Holy Fist!

Chapter 414 Senior Brother? The Sword Demon Emerges from Seclusion!
Compared to the three pores, these pore diagrams clearly have far more pore nodes, covering the entire body like stars in the sky. He had just carefully examined them, and after removing the overlapping ones, Bai Xiao could obtain at least a hundred new pores, far superior to the initial three pores.

"I once tested the effect of three air holes in the ancient Loulan Secret Realm, and it could restore about half of a Divine Scale God. In other words, a complete Divine Scale God usually requires six air holes to restore. Now that I have ten Divine Scale Gods, all sixty air holes can restore them..."

"The Celestial Dragon would need more pores to fill."

"I wonder if these pore diagrams are enough to refresh the Five Dragons and Ten Elephants of my Dragon Elephant True Scripture once again..." He thought to himself, his eyes flickering slightly.

The second floor of the Beidou Temple is the Secret Arts Hall.

Bai Xiao stayed there for a full half hour. He obtained the desired diagram of the air vents and learned about the general situation of the Big Dipper Temple from the disciple of the Master of the Secret Arts Hall. A few minutes later, Bai Xiao took his spoils and continued towards the higher levels of the Big Dipper Temple. Now, compared to his first intrusion into the temple, he was a completely different person. Some so-called dangers could not threaten Bai Xiao at all; he wanted to rush to the top of the Big Dipper Temple to see for himself.

The Seven Palaces of the Big Dipper there are the most dangerous and precious place.

One minute later.

"Whoosh!"

The Temple of the Big Dipper, with its white stone staircase.

White Owl is advancing at an unimaginable speed, like a rocket.

Even though the Beidou Temple was heavily guarded and fraught with danger, with extremely powerful beings stationed at each floor, he possessed two forbidden secret martial arts techniques. Five dragons and ten elephants enveloped his body, his energy transforming into the soaring power of a Kunpeng. Any guardians who stood in Bai Xiao's way were swept away.

And so, he fought his way through the levels, reaching the ninth level of the Big Dipper Temple. He was still two levels away from the legendary Seven Palaces of the Big Dipper.

"despair."

The top of the Beidou Temple, the ninth floor.

A strong, tall figure slowly appeared at the entrance of the hall.

Bai Xiao was enveloped in a platinum-gold aura, exuding a domineering and ferocious presence. His iron fist, hanging at his side, was stained with blackish-red blood.

He stepped forward, looking at a figure wielding a giant axe.

The figure was a full three meters tall, clad in heavy armor, like a tank. The armor was jet black, with a hard, menacing outline, and a coiled dragon seemed to be wrapped around its surface, winding all the way to its right arm. On its right shoulder, a lifelike dragon head formed, its all-black scales reflecting a faint light.

"Kakaka..."

It seemed that someone had broken into the Beidou Temple.

The tall figure slowly turned his head, raising a giant axe in his hand.

The axe blade was unusually exaggerated, neither gold nor wood. It exuded an inexplicable heaviness, as if it could split a mountain, possessing the power to cleave it open.

Bai Xiao's gaze quietly swept over.

My gaze lingered briefly on the right shoulder of the giant axe-wielding figure.

There stood a bright sun symbol.

He had just forced his way up and had never encountered a guardian with the sun symbol; they were almost all guardians with the moon symbol, ranging from one to five. Some of them were already comparable to top-tier cultivators.

Now, this person possesses the auspicious signs of a qualitative change.

I am afraid……

"Oh!"

"Zheng!"

In the center of the hall, two powerful figures collided violently, as if teleporting. A ferocious claw wreathed in golden light and a massive, blunt, black axe slammed together. Instantly, a huge, visible white shockwave swept outwards, mixed with sparks of intense heat.

The giant axe-wielding figure swelled even larger, its terrifying muscles bulging, creating more gaps in its armor. From these gaps, a continuous stream of azure starlight drifted out, burning like flames.

"The power is good."

Faced with the terrifyingly increased power emanating from the giant axe, Bai Xiao's expression remained unchanged; he simply extended his right hand forward slowly.

"Kakakaka..."

In an instant, the phantom image of the Kunpeng appeared.

