Chapter 215: Chapter 212: Changes in the Weather, Wondrous Use of True Skills
"Treating Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy and the Five Vile Qi as opposing Yin and Yang forces, then using Yin to stimulate Yang and the rightful to invade the demonic, achieving the goal of purifying from the polluting?" Jiang Li mused over Zhao Yi’s words, contemplating in his heart.
Seeing himself as Yang and the Five Vile Qi as Yin, he would use the opposition of Yin and Yang to stimulate the power of Yang, and then use his own righteousness to invade the demonic qi of the Five Vile Qi, seizing its power for transformation.
It is said to be taking from the excess to supplement the deficient, but this isn’t taking—it’s outright robbery.
The question now is—how to rob?
Attracting the Five Vile Qi is something everyone can do if they aren’t afraid of death, and cultivators of the Seventh Rank or higher can easily accomplish it. The problem is, once you’ve attracted the Five Vile Qi, how do you steal its power? How do you transform the Five Vile Qi into Spiritual Energy?
Even if you understand the principle is Yin-Yang Transformation, turning it into a practical application is not an easy task.
It’s like everyone knows Emperor Xi uses the Eight Trigrams to model all phenomena, but how exactly do you do that?
No one knows.
"How can Yin and Yang be transformed?" Jiang Li asked.
"How can the Six Qi be commanded?" Zhang Daoyi countered.
He asked how Spiritual Energy could be transformed, and Zhang Daoyi immediately counter-asked how to command the Six Qi. Both questions directly targeted the core issue.
"Observe the Heavenly Dao, hold true to Heavenly Action," Jiang Li answered with a smile.
Understanding the movements of all things allows one to apply the laws of all things.
Hmm... The principle is just that, such an answer can be said to encompass profound truths, and is extremely esoteric, but in reality...
It’s like explaining how to put an elephant into a fridge; Jiang Li’s response is essentially to observe the laws of all things, then apply those laws, and you can command the Six Qi.
A simple three-step process to teach you the Supreme Divine Skill.
As for how exactly to observe, that involves other Magic Doors and Dao Fruit Abilities, and even if you ask Jiang Li, it’s hard for him to say. After all, Dao Fruit Ability is like a talent; you can acquire it, but you don’t know how to make others acquire it.
Hearing this, Zhang Daoyi’s eyes twitched slightly. He greatly admired the ability to articulate profound truths that were merely perfunctory, and then he replied, "Yin and Yang give birth to each other, if you understand that extreme Yang gives birth to Yin, then you can know how extreme Yin will give birth to Yang."
The onlookers who heard this were speechless.
Because Zhang Daoyi’s answer was equally nonsensical.
Do you want to know how the Five Vile Qi can be transformed into Heaven and Earth Spiritual Mechanism? Observe the process of the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Mechanism turning into the Five Vile Qi.
Once you understand how the Spiritual Mechanism transforms, you can deduce how the Five Vile Qi transforms.
Nonsense for nonsense. This made Jiang Li sigh lightly, "Such a pity."
"Indeed, a pity," Zhang Daoyi also sighed softly.
He couldn’t possibly reveal the essence of the technique, considering the formidable aptitude of the man opposite him and the mysterious aspects of the Qi Tomb, giving him a starting point might set him on a path of exploration along Dao Yi’s way. So, even though he greatly wished to exchange insights and Magic Doors with Jiang Li, Zhang Daoyi couldn’t do so.
After all, this technique wasn’t his creation; it was invented by his master.
He believed the other party thought the same.
Thus...
The two exchanged glances, and a similar thought flashed through their minds.
—It was time to cross swords.
Zhang Daoyi put aside trivial thoughts, the three-foot green edge naturally pointing to the ground, he said, "The sword is named ’Qiushui,’ a gift from my master. Please enlighten me."
The hilt of the Qiushui Sword was jade-colored, and the blade itself was like an autumn pond, deep, serene, and quiet. But Jiang Li, having seen the power of this sword just moments before, knew very well the immense and dominating power it possessed.
Or rather, the tremendous power Zhang Daoyi could demonstrate with this sword.
