Three Ultimate Techniques

Spring gave way to autumn, and cold passed into heat.

Before they knew it, two and a half years had quietly passed.

Haoyue and Linley had traveled and cultivated along the way, and were now nearing the edge of the Magical Beasts Mountain Range.

At that moment, a figure was practicing swordsmanship.

He was a young man in black robes, standing tall and straight like a mountain.

He held a purple soft sword, its movements round and gentle, flowing without end.

Every move seemed to become one with heaven and earth.

Wherever the sword passed, even the air seemed to soften.

It was Haoyue.

"Phew-"

Haoyue lowered his sword and stood still, letting out a long breath.

The Purple Blood Soft Sword gave a soft hum. Droplets fell from its blade, striking small pits into the ground.

He had changed a great deal over the past two and a half years.

In human form, his warrior cultivation had broken through from Peak Eighth Rank to the level of a Level Nine Warrior.

His magic cultivation had reached the mid-stage Level 9 Great Mage realm.

He cultivated three elements at once, advancing in all three.

Even more terrifying was his overall combat power.

The vitality of From Mind to Matter, amplified by both his Level Nine Warrior and Ninth Rank Mage cultivation, had reached the Late Saint-level.

On top of that was the Tiger-Striped Warrior transformation-

After activating his Tiger-Striped Ultimate Warrior form, his combat power soared straight to the Early Saint-level.

Then there was the Heavyweight Striker bonus and the passive Overflow damage-

Once transformed, Haoyue could meet a Late Saint-level expert head-on.

Moreover, with the terrifying defense of Mountain Dragon Soul and the tremendous regenerative power of Ocean Dragon Soul-

Even a Peak Saint-level expert, or someone at the very limit of the Saint-level, could not kill him quickly.

And as it happened, Haoyue had never feared anyone in a battle of attrition.

"Big brother Haoyue, excellent swordsmanship!"

Applause came from nearby.

Linley walked over, an admiring smile on his face.

Linley had also changed considerably over the past two and a half years.

He had grown to over 1.8 meters tall, and the youthful look had faded from his face, replaced by a measure of resolve and composure.

His magic and Battle-qi had both reached the eighth level.

After transforming into his dragon form, he reached the level of a Peak Level Nine Warrior.

He was only one step away from the Saint-level.

Although his progress still couldn't compare with Haoyue's, it was astonishing enough.

After all, Linley was only in his early twenties.

A Peak Level Nine Warrior in his twenties...

The news would frighten countless people to death.

"You're not bad yourself."

Haoyue smiled and put away the Purple Blood Soft Sword.

"How is your understanding of Wielding the Heavy as Though It Were Light coming along?"

"I've almost got it." Linley grinned, showing a row of white teeth. "It's all thanks to your guidance, big brother Haoyue."

As he spoke, he picked up the Black Jade Heavy Sword beside him.

The Violetflame Clan had helped him forge this heavy sword in Hess City two and a half years ago.

Yet in Linley's hands, it seemed to weigh nothing.

"Watch closely!"

Linley took a deep breath, gripped the Black Jade Heavy Sword with both hands, and slowly swung it down.

The strike looked slow and weightless, as though it carried no force at all.

But only a true expert could see-

What terrifying power lay hidden beneath that seemingly effortless strike.

Wielding the Heavy as Though It Were Light!

He wielded the 3,600-jin heavy sword as lightly as a feather.

That was the realm of Wielding the Heavy as Though It Were Light.

"Not bad." Haoyue nodded.

"Next comes Wielding Something Light as Though It Were Heavy."

"Wielding Something Light as Though It Were Heavy..." Linley murmured, a trace of longing flashing in his eyes.

He knew that was a higher realm.

A light sword in hand, yet containing immense force.

That realm was a little harder to reach than Wielding the Heavy as Though It Were Light.

"Don't rush." Haoyue patted him on the shoulder. "Take it one step at a time."

