Chapter 456: The Nine Transformations of the Divine Silkworm

Li Yuan was on guard!

This was not only because he had entered and exited the Divine Realm many times before, but also because of the Dragon Tiger Furnace of Health!

The Furnace of Health monitored the mountain range; even while he was in the midst of his mastery, he could still use the furnace to keep watch on his surroundings. Unless Dragon Daoist Master drove the Wind Tiger Cloud Dragon with full force, he would be able to detect it!

Although the aura of this Divine Realm was faint, it was still keenly detected by him before it entered the courtyard!

"It's not Dragon Daoist Master, nor is it that Star-Plucking Tower Master…"

Li Yuan's mind stirred slightly; he had already swapped out the Furnace of Health, and a vague, indistinct ripple echoed in his heart!

With his spirit merging with the Furnace of Health, Li Yuan's vantage point rose to a very great height. Looking down, the entire main peak of Dragon Gate was under his gaze!

His own little courtyard, the small temple opposite, the Dragon Gate great hall in the distance, the sprouting old tree, the patrolling disciples, the wandering little mice, even the little tiger cubs darting through the bushes!

All manner of scenes were taken in at a glance!

In the next instant, he had already caught the source of that Divine Realm aura!

Several li away, in the night, Silkworm Daoist sat cross-legged, and beside him, Monk Laitou pressed his palms together, seemingly standing guard for him!

"It's these two."

Li Yuan's heart stirred slightly. With these two, the purpose of probing the Divine Realm was naturally very clear!

The payment had been made, so they had come to inspect the goods. With that one thought, Li Yuan did not interrupt the two of them, but instead gathered his mind and waited for the Divine Realm's guidance. "Mm!"

Chan Master Laitou seemed to sense something. He frowned slightly, swept his gaze over his surroundings, but found nothing amiss—only a civet cat flashing past in the distance!

"That was close; this old monk is awfully sharp!"

From within the bushes, Qin Li Shixian was inwardly startled. She had only glanced from afar, yet had nearly been locked onto and dragged out by this old monk!

A seasoned Great Grandmaster indeed had some tricks!

"Embarrassing!"

The old man sighed. This girl's martial arts were far too rough; no wonder she had been spotted by Long Long Yingchan!

But he also knew he could not blame the girl. After all, he had been in closed-door cultivation for several decades. To have self-taught to this level was already a testament to her outstanding talent!

Qin Li Shixian instantly felt stifled, yet could not retort, so she could only change the subject: "When will you meet Long Long Yingchan? Regarding the Eight Directions Temple, can you really hold yourself back?"

A few days ago, in the Hundred Beasts Mountain, Long Long Yingchan had been utterly sincere; she had nearly been persuaded. The key was that regarding the Eight Directions Temple, she could sense that her own ancestor here was also quite shaken!

But she still forcibly held back and did not show herself!

"If this old man's guess is not wrong, it will be within the next few days!"

The old man, however, seemed not to care much: "As for the great sacrifice at the Eight Directions Temple… even if you find it, what is the point if you cannot enter?"

"Mm."

Qin Li Shixian's heart stirred slightly at the old man's meaning: "Could it be that you know something…"

The old man did not answer directly, but instead looked toward Silkworm Daoist, who sat quietly in the distant forest!

A moment later, Li Yuan felt his spirit tremble slightly as a strange power descended. At the same time, a voice echoed: "Little friend, do not be alarmed. This old daoist is Silkworm. I have come only under the cover of the deep, quiet night to meet you. I harbor absolutely no ill will…"

The old senior is still very particular, ha!

Although he had never intended to refuse in the first place, the old senior's attitude still gave Li Yuan a favorable impression.

Hmm, Li Yuan felt his vision flicker!

After collecting himself, he found himself standing on a leaf about a zhang across. Looking around, he saw a towering great tree rising from the ground, its branches and leaves luxuriant and immensely vast!

Every single leaf was about a zhang in size!

And at this moment, a divine blade descended from above, piercing through the treetop and trunk, plunging straight into the earth, as if about to split this old tree clean in two from top to bottom!

"This is this old daoist's Divine Realm!"

