Chapter 680: The Divine Talisman is

Wang Shusheng was defeated.

In the hearts of the people of Dahe Kingdom, Wang Shusheng's status was equivalent to Liu Bai of the Sword Pavilion in Southern Jin; he was their guardian god, and for a moment, countless people turned pale. More importantly, Wang Shusheng had been defeated in a duel of Talisman Dao, and he was a world-renowned Divine Talisman Master; this made it even harder for people to accept.

At this moment, Wang Shusheng was enveloped by the talisman intent of "Morning Like Green Silk Evening Becomes Snow." Even though he had obtained Mo Shanshan's half-finished Divine Talisman to neutralize it, his lifespan had still been drained significantly, and he looked as if he had aged twenty or thirty years in a short span of time. He looked at his increasingly withered and shriveled hands, stroked his hair that had turned into dry grass, and actually fainted.

Mo Shanshan stood in front of Wang Shusheng, looking at Yu Liancheng, her eyes carrying a hazy quality, as if looking over from another world.

But she pursed her red lips slightly, appearing incredibly firm and stubborn. It was as if one could never harm the Wang Shusheng behind her without first knocking her down.

Yu Liancheng walked slowly out of Shumo Hall, stepping toward Mo Shanshan step by step. With every step he took, an invisible momentum seemed to roll over like a surging sea.

The cultivators on Mogan Mountain turned pale and retreated one after another.

Especially those who had vaguely guessed Yu Liancheng's identity felt even more anxious in their hearts.

In the Xiling Divine Palace, where experts were as numerous as a forest, this person came and went as he pleased; even the Ruling Divine Seat had died at his hands, and there were even rumors that the Divine Palace Master had been severely injured by him. If this person truly attacked without regard for anything, it was feared that the entire Mogan Mountain could be washed in blood by him, leaving no one behind.

Yu Liancheng stood three feet in front of Mo Shanshan, quietly watching the young girl in white before him.

Mo Shanshan still stood before Wang Shusheng, her clear eyes meeting Yu Liancheng's gaze.

Being this close, she felt as if she could see the indifference and profundity in his eyes, like a God residing above the nine heavens, looking down at the common people struggling in the red dust with complete detachment.

Suddenly, a smile curled at the corners of Yu Liancheng's mouth, and the coldness and indifference in his eyes vanished, becoming as gentle as a spring breeze: "Fine, I can spare your teacher."

"Hmm?"

Mo Shanshan's eyes flickered slightly.

He agreed just like that?

"Although your teacher is a rare Divine Talisman Master in this world, in my eyes, that is all he is. He lacks the courage to wield his brush against the heavens; even if he leaps above the Five Realms, he is only on par with the likes of the Butcher or the Drunkard, or perhaps even inferior. Such a person poses no threat to me, so it doesn't matter if I let him go."

Yu Liancheng's tone was indifferent; he truly did not care about Wang Shusheng—he was merely a Divine Talisman Master in the Knowing Destiny Realm. Although he was a Book Saint, he lacked the courage to wield his brush against the heavens.

Having been defeated by him time and time again, it was likely that the next time the man met him, his confidence would be diminished by a third before they even crossed blows.

Furthermore, Wang Shusheng had been struck by "Morning Like Green Silk Evening Becomes Snow," and his lifespan was greatly reduced; he was indeed not worth worrying about.

Even if he could truly obtain the favor of Haotian and leap above the Five Realms, so what?

Could a weakling ever become an existence like Fuzi, Ke Haoran, or the Temple Master?

"However, wanting me to let him go is not that easy; I never do business at a loss."

Yu Liancheng looked at Mo Shanshan with a smile, a hint of playfulness overflowing from the corners of his mouth: "Mountain Master Mo, you wouldn't want your teacher to die at my hands just like this, would you?"

Mo Shanshan's brows furrowed slightly as she said: "What, what do you want to do?"

Yu Liancheng coughed twice, his expression returning to seriousness: "Teach me how to draw talismans."

