Dharma Aspect of Heaven and Earth!

The Dharma Aspect towered three hundred meters high, standing as majestic as a mountain between heaven and earth. A faint golden light surrounded it, and it radiated waves of terrifying pressure. Unable to withstand it, the dense forest around it began to shatter inch by inch like fragile glass, turning into fine powder that scattered through the air.

Its might was horrifying, its oppressive force overwhelming.

The Dharma Aspect Realm!

Ye Tianming stared fixedly at Xiao Xue. She was two realms above him!

But so what?

A thought arose, and in an instant, the earth began to tremble violently. Then it split open, and boundless earthly vein power surged from deep underground. Rather than entering Ye Tianming's body, it transformed directly into torrents that blasted toward Xiao Xue.

Shock flashed in Xiao Xue's eyes when she saw that Ye Tianming could actually command the power of the earth. She knew he was only in the Major Tribulation Realm, and that was precisely why she had come: she wanted to kill him and claim credit, raising her standing within the Xiao Clan.

But she had not expected him to be able to command earthly vein power. That was clearly beyond the capabilities of someone in the Major Tribulation Realm.

She had no time to dwell on it, for the unending stream of earthly vein power had already reached her. She swiftly gathered her thoughts and clenched her right hand. Almost simultaneously, the towering Dharma Aspect she had formed mirrored her movement, clenching its enormous fist. As she struck fiercely at the power before her, the Dharma Aspect behind her swung its fist in unison, unleashing a blow with the force of a thunderbolt. The terrifying power that erupted from it made the surrounding space shudder.

Boundless earthly vein power slammed into the force of the punch. A dreadful shock wave erupted at the point of collision, the tremendous impact spreading hundreds of meters in every direction in an instant. Wherever it passed, it swept everything away, even ripping up the surface of the earth and leaving devastation in its wake.

Xiao Xue, who bore the brunt of the collision, turned pale the instant the forces met. A tremendous recoil traveled up her arm and through her entire body, so terrifying that it seemed it would shake her body apart. She staggered backward again and again, while the enormous Dharma Aspect behind her also began to sway slightly beneath the terrifying shock wave...

In the distance, however, the boundless earthly vein power had not receded. It surged like a tide, growing more and more abundant. Under Ye Tianming's control, it rushed at Xiao Xue again. This time there was even more than before, an endless expanse of earthly vein power bearing down on her like a vast, raging flood.

A vicious look flashed in Xiao Xue's eyes at the sight. She roared, clenched both fists, and unleashed all the power in her body. The Dharma Aspect behind her made the same movement, the two seeming to have become one. The next moment, she and the Dharma Aspect struck out with both fists, pouring out all their power at once.

Rumble...

The two terrifying forces clashed fiercely in the air, instantly erupting into a series of deafening booms. The powerful shock wave sent both of them staggering backward at the same time. As Xiao Xue reeled back, the Dharma Aspect behind her began to explode inch by inch, scattering into a shower of golden fragments. The moment she stopped, a sword of earth cut through the air and pierced her chest, pinning her to a massive tree.

Xiao Xue stared in disbelief at Ye Tianming, who stood in the distance amid the boundless earthly vein power. "How is this possible... You lowborn bastard, you're only in the Major Tribulation Realm. How could you possibly break my Dharma Aspect..."

Just then, Ye Tianming suddenly charged forward, carrying boundless earthly vein power with him as he rushed up to Xiao Xue. He seized her by the throat. "The Dharma Aspect Realm? Nothing special after all."

Sensing the killing intent in Ye Tianming's eyes, Xiao Xue felt a surge of fear and hurriedly said, "If you're willing to spare me, I can give you spirit crystals. You can have them all, you..."

Ye Tianming suddenly raised his hand and punched Xiao Xue in her breathtakingly beautiful face.

Bang!

Xiao Xue's head exploded...

Ye Tianming glanced at Xiao Xue's headless body. "You think I'm stupid? If I kill you, it'll all be mine anyway."

With that, he pulled off Xiao Xue's storage ring and retreated to the side to sit down. He felt weak and exhausted now, utterly exhausted. Commanding the earthly vein power just now had taken a tremendous toll on his mental strength.

Fortunately, he had won!

He leaned back against a boulder and took out Xiao Xue's storage ring. He was in for a shock when he checked it: there were more than thirty-six thousand spirit crystals inside.

Ye Tianming grinned and glanced at Xiao Xue's corpse nearby. "Thanks so much."

Xiao Xue: "..."

Ye Tianming looked at the storage ring before him. Besides the spirit crystals, he also found some pills inside. He examined them carefully and found three bottles in total: Qi-storing pills, spirit-nourishing pills, and blood-healing pills.

Each bottle held five pills.