Jiang Li reached out, and the long sword at his waist automatically disassembled, snaking into his hand like a spirit snake before reassembling into the shape of a long sword, "This sword was formed by the Mo Wu Battle Box from the Mo Sect. It originally had no name, but if it must be named, let’s call it ’Mo Wu’."
As he spoke, Jiang Li held the long sword in reverse, behind his back, not revealing any fierce energy, like a hidden dragon in the deep, gradually diminishing his Qi Mechanism.
In contrast, Zhang Daoyi displayed a formidable aura in an instant.
Aligned with the heaven and earth after defeating Yang Ji, every move harmonized with the cosmos, his spirit reaching an ultra-empty state, tranquil and firm, achieving Unity of Heaven and Man, his spirit already in an invincible position, merging with the momentum of heaven and earth, overwhelming Jiang Li’s heart.
However, this overwhelming cosmic force began to subtly change as it approached Jiang Li; the wind stirred on its own accord, blowing his hair and robes like floating swords, the land responded to him as well, the terrain of Five-Finger Mountain subtly aligning with Jiang Li, as if he was rooted to the mountain range, inherently unmovable and indestructible.
This Five-Finger Mountain was transformed by the Great Brightness Mantra, and the Great Brightness Mantra had been affixed to Jiang Li’s body for many days, used by him to consolidate his Physical Body’s Acupoints, subtly merging with him.
Now, as Jiang Li stood within the Five-Finger Mountain, grasping the Mountain Qi, without the need for added perception, he could unify and harness its momentum.
If Zhang Daoyi was merging with heaven and earth, Jiang Li was making heaven and earth merge with himself, exhibiting two distinct forms of Unity of Heaven and Man, revealing divergent paths.
Zhang Daoyi’s unity with heaven and earth was overwhelming, even pressing a figure like Yang Ji into quick defeat.
Jiang Li, however, was physically harmonizing the surrounding environment with himself, lacking that overwhelming force, yet seemingly creating his own little world, free from Zhang Daoyi’s influence and even more, he could alter the surroundings, reversely affecting Zhang Daoyi.
Thus, this time, Zhang Daoyi was defeated by Yang Ji first, then he rose with the momentum of a great victory, giving Jiang Li not much chance to impact him.
"However, the world naturally changes, and you will still be affected," Jiang Li thought to himself slowly.
At this moment, it was dusk, the sunlight was sinking, and night was about to fall.
As the darkness of night devoured the setting sun, the heavenly timing changed, and with it, Zhang Daoyi’s momentum also changed; his mental state, feeling the change of the heavenly timing, also stirred. This was an incidental effect of the Unity of Heaven and Man, an undeniable flaw.
Unity of Heaven and Man, when heaven changes, man also changes.
If Zhang Daoyi could truly reach the ultimate of emptiness and maintain calm, he might keep his spirit unchanged in response to the changes of the world, but unfortunately, he was not capable of that now.
"Clang—"
Zhang Daoyi drew his sword.
The slight ripple caused by the change in heavenly timing, which was impossible even for others to notice much less grasp, was not the same for Jiang Li.
Even the slightest opportunity would be clearly revealed before the Emperor’s Qi Observation Skill.
After exchanging a move with him, Zhang Daoyi knew just how terrifying Jiang Li’s insight was, so he decisively made his move, drawing his sword during the transition of day to night to cover up that slight shift in his mental state.
The Qiushui Sword was extended, like a long river, and Zhang Daoyi moved with the sword, mingling into the river of Sword Qi. When he initiated the attack, he was ten paces away from Jiang Li, but by the time his arm reached its limit and the sword momentum its peak, he had already closed in on Jiang Li.
Sword Qi burst forth like a mighty river, the torrential sword light reminded one involuntarily of a line from "Zhuangzi."
The time of Qiushui Sword has come, a hundred rivers pour into the river.
The sword held by Zhang Daoyi completely aligned with this statement.
Facing this sword, Jiang Li retreated, appearing not to engage directly, but the wind that surged behind him grew stronger and stronger, continuously striking the river of Sword Qi, buffeting the man and his sword.
"Xun Position," commented Zhong Shenxiu, watching the battle.
