Chapter 4: Water-Fire Lotus

Tiemuzhan and the Hound Beast were both greatly alarmed. Tiemuzhan quickly activated his Yin-Yang Dual Qi Formation and shouted, “Beware of the water and fire he controls! The water and fire wielded by a先天 divine demon who cultivates the ‘Chiming Nine Heavens Diagram’ are extraordinarily powerful. When water and fire emerge together, even ordinary先天 beings can be slain!”

He shouted because the Hound Beast had already transformed into its true form and fled as soon as it saw the water and fire, and the distance was too great for心灵 communication. But how could the beast’s escape speed compare to that of water and fire?

“Boom~~” A massive water dragon instantly coiled around the Hound Beast, covering its surface with frost. At the same time, another fire dragon wrapped around the beast’s body. One water dragon and one fire dragon coiled separately—the water dragon was infinitely cold, while the fire dragon was infinitely hot.

One cold, one hot.

Crack! Crack! Crack!

The Hound Beast’s hide began to tear, revealing red muscles underneath, which quickly charred.

“Roar~~” The Hound Beast howled.

“Still not dead?” Ji Ning’s gaze turned cold.

The water dragon that had been coiled around the Hound Beast suddenly released it and rapidly transformed into a huge flowing-water lotus leaf. At the same time, the fire dragon also quickly turned into a flaming lotus leaf.

The flowing-water lotus leaf was below.

The flaming lotus leaf was above.

The Hound Beast was trapped in the middle. No matter how it struggled or tried to flee, the two lotus leaves followed it.

“Water-Fire Lotus, refine!” Ji Ning willed it, and the two lotus leaves began to slowly rotate, like two terrifying millstones grinding and crushing something. Earlier, when Ji Ning unconsciously drew upon the power of heaven and earth to form a protective lotus, it was already immensely powerful due to the Dao’s intent. Now, using the water and fire he could control as a先天 being as the foundation, and drawing upon a trace of the Dao’s intent, the power surged a hundredfold or a thousandfold.

As the water-fire lotus leaves turned, the Hound Beast in the center felt both cold and hot, more unbearable than before. Its entire body seemed to lose sensation. At the same time, water and fire intersected, generating wind out of thin air—a wind with a fierce tearing power that descended upon the Hound Beast.

“Crack~~” The Hound Beast’s charred body shattered like a porcelain doll, breaking into pieces. Its eyes still held confusion, then lost all light.

The Hound Beast was dead!

“So powerful.” Ji Ning was pleasantly surprised. “Using the water and fire I control as the foundation, and then unleashing the protective water-fire lotus I comprehended earlier, I directly killed a great demon at the mid-stage of先天. It didn’t even have a chance to resist.”

Though described slowly, how fast was a battle between experts?

From the moment Ji Ning controlled the water-fire lotus to grind the Hound Beast to death, less than a breath had passed.

“Boom~~” The Yin-Yang Dual Qi Formation, covering a mile, fully erupted. Streams of black and white qi surged toward Ji Ning.

The Hound Beast’s easy death startled Tiemuzhan. His face twisted with ferocity as he roared, “Within my Yin-Yang Dual Qi Formation, even if you’re a monstrous genius born once in a thousand years in Yanshan, you’ll die! Die!”

Black and white qi, like pythons, lunged at Ji Ning.

“Hmph.”

Ji Ning simply willed it, and water and fire materialized around him, forming lotus leaves. Two layers of huge water-fire lotus leaves undulated slightly. When the black and white qi struck, Ji Ning willed the lotus leaves to close!

Like a flower bud, the lotus leaves closed upward into a bud several zhang tall, completely enveloping Ji Ning.

“Bang, bang, bang~~” The black and white qi battered and tore at it.

Though the water-fire lotus leaves had closed into a bud, they still rotated slowly—the inner fire lotus leaf and the outer water lotus leaf turned in opposite directions. Despite the repeated assaults of the black and white qi, they barely breached the outer water lotus leaf, which then quickly restored itself.

After all, water and fire gather and disperse without fixed form; they are not solid. Even if damaged, Ji Ning could restore them with a thought!

“What?” Tiemuzhan was shocked. “How is this possible? My Yin-Yang Dual Qi Formation is a formidable array. With my strength, I wouldn’t fear even a先天圆满 opponent. How can it not break through this Ji kid’s protective lotus? What the hell is that protective lotus? I’ve never even heard of it!”

How could Tiemuzhan know that Ji Ning had already reached the state of unity between heaven and man, and that the greatest achievement of his night of enlightenment—this protective lotus—contained a trace of the true intent of the Dao?

A先天 being cultivated through the ‘Chiming Nine Heavens Diagram’ was inherently powerful. The water and fire they controlled were far stronger than those of ordinary great demons. When combined with the ‘Water-Fire Lotus,’ which embodied the true intent of the Dao, it was naturally more than enough to withstand a mere formation.

“Tiemuzhan, you’ve been relentless in your pursuit. Now I’ll repay you well and send you on your way!”

Inside the lotus bud, Ji Ning could vaguely see the distant figure through the flowing-water and flaming lotus leaves. Moreover, his mind was one with heaven and earth, allowing him to sense the aura of external objects and clearly perceive Tiemuzhan’s position.