……

Soon, those with well-informed sources in the world heard of an event.

Yu Liancheng, who had entered Taoshan alone and brushed away the full mountain of Peach Blossom, had appeared on Mogan Mountain in Dahe Kingdom, killed a Red-robed Divine Official, and defeated Wang Shusheng with Talisman Dao. Since then, he had entrenched himself on Mogan Mountain, supposedly to learn Talisman Dao from the Book Idiot, Mo Shanshan.

It was just that since Yu Liancheng could defeat Wang Shusheng with Talisman Dao, why he would need to ask Mo Shanshan for instruction was very puzzling, and thus many people were unwilling to believe this news. More people believed that Yu Liancheng admired Mo Shanshan and was using this as an excuse to stay on Mogan Mountain to capture the heart of the Book Idiot.

As for the original Wang Shusheng, he was severely weakened after this battle, and with Mogan Mountain becoming Yu Liancheng's territory, he accepted the invitation of the Xiling Divine Palace and became a Divine Palace Offering.

Time passed gradually, and in the blink of an eye, two more months had gone by.

That Yu Liancheng who had taken over Mogan Mountain had also been quiet for two months, allowing the commoners and high-ranking officials of Mogan Mountain, who had been trembling with fear, to breathe a sigh of relief.

It was rumored that during these two months, the monarch of Dahe Kingdom had even entered Mogan Mountain twice to seek an audience with Yu Liancheng.

A person capable of becoming a monarch of a nation was by no means a foolish or incompetent person. With Wang Shusheng heading to Xiling to become a Divine Palace Offering, Dahe Kingdom had to find a new powerhouse to hold the fort. This had nothing to do with sentiment, but was based on the interests of the nation. Otherwise, if the neighboring Southern Jin were in a bad mood, they could invade Dahe at any time.

Yu Liancheng was naturally the best candidate; he was a peerless powerhouse who had retreated from Taoshan unscathed and even taken away the full mountain of Peach Blossom.

The last person to cut down the full mountain of Peach Blossom was Fuzi. Because of Fuzi's existence, Datang could become the number one power in the world. If Yu Liancheng were willing to protect Dahe Kingdom, then Dahe Kingdom, even if not on par with Tang Kingdom, would at least not have to suffer the harassment of Southern Jin.

It was a pity that Yu Liancheng did not grant the monarch an audience. He only had someone pass on a message.

Although outsiders did not know what was said, they knew that Dahe Kingdom was very happy after hearing these words and held a grand banquet for three days.

From then on, no matter what requests the person on Mogan Mountain had, they were fulfilled with the power of the entire nation.

In a plaza on Mogan Mountain.

Yu Liancheng sat cross-legged; compared to two months ago, he seemed to possess a touch more scholarly elegance, as if he were a great literary scholar well-versed in books.

Suddenly, his eyes opened, and a faint flowing light flickered within them. Mind Power from his Snow Mountain Qi Sea surged into his fingertips, and he casually drew a talismanic script in the air.

A Divine Talisman.

The talisman he drew was very simple.

It was only one stroke.

More accurately, it was a horizontal line.

A simple, plain horizontal line.

To others, it was just the character "One."

Yet this talisman was filled with a tyrannical and sharp intent, as if it were a Divine Sword spanning between heaven and earth.

As Yu Liancheng's intent shifted, the talisman intent of the One Character Talisman was released, and the "One" completely transformed into a sword qi that could sever all things.

If "One" only represented a single sword qi, that would be one thing; although sharp and keen, its range would be limited.

But "One" was not just sword qi; "One" was also One.

One gives birth to two, two gives birth to three, three gives birth to all things.

The sword qi streaked toward the high sky; just after passing a distance of ten zhang, the originally single sword qi suddenly transformed into hundreds and thousands of sword qi, with the momentum of a heavenly net, or perhaps a vast ocean, complex and endless, enveloping the sky, surging in waves, as if even space itself were about to be cut and shattered by the endless sword qi.

