Chapter 261: The Method of Fierce Battle

Xiaopangdun was instantly furious. "You can talk about me, but to escalate this to the level of my sect... Very well, very well. As the saying goes, a strong dragon does not suppress a local snake. You two have yet to become Earth Immortal True Persons, yet you are already so arrogant and conceited."

Xiaopangdun suddenly understood Xu Jia's meaning. His own sect actually had no one to hold the fort, and he, the senior brother, was being slapped in the face by others. Could he really go back to beg his master to come down and intervene? Wouldn't that be bullying the younger generation? Zhang Zhenji found it hard to mediate as well; he had received many favors from Xu Jia, his own ancestor Caiyu Zhenren had been resurrected and was currently being fostered in Xu Fu, and his own Daoist practice had been improved by Xu Jia.

Thus, he said with a cold face, "Two fellow Daoists, are you here as guests, or as enemies?"

"Your disciple is committing evil deeds here, yet you do not manage her yourselves. My master intended to intervene, but upon realizing she had the background and lineage of your Lishan Sect, he showed mercy and even went to the trouble of sending a message for you to clean up your own house."

"Now it seems you are not here to clean up your house, but rather to hold us accountable."

Hui Zhuo sneered, "I fear you lack the ability. On your way here, did you not inquire? My master beheaded an evil god with his sword, cured and killed the top ten Dharma Kings of the Longevity Sect, and suppressed the wicked Flood Dragon that flooded Dexing. Among these many deeds, which of you has such Merit?"

The two Daoist priests were startled, but they were not accustomed to admitting fault. "I do not know or understand these things you speak of, but from the perspective of our northern lineage, if one is truly a high cultivator of the Dao, they would never associate with monsters and evil gods."

"If nothing else, our starting point is at least for the sake of the hundred thousand commoners in this city. Regardless of the Evil God of Wealth's relationship with your sect, if he so desires, he could sacrifice the hundred thousand people in this city, and furthermore, cause the wealth Qi of millions to wither, leaving them owing Yin Debt..."

"In any branch or lineage, this is considered impermissible; it is a shaking of the foundation and the nursing of a future disaster."

"I will not argue with you. One thing is one thing. You do nothing, yet you stand on high ground to criticize us. We do practical things, and you are here saying our methods are poor. It is nothing more than belittling others to elevate yourselves."

Xiaopangdun also knew that his own group was a makeshift troupe, consisting of nothing but minor demons, monsters, or shamans and witches. They followed a rural path, unlike these major sects that associated with scholar-officials and nobles.

His group indeed integrated only some heterodox paths, all minor cultivators of the Miscellaneous School who were not of the mainstream.

In fact, to complete a magnificent transformation, one must abandon these parts that hold them back. To become a prestigious, righteous sect, one must have a "bright, great, upright, and correct" corporate culture and corporate image.

But Xu Jia had never done so. Hui Zhuo also knew his own aptitude; he was actually not qualified to be the senior brother, nor did he have the strength, and perhaps he even lacked the ability. But Xu Jia still firmly chose him.

"Take that snake demon away quickly and get out of Jiangnan West Circuit."

"Who are you telling to get out?" Yilei Daoren had already begun to lose his temper, his Dharma Power beginning to circulate, with arcs of electricity faintly circling him.

Their branch was called the Lishan Sect, the Hidden Immortal lineage, the Fenglei Gate. They cultivated the Wind and Thunder Technique. The Wind Method worshipped the "Ji Mansion." Although the Ji Shui Bao belonged to water, as the last of the Eastern Azure Dragon Seven Mansions, it was the dragon's tail. When the dragon's tail swings, there must be a whirlwind. It was the official of Heavenly Wind.

Cultivating the Thunder Law meant the "Doumu Divine Thunder." The Lishan Laomu Xuanmiao Scripture recorded: The Old Mother was the manifestation of Doumu, and as the mother of all stars in the Big Dipper, she oversaw all stars, her merits reached the Three Realms, and her virtue moistened all living things.

This Thunder Law combined the Four Symbols and star mansions, divided into spring, summer, autumn, and winter, the twelve months, the Twenty-Four Solar Terms, and the seventy-two pentads.

Yilei Daoren practiced the "February Thunder Gate." This corresponded to the Mao branch among the twelve Earthly Branches (the relationship between the twelve months and the Earthly Branches starts from the eleventh month and ends in the tenth). The solar term of the second month, the Awakening of Insects, involved the interaction of Qi, where the Qi of Heavenly Licentiousness drifted, transformed into Essence, and fell upon the earth. With the union of yin and yang, thunder was born, thus enlightening all things and allowing living beings to grow. In the Eight Trigrams, this was "Thunder Heaven Great Vigorous."

Therefore, this thunder was "Life Thunder," not the "Thunder Sha" required by the Tiangang Thunder, but rather "Thunder Small Medicine." This Thunder Law belonged to the "Inner Elixir" category, similar to the Genyue Qi-Ingestion Method; it was practiced through ingestion to achieve internal strengthening.

In terms of subtlety alone, it surpassed the Genyue Qi-Ingestion Method by several streets, possessing both the wonderful Dao of Longevity and the ferocity of combat.

As soon as Yilei moved, Hui Zhuo felt a sense of danger, as if thunder were on his back and his hair was standing on end.

Hu Jinhua immediately lent her Dharma Power. Regardless, she had two hundred years of Daoist Practice, and the fox fire refined from the Zhurong Fire Qi Curse began to manifest.

Just then, a "Hmph!" was heard, and the Yushan County City God descended with Divine Path restrictions, extinguishing the fire of both parties directly.

