Chapter 170 - 102: Divine Techniques Subdue a Nascent Soul, Riding a Flood Dragon to the Horizon

Chapter 170: Chapter 102: Divine Techniques Subdue a Nascent Soul, Riding a Flood Dragon to the Horizon

Seeing through Qiu Song’s intentions, Xuzhuang snorted softly. With a flick of his wide sleeve, he formed a spell with one hand.

The art of magical combat was all about exploiting an opponent’s weaknesses with one’s own strengths. Since Qiu Song had conjured miles of fog to drag him into a prolonged battle, Xuzhuang, though unafraid, refused to play along. He immediately prepared to unleash his hundred-li Great Capturing Hand and capture his foe in one fell swoop.

Just as he began gathering the vast white Qi, Xuzhuang’s thoughts suddenly shifted. He recalled the Gang Pearl Qiu Song had just used. ’Since he used it so casually, it can’t be his ultimate trump card,’ he mused. ’But I can’t let my guard down.’

The Gang Pearl was astonishingly powerful, capable of shattering even the Innate Tai Su Qi Grand Capture. Xuzhuang suspected Qiu Song didn’t have many of them, otherwise, he could have just thrown a handful, and even Xuzhuang would have found them difficult to block.

After a few moments of thought, Xuzhuang settled on a plan. He held back his Divine Technique for the moment and flicked his finger. The Taiyi Rainbow Sword split into sixty-four blades, arranging themselves above, below, and in all eight directions to form an inescapable net. Only then did he give a faint smile, form a Dharma Seal, and point to the sky.

A massive amount of core energy and Magical Power transformed into a dense vapor that surged into the sky, drawing upon the Celestial Pure Qi. A gale howled into existence, sweeping the clouds from every direction and gathering them above Xuzhuang’s head. The clouds churned and roiled as a boundless fiery power was born within them, instantly burning the heavens a searing crimson.

After this step, Xuzhuang did not rush to conjure the thunder and fire. Instead, with another wave of his sleeve, a speck of golden flame drifted up into the clouds. A deafening BOOM followed, and a golden light spread through the clouds like a single spark starting a prairie fire. Streaks of interwoven gold and crimson thunder-fire began to gestate within.

Xuzhuang had possessed the True Sun Flame for some time and had never stopped studying its boundless power. While he was not yet able to fully refine it and make it his own, using it to augment his Divine Techniques was a simple matter.

Having channeled the Profound Fire True Thunder to its absolute limit, Xuzhuang’s gaze sharpened, as if he could see the hidden Qiu Song through the thick mist. He let out a low cry, "Now!" and thrust his finger downward!

An endless torrent of thunder-fire rained down, pouring into the miles of mist below and erupting in a deafening chain of explosions!

Each bolt of thunder-fire blasted a hole hundreds of yards wide in the mist. Thousands of bolts detonated in unison, rumbling without end, tearing countless chasms through the fog. Before the mist could even begin to reform, a seemingly unquenchable golden-crimson flame spread along the dispersing vapors. Within moments, it had ignited a raging, fiery net.

The bombardment of Profound Fire True Thunder was relentless, and the fiery net spread ferociously. In an instant, the miles of mist were torn to shreds, forcing Qiu Song to reveal himself.

’This scoundrel’s Divine Techniques are just too tyrannical!’ Disbelief flashed through Qiu Song’s mind. He had no time to dwell on it and immediately summoned a cloud of smoke to flee.

The instant Qiu Song appeared, Xuzhuang’s gaze snapped toward him. The spell in his hand remained the same, but the thunder-fire’s bombardment pattern abruptly changed, instantly converging into a concentrated assault that pursued its target.

Qiu Song’s face was ashen. Not daring to halt his escape, he pointed upward. A Six Orifice Treasure Pearl rose, and six streams of cloudy Qi cascaded down from its openings, shielding his entire body.

The thunder-fire exploded all around him, causing the protective Qi to waver. Fortunately for him, this treasure was a Perfectly Forbidden Magical Artifact that he had personally spent a century refining. Moreover, Xuzhuang hadn’t charged his lightning technique for long, and dispersing the initial fog had consumed most of its power. The remaining force was not enough to break through his Magical Artifact’s defense.

Qiu Song didn’t have time to breathe a sigh of relief. A sweep of his Spiritual Sense revealed that Xuzhuang’s Flying Swords had blocked off every direction, leaving him with no escape. He glanced at his palm and saw that the inscribed sigil was already halfway lit. A vicious glint flashed in his eyes. He steeled himself and, instead of retreating, charged straight at Xuzhuang.

’As expected, he had another trick up his sleeve.’ Xuzhuang, having already anticipated this, smiled faintly. Only now did he use the Innate Tai Su Qi Grand Capture. Without needing to gather much core energy, he simply formed a hand hundreds of yards wide and casually swiped it downward.

Just as Xuzhuang expected, a pained look flashed in Qiu Song’s eyes. With a wave of his wide sleeve, another Gang Pearl flew out. It transformed into a blinding white light and, with a thunderous BOOM, blasted the Great Capturing Hand to smithereens.

Xuzhuang remained unhurried. He pointed again, and the golden-crimson light within the clouds above violently converged. It contracted and transformed, and in a flash, a Thunder-Fire Celestial Dragon emerged, charging downward with boundless might.

’Damn it, how does this young scoundrel have so many tricks up his sleeve?’ Qiu Song’s expression changed. He saw the celestial dragon’s every scale was distinct, its eyes glowed with golden splendor, and its aura was majestic and terrifying. It was practically indistinguishable from a true dragon. This was clearly no ordinary technique. Not daring to hold back in the slightest, he immediately used his final Gang Pearl.

Unexpectedly, the Thunder-Fire Celestial Dragon, which had seemed incomparably mighty, shattered instantly from the Gang Pearl’s blast. A stray bolt of lightning grazed past Qiu Song’s protective cloud of Qi without causing even a ripple, then flew a few dozen yards before dissipating into the air.

"HAHAHAHA," Xuzhuang boomed with laughter. "This is the Dao of transforming form and substance. Will the Venerable remember this lesson?"

Feeling the attack’s negligible power, how could Qiu Song not realize he had fallen completely for Xuzhuang’s trick? A surge of rage rushed to the crown of his head. He glanced at his palm again—the sigil was now almost fully lit—and pressed resolutely toward Xuzhuang.

But having repeatedly tricked Qiu Song into exhausting his trump cards, would Xuzhuang truly allow him to close the distance step by step?

Seeing this, Xuzhuang knew the time to act had arrived. He calmly raised a finger and tapped the spot between his eyebrows. An instant later, as he pulled his finger away, the Innate Primordial Dissociation Divine Light shot out like a bolt of electricity.

As Xuzhuang’s cultivation had advanced, he no longer needed a long time to channel this Divine Technique and could use it freely in combat. Now, he would use this mighty Nascent Soul Venerable to test the power of Tai Su’s First Divine Technique.