version. If even the beggar's version was so terrifying, the power of the unfinished version was simply unimaginable.

In his view, Tang Shan, who could create such a terrifying Self-Created Soul Skill, was an absolute freak; and those who willingly went to get beaten up...

Tai Fen, who yearns to experience this Soul Skill, is also a madman.

If I had known this would happen, I would have let Tai Fen go up to challenge first. He would have stayed far away. How could I have been so blinded by greed and rushed up first?

On the other side, from the moment Tang Shan began forming hand seals, Golden Crocodile Douluo's eyes narrowed slightly, his gaze fixed on Tang Shan's palm, trying to discern some clues from the fusion of Qi and Blood and Mental Power, and the subsequent combination of the three energies. However, no matter how intently he observed, he could not find his own path to perfectly integrate the three.

"Never mind, I'll ask Tang Shan for advice when I have the chance later," Golden Crocodile Douluo thought to himself.

As for whether it's shameful to ask a junior for advice, Golden Crocodile Douluo no longer cares. At his age, the so-called face has long been thrown to the winds.

Besides, he had already learned Internal Martial Arts from Tang Shan, so learning another technique like the Heaven-Opening Seal wouldn't be a big deal. As for how to repay this favor, Golden Crocodile Douluo turned to Xue Qinghe beside him and silently thought: Xiao Xue, you must repay this person properly for your grandfather in the future.

Xue Qinghe seemed to sense something and subconsciously turned to look at Golden Crocodile Douluo, but Golden Crocodile Douluo was just staring calmly ahead, as if nothing had happened.

A slight doubt crept into her mind: Why did I feel like someone was watching me just now? Wasn't it Grandpa Golden Crocodile?

Without thinking further, Xue Qinghe quickened her pace, arrived beside Tang Shan, glanced at Tai Fen whose eyes were still vacant, and casually asked:

Is he alright?

"It's alright. He's currently in a state of enlightenment. Once the nascent form of his will is fully formed, he will naturally awaken." Tang Shan withdrew his hands from the hand seals, exhaled a long breath, and then turned to Xue Qinghe, "Your Highness, I have some matters to attend to at the Dugu Manor. I'll be leaving now."

Xue Qinghe frowned slightly, a hint of worry in his voice. "Don't let it turn into another coma like it did a few days ago."

A hint of embarrassment flashed across Tang Shan's face. "Your Highness, rest assured, it definitely won't happen this time."

Xue Qinghe nodded, about to warn him to "be careful of Dugu Yan," but the words stuck in her throat.

As her superior, it felt a bit strange for her to offer such a direct reminder, and it might even backfire if it provoked Tang Shan's rebellious attitude.

After a moment's thought, she finally said only one sentence, "Take care on your journey."

Tang Shan waved his hand, said no more, and turned to walk towards the gate of the Crown Prince's Residence's residence.

Walking on the bustling streets of Heaven Dou City, Tang Shan couldn't help but smile as he recalled his brief sparring session with Bo Te and Tai Fen.

These two Soul Masters with their Body Martial Soul were indeed somewhat beyond his expectations. It was already remarkable that Tai Fen could condense the rudiments of his will at this age;

As for the carefree Bo Te, his combat talent is even more amazing. He has already developed his own ideas and methods in his attacks. If he grows smoothly in time, he might actually be able to develop his own Self-Created Soul Skill based on his own leg techniques.

However, their talent for Internal Martial Arts is indeed lacking. It's a real pity that despite possessing such high combat comprehension, they haven't yet grasped the essence of Bright Force).

Tang Shan couldn't help but shake his head slightly.

The reason he values the talent of Internal Martial Arts so much is not because he created it himself. Tang Shan has always been a pragmatist and would never cling to the past like some Tang Buddha.

He has proven that Internal Martial Arts are sufficient for Body Soul Master to achieve Second Awakening without damage, which is much more reliable than magma trials, deep-sea trials, or being forced to awaken by a life-or-death crisis.

Awakening through a life-or-death crisis—leaving aside whether this method might leave hidden injuries on the Soul Master's body—the persistently high mortality rate alone is enough to deter any force.

Which is more likely to prosper: a Body Sect that allows Soul Master to Second Awakening without injury, or a Body Sect that constantly puts Soul Master on the brink of life and death? The answer is self-evident.

Of course, Tang Shan was just using an example. As for establishing his own power base, he never even considered Heaven Dou Empire. With the Angel Big Sis's coattails so appealing, he was too busy clinging to her to seek other paths.

Isn't that just a case of someone's brain rusting?

Pulling his wandering thoughts back, Tang Shan refocused his attention on Internal Martial Arts.

As he successfully achieved the Embracing the Elixir of immortality, he gradually acquired some increasingly profound abilities from Internal Martial Arts.

For example, the enhanced version of "Heart of Sincerity," which can foresee the future...