"You're only twenty. You have plenty of time."

Linley nodded.

He looked up at Haoyue, a hint of admiration in his eyes.

When it came to Wielding Something Light as Though It Were Heavy, big brother Haoyue was the real expert!

He had seen Haoyue wield the Purple Blood Soft Sword with Wielding Something Light as Though It Were Heavy at that level with his own eyes.

That seemingly weightless strike could cleave mountains and split rocks.

It was terrifying beyond belief.

"By the way, big brother Haoyue." Linley suddenly remembered something. "Where's Haeru? Why haven't I seen him?"

Haeru.

He was a Black-Striped Cloud Leopard.

He was a Level Nine Magical Beast with affinities for both wind and darkness.

Linley had encountered him half a year ago while out cultivating.

"He's probably gone hunting," Haoyue said casually.

Haeru was rather wild by nature and often ran off on his own, staying away for days.

They had grown used to it.

"Boss!"

Just then, a black shadow sped toward them from afar.

He was incredibly fast, moving like a ghost.

It was Bebe!

Of the three, Bebe had changed the most over the past two and a half years.

He had grown a size larger, and his fur was glossier than before.

And his cultivation-

Had reached the level of a Level Nine Magical Beast!

His speed of progress could only be described as terrifying.

After all, two and a half years ago, he had only been a Seventh-Level Magical Beast.

In two years, he had jumped two levels straight to the ninth.

Even Haoyue could only look on from far behind at such a cultivation speed.

The second God-Eater Rat in existence truly lived up to his reputation.

"Bebe, where have you been?" Linley asked with a smile.

"Hehe, boss, I went to fight Haeru!" Bebe raised his little head proudly. "He can't beat me!"

Linley and Haoyue exchanged a glance and both laughed.

Those two fought every few days.

Every time, Bebe gave Haeru a terrible beating.

There was nothing Haeru could do. Bebe was too fast, and his innate divine ability was formidable as well.

Although Haeru was also a Level Nine Magical Beast, he was no match for Bebe.

After chatting and laughing for a while, Linley suddenly turned serious.

"Big brother Haoyue, we've been in the Magical Beasts Mountain Range for two and a half years now."

"Mm." Haoyue nodded.

"Do you think... it's time we left?" A hint of anticipation flashed in Linley's eyes.

After spending over two years here, he was getting a little tired of it.

He wanted to see the world outside.

He wanted to visit the O'Brien Empire.

He wanted to see the wider world.

Haoyue was silent for a moment.

He knew this day would come sooner or later.

The Magical Beasts Mountain Range was only a stop along their journey, after all.

Their goal was the wider world.

"All right." Haoyue nodded. "We'll make some preparations, then set out."

"Really?!" Linley's eyes lit up, and he nearly jumped with excitement.

"Of course." Haoyue smiled. "But before we leave, there's something I need to tell you."

"What is it?" Linley asked curiously.

Haoyue pondered for a moment, then said:

"Over the past two years, I've developed a few new combat techniques."

"I'll demonstrate them for you. You can use them as a reference."

"New combat techniques?!" Linley grew even more excited.

The combat techniques big brother Haoyue developed must be incredible!

"Watch closely."

Without further ado, Haoyue walked straight to the open space in the middle of the valley.

He drew the heavy miaodao from his back.

Haoyue gripped the hilt with both hands and slowly raised it.

"The first technique-"

"Supergravity Slash!"

As the words left his mouth, a sharp light flashed in Haoyue's eyes.

Earth Element magic power surged wildly into the miaodao in his hands.

Gravity Spells stacked!

Tenfold... twentyfold... thirtyfold... fiftyfold... sixtyfold!

All that terrifying gravity was concentrated on the single blade.

The heavy miaodao originally weighed a thousand jin, and in the hands of a Level Nine Warrior, a swing could already exert pressure on the order of a hundred thousand jin. With sixtyfold gravity added, its weight reached an astonishing six million jin!

