Chapter 868

Heavenly thunder poured down, and Ye Zhilong's Martial Dao true intent was actually suppressed by thirty percent. His expression changed slightly, but he saw Yan Buji already transformed into a fleeting shadow charging at him.

Instant Shadow Step—Instant Thousand Strikes!

Thousands of fist shadows erupted simultaneously, each strike containing terrifying annihilating power. Ye Zhilong responded hastily; though he blocked most of the assault, he was still shaken, his qi and blood surging.

"Senior brother!" Yang Qing saw the situation, immediately formed a sword seal, seventy-two sword lights forming a killing array that slashed toward Yan Buji. Yang Lan also struck at the same time, a scarlet silk ribbon coiling like a flood dragon around Yan Buji's legs.

Yan Buji snorted coldly, lightly tapping his scepter: "Scram!"

His figure suddenly vanished, and the next second he flashed out from a crack behind Yang Qing's back, the Hai Kun hammer thrust straight for his back heart.

"Watch out!" Ye Zhilong's eyes nearly split, but it was already too late to help.

At the critical moment, a purple figure resembling Yan Buji's face suddenly appeared, lightning flashing in its palm.

"Violet Firmament Divine Thunder—Burst!"

"Boom!!!"

In the deafening explosion, a radius of a thousand li turned into a thunderous purgatory. Yan Buji's true self was blown backward, spewing fresh blood from his mouth.

That Martial Dao avatar also returned to Yan Buji's body in the explosion!

Ye Zhilong, meanwhile, had blood-qi true vigor emanating from his whole body, actually blocking all the heavenly thunderstorm's power outside; but seeing the sweat like rain pouring from his forehead, one could tell he was barely holding on.

But seeing Yan Buji spit blood as he flew, Ye Zhilong seized the chance, his spear like a dragon, aiming straight for Yan Buji's throat: "It's over!"

Just as the spear tip was about to pierce his throat, a flicker of madness flashed in Yan Buji's eyes. He fiercely summoned the True Phoenix Bow, and wenwu fire ignited in his palm!

"Die for me!"

"What?!"

The spear's light pierced only an afterimage!

Yan Buji deployed the Luo Zhi needles to prevent being sealed in space, his true form having instant-moved to a mountain peak a thousand li away; he held the bow with one hand, drew it full, and despite coughing up several mouthfuls of blood, he mustered all his strength to shoot an arrow imbued with wenwu fire flying forth!

Boom—!

The thunderstorm had not yet subsided, a fire pillar thousands of meters high again engulfed that area.

"Ye Zhilong... Yang Qing... Yang Lan..." Yan Buji wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, hatred burning in his eyes, "This time you got lucky..."

He struggled to his feet, took a few pills from his storage bag and swallowed them. As the medicinal power took effect, his wounds began to slowly heal.

"Next time we meet, I will take your lives!"

At the same time, above the Wan Dao Mountain Range, Ye Zhilong stood spear in hand, his face grim as he watched the direction Yan Buji had disappeared.

"Let him get away." Yang Qing wiped the blood from his lip, sheathed his sword, brows furrowed.

Yang Lan's hair stood up from the blast, turning into an explosion hairstyle; she said resentfully, "This person's methods are endless; if left unchecked, future troubles will be boundless."

Although they were accidentally blown up by Yan Buji's Martial Dao avatar, the truth is that the Nascent Soul-stage Violet Firmament Divine Thunder, while somewhat threatening, posed little danger to the two Huashen cultivators who mastered myriad techniques, even countless unobstructedly combined top-tier arts; Yang Qing and Yang Lan's injuries were not serious, at most a bit of embarrassment.

Above the Wan Dao Mountain Range, the lingering aftereffects of the intertwined thunder and fire continued to rage.

Ye Zhilong's blood-qi true vigor gradually retracted, the dark spear still trembling with residual lightning. He stared at the direction Yan Buji had vanished, the spear tip involuntarily quivering slightly.

"What a fine wenwu true fire..." Ye Zhilong lowered his head to glance at his scorched black chest armor, where terrifying heat still lingered. Had he not promptly activated the "Dragon Scale Iron Body" protective divine ability, that arrow might have pierced his chest.