“Die.”

Ji Ning willed it.

A flaming lotus leaf and a flowing-water lotus leaf materialized where Tiemuzhan stood, one above and one below, grinding him like millstones.

“Formation, aid me!” Tiemuzhan was startled—his subordinate the Hound Beast had died this way. He quickly summoned the surrounding black and white qi to swirl around him, resisting the grinding power of the water-fire lotus. This barely held it off, and even when water and fire occasionally seeped through, his先天 true essence protected him.

“How can he unleash two lotuses at once?” Tiemuzhan was terrified. “Such a powerful technique should consume a great deal of his mental energy.”

How could he know?

Ji Ning’s soul had rivaled that of a Zifu cultivator when he was four. Now, his soul far surpassed that of a Zifu cultivator. Dividing his attention to unleash two water-fire lotuses was effortless.

“Still alive?” Protected within the lotus bud, Ji Ning swiftly flew toward Tiemuzhan.

“Go.” Tiemuzhan’s face changed in fear. He gritted his teeth.

Flee!

This decision was decisive. As a member of the Tiemu clan, he knew well that once the ‘Chiming Nine Heavens Diagram’ was cultivated to the先天 level, its power was a thousand times greater than other divine demon body-tempering techniques. Though Ji Ning was only at the early先天 stage, he could rival other divine demon body-tempering cultivators at the late先天 stage!

Tiemuzhan was merely a Qi-refining cultivator at the late先天 stage. Engaging in close combat with a divine demon body-tempering cultivator of the same level? That was suicide!

Earlier, he had relied on Ji Ning’s lack of magical treasures, but now even the Yin-Yang Dual Qi Formation couldn’t harm his opponent. If he fought Ji Ning, wouldn’t that be throwing his life away?

“A newly advanced先天 whose combat power rivals a先天圆满—such a monster! The Ji clan has produced such a monster. I must report this to the patriarch and have him eliminated as soon as possible. Otherwise, he will become a great calamity for my Tiemu clan!” Tiemuzhan was thoroughly frightened, especially by the terrifying water-fire lotus.

A formation required prior setup. But Ji Ning’s water-fire lotus could be unleashed with a mere thought, and its power surpassed his formation. This was too much…

“He must be eliminated.” Tiemuzhan’s only thought was to return and report to his patriarch.

Whether the Tiemu clan or the Ji clan—each of the six overlords of Yanshan had a Zifu cultivator as their foundation, qualifying them to be recognized as ministers of the Great Xia Dynasty.

“Divine Speed Talisman!” Tiemuzhan produced a black, leaf-veined strip of paper, its veins like human blood vessels, inscribed with a strange ancient character that emitted a mysterious aura. He channeled a stream of先天 true essence into the talisman.

Whoosh!

The talisman instantly transformed into a phantom character that merged into Tiemuzhan’s body.

“Go!” Tiemuzhan turned into a streak of light, fleeing swiftly. He didn’t even retrieve the Yin-Yang Dual Qi Formation.

Tiemuzhan knew he still needed the formation’s qi to protect himself from the water-fire lotus, and retrieving the eight formation flags would waste time. He would be caught by the terrifying Ji youth, and then he would lose not just the flags but his life.

“Fleeing?” Ji Ning gave chase. His先天 divine demon body, combined with the unity of heaven and man, made his movement incredibly swift. He too turned into a streak of light.

“Only slightly slower than me?” Tiemuzhan was shocked. “Before he broke through to先天, I was faster. Now, even with a precious Divine Speed Talisman, we’re about the same.” Grudgingly, he took out another ancient, vein-patterned talisman and activated it with his先天 true essence.

Another phantom character merged into his body.

Light Body Talisman!

“Swoosh!” Tiemuzhan turned into a wisp of smoke, fleeing rapidly.

“Can’t catch him.” Ji Ning’s eyes showed reluctance. As a divine demon body-tempering cultivator, his speed was already impressive. But Tiemuzhan had used two talismans—a Light Body Talisman and a Divine Speed Talisman. Though far less precious than a ‘Ten-Thousand-Mile Trace Talisman,’ they still boosted his speed dramatically.

Ji Ning had no talismans, and even if he did, he couldn’t use them, as talismans and magical treasures required Qi-refining先天 cultivation.

Swoosh! Swoosh!

Tiemuzhan fled beyond the range of the Yin-Yang Dual Qi Formation, widening the distance. Ji Ning could no longer unleash the water-fire lotus on him, as it relied on the water and fire he controlled, which had a limited range.

“Hahaha…” Tiemuzhan breathed a sigh of relief. Without the threat of the water-fire lotus and with the distance, he finally relaxed. Then hatred surged—hatred for Ji Ning, who had cost him the Yin-Yang Dual Qi Formation.

“Ji kid, enjoy your triumph for now. I will surely report to the patriarch, and to the Snow Dragon Mountain! The Ji clan is the mortal enemy of my Tiemu clan and Snow Dragon Mountain. Such a monster will be eliminated by both sides as soon as possible.” Tiemuzhan was filled with hatred.