This was the Daochang of the City God Temple. To fight here was to show no regard for the City God. Moreover, the City God Temple was the pivot of the Dharma Realm for the county. If it were damaged, the mortal world might be fine, as it could be repaired, but the Dharma Realm would be different. One did not know how many ghosts and demons wanted to invade the city; if some fierce and evil ones escaped inside, the commoners would likely suffer.

Zhang Zhenji transmitted his voice to Hui Zhuo: "These two Daoist priests are arrogant and conceited. They have likely never been tempered and do not understand the ways of the human world. They are a trouble."

"Senior Brother, don't try to smooth things over or mediate. This grudge is already formed. It's too shameful to go back and find Master, and since they are women, it would be even worse for me to find people to gang up on them. I have to rely on myself."

"Cultivation is a tribulation at every step. I reckon these two are my Human Tribulation, and I must show some responsibility."

"Sigh..." Zhang Zhenji sighed.

He then spoke to the two Daoist priests: "My temple consists only of male practitioners and has relevant precepts. If you two seek a place to stay, just go find an inn in the city. Little boy, see the guests out!"

He then flicked his sleeves and left.

The two Daoist priests, Lingyun Daoren and Yilei Daoren, saw that the resident Daoist of the City God Temple did not welcome them, and they began to have doubts. But being out and about, they represented the face of the Lishan Sect, and no matter what, they would not admit they were wrong.

After leaving the City God Temple, Yilei said, "Senior Sister, the situation here seems a bit wrong. Why is everyone bewitched, speaking for the evil god and the monster?"

Lingyun Daoren was slightly older and had more experience: "I fear we were a bit reckless. We made hasty judgments without clarifying the situation. But setting that aside, evil gods and licentious offerings, monsters causing trouble—should they not be eradicated? Why care about so many reasons? Now that the world is in chaos and monsters are rampant, it was only after great difficulty that humans and ghosts were separated and order was established. If good monsters can enter the city now, can evil monsters do the same in the future?"

"That Earth Immortal True Person might truly want equality for all living beings, treating everyone the same, but perhaps his position is skewed." "The ancients said, those not of our race must have a different heart. If he remains obsessed and refuses to repent, I fear..."

In the Baohetang in the city, Liu Ruyan was cultivating in her small room.

After being with Chen Liuxian, the two often engaged in intercourse, which caused her cultivation to increase rapidly and allowed her to comprehend desire.

Previously, she needed to go into the mountains to gather medicine to nourish Chen Liuxian. Recently, a type of "Small Five Elements Pill" had been circulating on the market, and its effect was decent, so she gave it to Chen Liuxian every day.

Even so, as time went on, Chen Liuxian could hardly handle it.

Chen Liuxian sat in the hall. Seeing him looking distracted and dazed, Li Dafu could not help but say, "Young man, you need to exercise restraint!"

Chen Liuxian gave a bitter smile: He wanted to exercise restraint too. With his body, once every three or four days would be fine, but his wife was so beautiful that she insisted on it every night, and that was even the result of restraint. Some time ago, it was even twice a night.

He could not help but recall a young Daoist telling him before: Your wife is a monster...

Chen Liuxian shook his head and silently ate a handful of Small Five Elements Pills.

And Liu Ruyan, who was cultivating in the inner room, suddenly sensed something.

"It is the Wind and Thunder Technique of my sect!"

Her expression changed.

Last time, Xu Jia slapped her, beating half of her face back to its original form. She used a painted skin to cover it, and after her injuries healed, she urged Chen Liuxian to flee with her.

But Chen Liuxian had his own ideas and did not agree... She could not force him to go... After being on tenterhooks for a while, she realized Xu Jia had not come to trouble her again, so she relaxed... She did not expect that her sect would find her now.

"If I pass my Love Tribulation, I will become an Earth Immortal True Person. This is a hurdle I must pass. I failed in my first two lives; this third life is my last chance."

Perhaps she had truly loved in her first life, but by the second life, it was already an obsession... let alone this third life.

From the pain of separation to the inability to obtain what one desires...

It is only a pity for Chen Liuxian. In his first life, he cultivated at Longhu Mountain, and in his second life, he cultivated at Ge Immortal Mountain, both of which were destroyed, leading him to have thoughts of retreat and regret. In this third life, his affinity for the Dao is shallow, and he only works as such a small physician.

One wonders which immortal child in heaven made a mistake and was demoted to the mortal world to suffer these torments.

Liu Ruyan did not want to sit and wait for death, so she immediately left the pharmacy.

When Chen Liuxian returned to the room at night, he did not see his beautiful wife. He was first startled, then relieved.

After searching for a while, he found a note on the table: "Husband, my maternal aunt has been looking for me these days, and I fear she wants to take me back. I am going out to hide. After you see this note, just burn it with fire."

"Maternal aunt? Why didn't she tell me about this before?"

Just as he was puzzled, he heard a knock on the door. Chen Liuxian hurriedly stuffed the note into his mouth and swallowed it.

Then he composed his expression and went to open the door.

Just then, an old woman was seen standing at the doorway. The old woman sniffed the air and let out a laugh: "That one certainly ran fast."

Chen Liuxian only felt it was eerie: "Old woman, who are you?"

"This old woman is Hu Jinhua. I originally came to catch a snake, but I didn't expect it to have run off ahead of time. Little gentleman, do not be afraid."

She then looked Chen Liuxian up and down and clicked her tongue: "Young master, you are severely depleted, yet you do not know the secret arts of the bedchamber. This old woman has a Battle Method here that can allow you to regain your virility, so I shall gift it to you."

Having said that, she threw down a book and turned to leave.

Chen Liuxian still wanted to argue that he was not, that he did not, but once Hu Jinhua had disappeared from sight, he still closed the door and spread the book out to look at it.

He saw written upon it...

(End of this chapter)