To be frank, if the opponent's cultivation weren't inferior to his own, facing such frequent sharp attacks would likely have been impossible to repel, even if he hadn't noticed that Yang Qing and Yang Lan weren't seriously injured; he probably couldn't have driven them away.

Yang Qing wiped the blood from his lips, his plain white Daoist robe stained with dust. He performed a cleanse-dust seal, yet found the scorch left by the wenwu true fire could not be dispelled. "This fire is strange; even the Purify Garment spell..."

"It's the nature of wenwu true fire," Ye Zhilong said solemnly, "the civil fire corrodes bone, the martial fire burns the soul; together they can wound the origin. When you return, you must use the Xuanmen's 'Nine Revolutions Clear Spirit Pill' to resolve it."

Yang Lan, her hair exploded from the blast, angrily tore off a singed lock: "This bastard even tried to scheme against us while fleeing!" She suddenly widened her eyes, "Wait, the wenwu fire he just used? Such divine fire—he...."

All three changed color at once.

From Yan Buji's move—whether formations, divine abilities, immortal accumulations, avatars, Dao martial techniques, etc. —he even had a hidden wenwu fire?!

"No wonder he could break through my Dragon Scale defense." Ye Zhilong gripped his spear tightly, knuckles whitening, "It seems he has gained quite a few opportunities."

Suddenly, the jade pendant at Yang Qing's waist flashed with urgent purple light. His expression tightened: "Emergency summons from the sect!"

Just as the three were about to leave, Ye Zhilong suddenly turned his head toward the northwest. His pupils flickered with golden vertical lines, as if piercing through a thousand li of mist: "Someone is spying on this battle."

Ten thousand li away, on an unnamed mountain peak.

The black-robed person's Heaven-Watching Mirror "cracked" with a fine line. He gave a low chuckle, his hoarse voice like sandpaper rubbing: "Such keen perception... no wonder Hong Yuan chose him as his heir."

The last image reflected in the mirror was Ye Zhilong's piercing gaze that penetrated the void.

Ye Zhilong remained silent for a moment, then suddenly said: "His final move was the Instant Movement Technique; it consumes enormously, so he cannot fight again in the short term."

He turned to look at the two, his eyes flashing with resolve: "We'll return to prepare; next time we meet, we must kill with a single strike."

The three turned into streams of light and departed, leaving only a battlefield riddled with devastation as testament to this earth-shaking duel.

After a period of time.

Yan Buji nursed his wounds, and also began to ponder in silence.

"This Ye Zhilong is simply outrageous; I can't tell how many tricks he has, just waving a big spear around, flawless, impenetrable. No matter my myriad methods, it's like a tiger trying to catch a hedgehog—I can't get a hold." Yan Buji narrowed his eyes.

But what truly made Yan Buji feel helpless was not that his techniques were useless against him; if that were the case, Yan Buji wouldn't have fought him at all and would have fled long ago.

The trouble is, Yan Buji sensed that Ye Zhilong seems to have also inherited a portion of martial fortune, and within him there is something Yan Buji himself has not yet attained.

"Martial Dao true intent!"

Yan Buji was also astonished; although he didn't know what stage of cultivation the "true intent" represents for a practitioner, nor how much comprehension of the Grand Dao is needed to manifest it, as a fellow Martial Dao cultivator he could sense the difference between Ye Zhilong and himself.

During their previous clash, he clearly felt the will contained in the opponent's spear technique—"to overturn fate, defy the Dao"—a will purely embodied in his moves and power, just like....

"Primordial Martial Qi?!" Yan Buji's pupils contracted.

It is his Martial Dao true intent that amplifies his strength, whereas Yan Buji's Primordial Martial Qi merely follows the old path of the Martial Ancestor.

"So this is the gap between me and Ye Zhilong?"

Yan Buji furrowed his brows, thinking carefully for a long time.

Suddenly, Yan Buji chuckled: "Forget it; I'm not a pure Martial Dao cultivator anyway, why bother about this? If I can't cultivate my own Martial Dao true intent, it only shows my cultivation is insufficient. Moreover, if Ye Zhilong can cultivate it, why can't I?"

Just steadily improve his Martial Dao realm; as for now, Yan Buji's goal remains to thoroughly throw the Nan Ting Mountain Region into chaos!