An unlucky crow in the sky was struck and instantly turned into a spray of blood.

As the sword qi traveled further and further, the white clouds in the firmament were also cut by this sword qi, leaving the ten thousand miles of sky cloudless.

After another moment, the entire high sky seemed to have turned into irregular fragments, as if it had been slashed a thousand times, unable to recover for a long time.

One could imagine that if this Divine Talisman were to bloom in the human world, it would likely be unstoppable, and everything before it would be turned into fragments.

"Congratulations, you can now draw your own Divine Talisman."

Mo Shanshan looked at that "One" Character Talisman, her tone filled with emotion. Only a Talisman Master who has entered the Knowing Destiny Realm can draw an Indefinite Talisman, a Divine Talisman. Even for her, exhausting her entire Mind Power would at most allow her to draw half a Divine Talisman.

More importantly, she understood that the time this man before her had spent learning the Talisman Dao was at most just over two months.

Achieving the status of a Divine Talisman Master in just over two months—if her master were to hear of this, she feared he would spit out a mouthful of old blood again.

Yu Liancheng shrugged his shoulders.

In reality, he had only spent a small portion of his time on the Talisman Dao during these two months.

Cultivation of the Talisman Dao requires the use of Heaven and Earth Yuan Qi to manifest its power, unlike the Martial Dao, which gathers great power within oneself. Once in a different world, whether this Talisman Dao would still be effective was hard to say.

Even if it were effective, he feared its power would be greatly diminished.

During these two months, he had spent more time contemplating the realms above the Five Realms and digesting the countless techniques absorbed by the Gui Cang Nine Paths. Now, he had a vague idea regarding what lay above the Five Realms.

"Shanshan, are you still only able to draw half a Divine Talisman?" Yu Liancheng smiled slightly.

Mo Shanshan sighed: "That is correct. The other half of the Divine Talisman is a natural chasm; I lack the opportunity."

"Now your opportunity has arrived. I have just thought of a method that can allow you to quickly comprehend the remaining half of the Divine Talisman," Yu Liancheng chuckled.

"What method?" Mo Shanshan's spirits lifted. After two months of being together, she also understood what incredible means the person before her possessed.

"You pick up the 'brush', and leave the rest to me."

Mo Shanshan's brows furrowed slightly, not understanding his meaning, but she still raised her arm, using her slender index finger as a brush, concentrating in mid-air.

Yu Liancheng walked behind Mo Shanshan at some unknown moment, standing very close, and took Mo Shanshan's hand—smaller than his own, yet soft and boneless—into his.

"I will help you guide the brush and mobilize your Snow Mountain Qi Sea; you just need to feel it carefully." The hot breath hit her crystalline earlobe, causing Mo Shanshan's cheeks to flush with a rosy hue, like a snow mountain under the sunset.

Mo Shanshan bit her red lip with her pearly teeth and glanced at her back from the corner of her eye. Seeing the latter wearing his usual warm and gentle smile, he seemed unconcerned. She thought that those who cultivate the Dao do not care about minor details.

Coupled with the time they had spent together these days, she had quite a favorable impression of Yu Liancheng, so she gave a low "Mn," counting it as an agreement. Only, her tone had no fluctuation, and her originally distracted gaze seemed to become even more vacant.

Subsequently, a warm and peaceful True Qi invaded Mo Shanshan's body, driving the Mind Power in her Snow Mountain Qi Sea to condense at her fingertips, and she began to write in the air.

Her slender fingers drew a few lines in the wind.

Her fingertips broke through the void, the wind, and the heavens and earth; an invisible force was generated as the lines were drawn.

——An Indefinite Talisman that only a Divine Talisman Master who has entered the Knowing Destiny Realm can draw!

Seeing that this method was truly effective, Mo Shanshan suppressed the trace of shyness in her heart and began to perceive it carefully.