Six million jin.

What did that mean?

The pressure alone was enough to leave a Peak Ninth Rank expert gasping for breath.

"Ha!"

Haoyue let out a low shout.

The miaodao in his hands came crashing down with the force to cleave heaven and earth!

"Boom-!!!"

Before the blade energy even struck, the ground had already caved in under the terrifying pressure.

The next moment-

The blade energy hit the ground.

"Rumble..."

The entire valley trembled.

A massive gash hundreds of meters long and several meters deep appeared in the ground!

The power of a single strike was terrifying indeed!

"Gulp..."

Linley swallowed.

Th-this is ridiculous!

"This technique is called Supergravity Slash." Haoyue lowered his blade and stood still, slowly explaining, "The principle is simple. I use my understanding of the Profound Mystery of Gravitational Force to increase the weight behind the weapon as I swing it."

"The most I can stack right now is sixtyfold gravity. Any higher, and neither my body nor the weapon could withstand it."

Linley nodded dumbly.

"Don't rush. That was only the first move." Haoyue smiled. "There's a second one."

"There's more?!" Linley's eyes widened.

Haoyue didn't answer. He simply raised his miao saber again.

This time, blazing flames erupted along its blade.

Fire Element magic!

"Watch closely."

"The second move-Explosive Flame Slash!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, Haoyue vanished from where he stood.

Whoosh-

A streak of fire tore through the air.

The next moment, Haoyue appeared in front of a massive boulder dozens of meters away.

His miao saber, wreathed in towering flames, chopped fiercely into the boulder!

Clang-

The sound of the blade cutting into the boulder rang out.

Immediately afterward-

Boom-!!!

An earth-shaking explosion erupted from inside the boulder.

Terrifying fiery energy burst wildly within it.

The entire boulder was blasted to powder!

Dust billowed and fragments of rock flew everywhere.

Its terrifying power was even more overbearing than the Supergravity Slash just now!

"This... this is..." Linley stared, utterly dumbfounded.

He had clearly seen the blade cut only a little way into the boulder.

How could it have been so powerful?

"This move is called Explosive Flame Slash," Haoyue explained. "The principle behind it isn't difficult, either."

"You simply channel Fire Element magic into the blade and compress it there in a way similar to the Fire Element Explosive Flame Spell."

"When the blade cuts into the target, the compressed explosive flame magic detonates inside it in an instant."

"An explosion from within is naturally much more powerful than an attack from outside."

"And I also discovered something interesting-"

A smile tugged at the corners of Haoyue's mouth.

But he didn't say it aloud: even this artificially created explosion could trigger the extra explosion damage from his Purgatory Dragon Soul, which had a 30% chance of activating.

In other words, with this slash, the explosion originally had only a 30% chance of triggering, but using Explosive Flame Slash would be recognized as triggering it. That made it effectively a 100% chance, directly increasing its power by 50%.

He had exploited a bug.

"You'll have to figure out exactly how to apply it yourself."

"Mm-hmm!" Linley nodded hurriedly, as though he had received a priceless treasure.

Although he couldn't copy the moves directly, the principles were the same: use the principles of magic to develop moves and comprehend the mysteries of magic's essence.

That approach alone was worth a fortune.

After demonstrating the two offensive combat techniques, Haoyue walked to the other side of the valley.

"There's a third move."

"But this one is defensive."

Haoyue picked up the Purple Blood Soft Sword and took his stance.

"Watch closely."

As his words fell, the Purple Blood Soft Sword in his hand began to move slowly.

His sword movements were rounded and supple, flowing without end.

Layer upon layer of water curtains gathered and spun around him.

They formed a watertight sphere of water.

"Is that... the Profound Mystery of Roundness Sword Technique?" Linley asked in confusion.

He had seen Haoyue use this move before.