The position Jiang Li stood in, known as the Xun Position, was the mouth of the wind. He now activated and utilized the wind, seemingly retreating, but in fact cleverly increasing the wind force to weaken Zhang Daoyi’s sword momentum.
But Zhang Daoyi’s sword momentum had already reached its peak, and from there, it was Kanglong Youhui, starting to wane, momentum spilling forth.
As both factors overlaid, the more Jiang Li retreated, the weaker Zhang Daoyi’s sword momentum became. When he had moved back about twenty-four paces, Zhang Daoyi flicked his wrist and turned his sword, the surging river-like Sword Qi suddenly reversed, rushing back towards the long sword.
The momentum was about to be exhausted, changes were inevitable.
At that moment, Jiang Li’s left hand turned over, Innate Qi bubbling forth like water converging into a sphere, and he pushed out with one palm —
"Three Points Return to Primordial Qi."
This move targeted all sorts of flashy techniques, and any protective True Qi below the Sixth Rank could not block the refining of the Innate Qi. Although Zhang Daoyi was strong and his cultivation technique profound, he could not block this sudden strike.
It should have been so.
The reversed Sword Qi was easily refined, and just as the Three Points Return to Primordial Qi was about to strike Zhang Daoyi’s chest, suddenly a fierce wind appeared.
The Five Vile Qi swirled around Zhang Daoyi like a wild storm; when the Three Points Return to Primordial Qi hit the black wind, it visibly decayed at a speed visible to the naked eye, and was swept away by the Five Vile Qi in the blink of an eye.
Innate Qi indeed can break Ten Thousand Qi, but it cannot break the Five Vile Qi.
At least not yet.
This sudden change made the strike that seized the opportunity fall through; the Sword Qi reversed and the Qiushui Sword transformed into a deep abyss, a piece of dark murkiness, the Sword Qi coalesced into an ultimate force, the long sword thrust forward, and a loud explosive bang resonated.
It seemed as if the sound barrier had been broken; the substantial change caused by the weight of this sword resulted in such gravitational pull that the air emitted such a sound.
Yet at the same moment, the wind force rolled to its limit; Jiang Li’s left hand grabbed, the wind pressure crushed, and at the same time, the Mo Wu Sword broke into countless sharp blades, swept up by the wind, spiraling and simultaneously twisting towards the opponent.
"Boom!"
The sound was thunderous, it was the sound of the wind pressure being shattered.
The dark, heavy sword absorbed a thousand mountains, one blow subduing ten gatherings, shattering the wind force, causing countless blades to explode apart, but in the next instant, they regrouped, converging into a long sword exuding a majestic aura, competing with the Qiushui Sword.
"Clang!"
"Clang!"
"Clang!"
Sword shadows flurried, the two swords collided thrice, emitting a sound akin to great bells, vigorous Qi waves spreading, and turbulent flowing winds colliding, stimulating countless wind blades to shoot out.
The two figures clashed together, then separated, each moving back several paces, slightly trembling, appearing unable to stop their retreat due to the power of their opponent.
Jiang Li’s palms displayed a golden halo, his arms showed red-patterned dragon scales, as if transforming into dragon arms, forcefully gripping the Mo Wu Sword, simultaneously looking at his opponent, saying, "So it is, no wonder Yuan Zhen is a Sword Cultivator, and you are a Martial Cultivator, no wonder Yang Ji lost."
The Five Vile Qi, drawn by the Nine Heavens Demon Suppressing True Technique, madly converged around Zhang Daoyi’s body, attempting to corrode it, but it was also neutralized. Furthermore, it formed a natural protective barrier.
Any True Qi attacking Zhang Daoyi’s body had to first overcome the hurdle of the Five Vile Qi, being greatly weakened or even completely depleted.
This Zhang Daoyi could very well be said to be the nemesis of magic.
To attack him, magic was hardly effective; embedding True Qi within one’s body for close combat was the most effective method. Therefore, Zhang Daoyi specialized in Martial Arts, not just to use the protective effect of the Five Vile Qi, but also to avoid the awkward scenario of being unable to counterattack when engaged in close combat.