The voice came first, and only then did Silkworm Daoist appear, landing upon this leaf: "After entering the Dao, qi merges with spirit; the place of spiritual light transforms into the Divine Realm, and the visualized object becomes the spiritual image. This great tree was formed by this old daoist gathering the strange trees and wondrous scenes of the world, condensing over a hundred years of my cultivation…"

As he spoke, the old tree swayed, as if a great wind had blown through, and the leaves made a "rustling" sound!

Li Yuan examined it carefully and found that though the old tree looked verdant, it was in fact already tinged with the air of decline—every leaf was withered yellow, and some even fell from time to time!

"This divine edge, little friend should not be unfamiliar with it, right!"

Silkworm Daoist stroked his long beard!

"Wan Wan Zhuliu's Demon-Slaying Blade Intent!"

Li Yuan nodded. He naturally recognized it; this divine edge's aura was exactly the same as that in Old Long Head's and the Star-Plucking Tower Master's Divine Realms!

"Wan Wan Zhuliu is indeed a supreme figure the likes of whom appear once in a thousand years. From the death of Pang Pang Wenlong to this day, only the previous Star-Plucking Tower Master Qin Yun can compare with him. This old daoist is ashamed—I am no match for him!"

The Divine Realm was heavy with the air of decline, yet Silkworm Daoist appeared quite free and easy. He openly admitted he was no match for Wan Wan Zhuliu, without the slightest resentment or anger, and even showed a measure of admiration: "Sixty years ago, this old man was a move short and lost to his hand. At the time I did not take it seriously; after nurturing myself for a while, I attempted to expel the blade intent. Who would have thought…"

The old daoist spoke of the events before and after his grave injury, as well as his attempts to pull out the blade over the past fifty or sixty years!

"Sixty years ago, I was a move short; fifty years ago, I could already hardly shake the blade intent; by twenty years ago, I could no longer blunt its edge. Every time I tried to pull out the blade, I suffered a crushing defeat…"

Li Yuan listened quietly, and did not find it strange!

Wan Wan Zhuliu's talent was peerless, and he was in the prime of his life. Added to that, the imperial court mobilized the strength of the entire nation to nurture his Wu Gong—if it had not advanced by leaps and bounds, that would have been the strange thing!

"At first, this old daoist found it truly hard to accept, but gradually I came to accept it. Wan Wan Zhuliu uses the Demon-Slaying Blade to bear his will, and uses the heroes of the world to hone his blade intent. His will and ambition are truly far stronger than this old daoist's."

After a slight pause, Silkworm Daoist looked at Li Yuan: "When you were refining your viscera, you were able to pull out his blade intent, which shows that the path you walked before was more solid than Wan Wan Zhuliu's, and your talent is no less than his. But exchanging blood is different from refining marrow…"

"This junior will certainly do his utmost!"

Li Yuan bowed!

This was not the first time he had heard similar words, and he could not help being curious. What earth-shattering change had Wan Wan Zhuliu undergone after exchanging blood? With these thoughts turning in his mind, Li Yuan sorted through his various control items!

The Rift Sea Mysterious Whale, Dragon Tiger Furnace of Health, Mirage Dragon Belt, Crimson Blood Pattern Dragon Armor, Long Kun Jun Tian Hammer, Divine Fire Thousand Beasts Boots, plus three Thunder Dragon Jun Tian Hammers!

At this moment, in his strongest set of control combinations, the weakest was already a divine weapon.

So what if there was a gap in realm? Feeling the various weapon lights flickering in the Weapon-Taming Strategy, Daoist Li was very confident!

Silkworm Daoist was somewhat astonished inwardly. This kid had such boldness; he wanted to leap across realms and strike down Wan Wan Zhuliu. "No rush!"

Though astonished inwardly, Silkworm Daoist was not in a hurry: "To be safe, wait until you have achieved great success in exchanging blood before pulling out the blade! Today this old daoist merely wished to meet you, and by the way… mm, also to take a look at your Wu Gong…"

The old Daoist was very modest; facing a young man who could pull out Wan Wan Zhuliu's blade intent, he naturally wouldn't lord his seniority over him!

"Senior, you're too polite!"