In the past, Haoyue had used the Taiji Sword Technique together with Water Element magic to form the Profound Mystery of Roundness Water Domain, using it to defend and redirect force.

"Yes and no." Haoyue smiled. "To be precise, this is an upgraded version."

"An upgraded version?"

"Mm." Haoyue nodded. "For the past two years, I've been studying the Water Element's way of the Profound Mystery of Roundness."

"Overcoming hardness with softness, using an opponent's force against them, and returning their own methods upon them."

"Now, the defense of my Profound Mystery of Roundness Sword Technique has nearly caught up to my physical defense."

Linley's eyes widened.

Caught up to his physical defense?

He knew better than anyone just how strong Haoyue's physical defense was.

That monstrous defense could withstand even a Saint-level expert's attacks head-on!

The Profound Mystery of Roundness Sword Technique's defense had nearly caught up to that?

Wasn't that a bit too outrageous?

"Don't believe me?" Haoyue smiled. "Come and try."

"Attack me with your heavy sword. Use all your strength."

"Me?" Linley pointed at himself. "Attack with all my strength?"

"That's right." Haoyue nodded. "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing. You won't hurt me."

"Then... here I come!"

Linley didn't hold back. He picked up the Black Jade Heavy Sword and charged at Haoyue.

"Ha!"

With a loud shout, he raised the sword in both hands and chopped down with all his strength!

A thirty-six-hundred-jin heavy sword, combined with a full-strength blow from an Eighth-level Warrior.

The power of that strike was enough to kill any warrior below the ninth level in an instant.

Clang-!!

The heavy sword struck the curtain of water.

Yet the expected explosion never came.

Instead, that violent force was drawn away, dissipated, and deflected by the water curtain in an extraordinarily ingenious manner...

In the end, all of it was redirected into the ground.

Boom-!!

An enormous crater exploded into the ground beneath Haoyue's feet.

But Haoyue himself was completely unharmed.

He hadn't even moved his feet.

"This..."

Linley was utterly stunned.

His full-strength attack couldn't even break through Haoyue's defense?

Wasn't this too ridiculous?!

"Well?" Haoyue asked with a smile, lowering his sword and standing still.

"Amazing... absolutely amazing..." Linley murmured, his eyes full of admiration.

Big Brother Haoyue really was the best!

After demonstrating the three moves, the two returned to the stone table in the valley to rest.

"Big Brother Haoyue, which direction are you planning to take your training next?" Linley asked curiously.

Haoyue pondered for a moment, then said:

"Next, there are two main directions."

"First, I'll accumulate Battle-qi and spiritual energy, and try to break through to Saint-level as soon as possible."

"Second, I'll comprehend the Momentum of Heaven and Earth."

"The Momentum of Heaven and Earth?" Linley repeated, a flicker of confusion in his eyes.

"Mm." Haoyue nodded. "Wielding the Heavy as Though It Were Light and Wielding Something Light as Though It Were Heavy are both just ways of using strength."

"The Momentum of Heaven and Earth, on the other hand, is the understanding and use of all heaven and earth."

"Once you reach that realm, every move you make can draw upon the power of heaven and earth."

"Its power will rise by several levels."

"The Momentum of Heaven and Earth..." Linley murmured, a flicker of longing in his eyes.

"Don't rush." Haoyue smiled. "For now, focus on Wielding Something Light as Though It Were Heavy."

"Take it one step at a time and build a solid foundation."

"Once you've perfected both of those realms, the Momentum of Heaven and Earth will follow naturally."

"Mm!" Linley nodded firmly.

He believed that as long as he trained hard, he too would one day reach the same heights as Big Brother Haoyue.

Over the next few days, the two began preparing to leave the mountains.

There wasn't much to prepare, really.

They hadn't had many belongings to begin with, and most of them were stored in Linley's interspatial ring.

Before long, the two gradually reached the northeastern edge of the Magical Beasts Mountain Range.

Their destination-

The O'Brien Empire!