Although this approach was very opportunistic, it indeed gave Mo Shanshan a brand-new realization, and she vaguely grasped many of the essentials; some of the key points even made her feel as if the clouds had parted to reveal the sun, and she was suddenly enlightened.

As the two continued to write, the Divine Talisman in mid-air became increasingly terrifying, as if it had transformed into a black hole, with infinite Yuan Qi surging into it.

"Mr. Yu, Mountain Master."

Just at this moment, a petite figure flew over from afar, delicate and agile, with a graceful posture.

"Eh, Mr. Yu, Mountain Master, what are you two doing..."

The figure stopped abruptly; it was a very cute little girl, about thirteen or fourteen years old, in the bloom of youth, the very Tianmaonv whom Yu Liancheng had met when he first went up the mountain.

She stared blankly at the two, and two blushes suddenly appeared on her cute face. She hurriedly covered her eyes with her hands, but her fingers were spread very wide, and her pair of black, lively eyes did not blink.

: "I didn't see anything, I didn't see anything at all, you two continue."

Boom!

The customs of the Dahe Kingdom are open, and this would not normally count for much. But Tianmaonv's shouting immediately made Mo Shanshan's face burn, and her ears turned completely red. The Divine Talisman, which was still a little short of completion, uncontrollably poured out its talisman intent. Amidst a booming sound, a white pillar of Qi immediately blasted toward the direction where Tianmaonv was.

The power of this Divine Talisman was far inferior to the "One" Character Talisman, and it was not finished, but a Divine Talisman is still a Divine Talisman; its power was definitely not something Tianmaonv could withstand. The beam of light transformed from the Divine Talisman came surging forward, and wherever the beam passed, the space trembled. Even the ground could not withstand the immense crushing force, shattering with a bang, with large areas of spiderweb cracks, as if the entire corridor were about to be crushed and torn apart.

Tianmaonv was completely stunned.

Her whole body was unable to move.

A great fear seized her mind, and she could not even move a fraction.

Seeing that this terrifying talisman intent was about to envelop and destroy her, Yu Liancheng suddenly appeared in front of her.

Whoosh, whoosh—an invisible wall of Qi emerged. Only "bang, bang" sounds were heard in succession; the talisman intent struck the wall of Qi completely but could not break through it by even a fraction. Finally, the talisman intent completely dissipated into a sky full of white air currents.

"Little Tianmaonv, how is it? Scared silly?"

Yu Liancheng turned his head and looked at Tianmaonv. Tianmaonv's little face was still dazed, so he reached out and pinched her cheeks hard.

"Wah." Tianmaonv shivered, suddenly hugged Yu Liancheng's waist, her face pale with fright, and cried out: "The Mountain Master wants to kill me to silence me, Mr. Yu, you must protect me. I really didn't see anything, and even if I did, I wouldn't say it."

Two months had passed, and the disciples of Mogan Mountain still had no good feelings toward Yu Liancheng, this uninvited guest.

However, this little girl, whom he had met the first time he went up the mountain, suited Yu Liancheng's temperament very well. After some contact, there was a sense of closeness.

"What nonsense are you talking about! Just now, Mr. Yu was helping me comprehend the Divine Talisman."

Mo Shanshan walked over and tapped Tianmaonv's head. Her pretty face sank slightly, but she could not help but show a look of worry: "How is it? Did it hurt you just now?"

"No, Mr. Yu is very strong."

Tianmaonv first patted her chest, then shrank her body and said worriedly: "Mountain Master, you really aren't killing me to silence me?"

Mo Shanshan stomped her foot and said in embarrassment and annoyance: "Talking nonsense again."

Yu Liancheng coughed twice: "Little Tianmaonv, you ran over here, is there something the matter?"

"Oh, oh, almost forgot."

Tianmaonv stuck out her tongue: "The Guanhai Monk from Lanke Temple asks to see you, saying he wants to invite you to attend the upcoming Ullambana Festival."

……