Li Yuan felt a bit unaccustomed; this old senior's attitude truly left nothing to criticize!

"Please give me some pointers, Senior!"

"Pointing fingers won't do, but perhaps we can discuss a thing or two and gain something from it."

The Silkworm Daoist smiled, called out "Careful," and reached out with a grab!

The old Daoist's strike showed no flourish, but Li Yuan's heart jolted; in his perception, this grab seemed to encompass the entire space around him!

It gave him a sense of having nowhere to hide!

"This is Dragon Claw."

As he grabbed, the Silkworm Daoist's voice echoed in Li Yuan's mind at just the right moment, dissecting his own Wu Gong!

"Whoosh."

Li Yuan tapped his foot and retreated to dodge!

"Roar."

The dragon claw tore through the air, letting out an explosive sound like a dragon's cry, pursuing like a shadow; Li Yuan's figure shifted eighteen times in an instant, yet still couldn't evade this grab!

This old senior's words are soft, but his hands are hard.

Li Yuan was startled but not flustered, still shifting and dodging; relying on his lightness skill, he could clear the true inheritance trials of the Bianshi Sect, and could Zhou Shan Xuan with thousand-year-level grandmasters for over a hundred moves!

The old Daoist was only using Wu Gong at the Blood Exchange great completion level; wanting to catch him was naturally impossible!

"Oh?"

Eighteen consecutive claws failed to catch Li Yuan, and the Silkworm Daoist's eyes immediately lit up; the next instant, a roar suddenly exploded: "Roar!"

Dragon cry accompanied by tiger roar—this was Yin Bo Wu Gong!

Even though Li Yuan reacted swiftly, he still felt a momentary daze and stiffness, and the dragon claw silently reached right before his face!

"This is Tiger Roar!"

By a hair's breadth, Li Yuan dodged, evading this move of the dragon claw!

"What solid lightness skill!"

The Silkworm Daoist praised!

What he was employing now was Wu Gong at the Blood Exchange great completion level; moreover, he had the vision of a seasoned grandmaster—against a Marrow Refining junior, this was already bullying!

"Senior, impressive Yin Bo Gong!"

Li Yuan didn't strike back, nor did he fight back, only dodging with lightness skill; and the Silkworm Daoist, though his strikes were swift, took the opportunity to coach Li Yuan!

The various Wu Gong the old Daoist used were all actually the Nine Transformations of the Divine Silkworm!

This divine art of the Green Dragon Pavilion pursued absorbing all transformations into one body through the divine silkworm, its changes exquisite and swift; after several dozen moves, as the old Daoist gradually increased pressure, Li Yuan felt the pressure!

At a certain moment, Li Yuan stopped his steps, gently closed his eyes, feeling he had gained quite a bit, and cupped his fist: "Many thanks for your guidance, Senior!"

"What fine talent, what Hao Wu Gong!"

After several hundred moves, the Silkworm Daoist was also quite savoring it; both stopped at the appropriate point, but with his vision, he could already gauge Li Yuan's Wu Gong!

He could even sense that Li Yuan still had things hidden—clearly, this was the reliance that gave him the courage to draw his blade!

Setting aside Wan Wan Zhuliu, within the Dao Sect today, below Entry to the Dao there was probably no one comparable; even with only Marrow Refining, he could already be called invincible below grandmaster!

Moreover, relying on this person's lightness skill, even a grandmaster might not necessarily take him down!

"The Dragon Tiger Temple has great fortune!"

The Silkworm Daoist was quite emotional, envious; if only this boy were a disciple of his Green Dragon Pavilion…

"Want to give it a try?"

The old Daoist looked at Li Yuan!

"In your current state, can you handle it?"

Li Yuan glanced at the falling yellow leaves; in the earlier exchange he hadn't fought back—not because he couldn't, but because he didn't quite dare, afraid this old senior might suffer some mishap, as he only had two Long Hu Longhu Dadan left!

"It seems this old Daoist's skill of the Divine Silkworm's Cocoon Transformation isn't bad—at least the young friend didn't see through it!"

The Silkworm Daoist let out a long breath!

In an instant, a wisp of green light rose from the tree roots; in just a blink, the old tree had been revitalized, even about to sprout new buds!