He did not know what grade they were, since he had never encountered them before. After a moment's thought, he asked, "Tower Ancestor, can I take these pills?"

When in doubt, ask Tower Ancestor.

Little Pagoda said, "Take a spirit-nourishing pill."

Ye Tianming nodded. "All right."

He took out a spirit-nourishing pill and swallowed it. At first, he felt nothing, but soon his eyes widened. His earlier exhaustion had vanished without a trace, and he felt as though he had come back to life at full health.

Ye Tianming was astonished. "This... This is practically a divine medicine!"

Little Pagoda: "..."

Ye Tianming said softly, "It's hard to imagine what kind of heavenly lives those scions of great families lead."

Alongside his astonishment, he felt a lingering fear. If he had not killed Xiao Xue decisively just now, she would have had the strength to fight again once she took a pill. But he had no pills.

In a life-and-death battle, pills and equipment were extremely important.

Ye Tianming carefully wrapped up the bottles of pills, then asked, "Tower Ancestor, do you know what grade these divine medicines are?"

Little Pagoda said, "No."

Ye Tianming was a little curious. "You don't know?"

Little Pagoda said, "Their grade is too low. I've never encountered them."

Ye Tianming's expression froze.

A moment later, he buried Xiao Xue's corpse, not out of kindness, but to destroy the evidence.

The space in Xiao Xue's storage ring was more than ten times larger than his, but he did not use it either. It was not that he feared the Xiao Family; he simply did not want to cause his teacher and the academy head any more trouble. They could suspect him of killing her, but they would have to produce evidence.

He had to be cautious in what he did, not reckless, and he certainly could not casually bring trouble upon the academy head and his teacher.

After putting everything in order, he continued onward.

He was more alert now than before, and he also understood the true meaning of what the academy head had said at the time. Ye Tianming's real enemy was not this secret realm, but the Xiao Family.

The Xiao Family surely knew he had come here, and they would never miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Since no experts above the Immortal Realm could enter, that meant the Xiao Family would surely send Immortal Realm experts in...

Survive the Xiao Family!

That was the academy head's true trial!

The Immortal Realm was three realms above his own, and the Xiao Family might send more than one Immortal Realm expert, perhaps even many. It was unfair to him, but he understood perfectly well that absolute fairness had never existed in this world.

If he, Ye Tianming, could not even defeat the younger generation of the Xiao Family, how could he compete for first place in Wan Prefecture?

After all, the Xiao Family was only a second-tier family, while the Myriad Provinces Grand Competition would have monstrous geniuses from first-tier families taking part.

Ye Tianming put those thoughts aside and began to review his earlier battle. He now had a rough understanding of his true strength. If he unleashed his strongest killing move, he could kill someone in the Dharma Aspect Realm, but for now, that was probably his limit.

If he used the Sword of Upholding the Dao along with the Heaven-Slaying Sword-Drawing Technique, perhaps he could go toe-to-toe with someone in the Immortal Realm. Of course, that was only a guess. He had barely used the Sword of Upholding the Dao and did not know its true power.

Even if the Sword of Upholding the Dao really could contend with the Immortal Realm, that would be the sword's power, not his own. He would not pin all his hopes on it. He still had to strengthen himself. Personal strength was paramount; all external things could only play a supporting role, and he could not put the cart before the horse.

A Dharma Aspect!

Ye Tianming suddenly said, "Tower Ancestor, do you think I could use earthly vein power to form my own Dharma Aspect?"

After a moment's silence, Little Pagoda said, "You can try."

Little Pagoda had also noticed something: this little fellow thought a little differently. He not only dared to think, but also dared to try. Little Pagoda supported that, because Little Pagoda also hoped the little fellow would forge a different path.

Ye Tianming nodded. "In the Dharma Aspect Realm, one communes with the Qi of heaven and earth, transforming one's Primordial Spirit into a three-hundred-meter Dharma Aspect. It can be gathered or dispersed, and its power is immense. It can clash head-on with any spirit artifact, or even a magic artifact. It's extremely terrifying... Since it can be formed using the Qi of heaven and earth, it should be possible to form one using earthly vein power too. Unfortunately, I don't have a cultivation method..."

A cultivation method!

In fact, that meant a cultivation art. Forming a Dharma Aspect was not as simple as wanting to form one; a method was required, and such a method could only be found in certain special cultivation arts. Unfortunately, he had never seen any other cultivation arts. Otherwise, perhaps he could have learned from them and added that function to his Heavenly Mandate Art.

He had to find a way to see some advanced cultivation arts!

As he pondered, a sudden change occurred. A dense forest in the distance abruptly collapsed all at once. Then a figure flew out and crashed heavily into the ground not far in front of him, smashing a huge crater into it...

Ye Tianming was startled when he saw the person. "It's you..."