Under the transformation of speed and force, an unimaginable and exaggerated power surged out all at once. It was like a dam breaking, with the torrent rushing and submerging the downstream area.

"Bang!!!"

Numerous cracks spread across the heavy axe, growing like the roots of a tree branch. A roar like that of a raging dragon swept across the entire hall.

"call out!"

The ninth-level guardian, despite its massive, tank-like body, was uncontrollably sent flying backward. Its weapon disintegrated and crumbled in mid-air, turning into tiny black fragments that fell to the ground.

"despair!"

Bai Xiao didn't linger. After sending his opponent flying with a single blow, he immediately rushed up to the eighth floor. He had a vague premonition that his time in the nightmare of terror would be short, and he needed to seize every second.

……

The top of the Beidou Temple, the eighth floor.

To Bai Xiao's astonishment, there were no guards here, only a scene resembling a religious mural. It was as if a medieval painter had opened an art gallery, leaving various depictions of mythology on the walls.

He frowned slightly, and a strange sense of familiarity arose within him.

We walked in.

Bai Xiao's gaze swept across the wall, where a scene depicted humans from the slash-and-burn era, gathered around a fire, their faces turned outwards in a kneeling, praying posture. Beyond the flames, above the dense forest, seemed to emanate a dark figure. Whether demon or god, only a portion of its overwhelming form could be discerned.

Upon closer inspection, one can discern that it is some kind of feather.
He continued forward without pausing for a moment.

The murals on the wall depict the ever-advancing history of humankind. The backgrounds change constantly, from slash-and-burn agriculture to thatched huts and fields, and then to ancient cities. The clothing and weapons also evolve. But the only constant is that ever-present, shadowy figure in black!
It's like a nightmare, accompanying a person's entire life, accompanying human development. No matter how the scene changes, no matter how civilization progresses, it always exists. Bai Xiao's slow footsteps suddenly stopped. He stood in front of the last mural, raised his head, and his eyes narrowed slightly.

The full outline of that dark figure was drawn.

It was a colossal, sky-covering demonic bird, its wingspan easily encompassing the entire world. Its dense feathers were entwined with terrifying ripples that had resonated for millions of years. Its scarlet pupils gazed down from its lofty height.

"Demon Bird, Intaro..."

White Owl muttered to himself, that pitch-black figure that always followed humanity like a shadow was fear. Wherever the unknown exists, fear will inevitably arise!
He took a deep breath and shifted his gaze.

Beneath the image of the demonic bird, the mural vividly recounts the events that this land once witnessed. The demonic bird descended, accompanied by three fear knights, spreading terror throughout the world, and darkness engulfed the empire. The mural tells the entire story of how the empire resisted the demonic bird and how it managed to preserve its last embers.

White Owl noticed.

During one period of resistance, the Empire seemed to have used the mystical power of the Big Dipper Temple to send a distress call to something. That thing was represented by a dense cluster of shimmering stars, perhaps resembling a constellation?
However, the story came to an abrupt end.

It's unclear whether the distress call was ultimately successful.

His gaze moved down again to the last set of murals.

The image above is clearly a prophecy.

Between all things, there exists a pillar of fear. And beneath that pillar lie five seats, foreshadowing the birth of five Knights of Fear. When fear invaded the Empire, there were only three knights.

But Bai Xiao saw a faint fourth figure in the prophecy.

It was as if this mural possessed a mysterious power, still capable of prophecy. His gaze sharpened, sweeping over the first three Dread Knights, but he couldn't discern anything from their features. However, when Bai Xiao saw the fourth Dread Knight, his breathing suddenly quickened.

"Senior Brother!?"

Whether it was Bai Xiao's imagination or not, although the fourth Fear Knight hadn't formed, he sensed an extremely familiar characteristic and aura. It was strikingly similar to that of Wu Binghe, the former senior disciple of the Ferocious Bird School.

"In the battle of the Ferocious Bird Style, the eldest brother was taken away by fear..."

"He was...chosen by the Demon Bird!?"

"The destined fourth Fear Knight?"

Bai Xiao's eyes flickered, and he struggled to catch his breath for a long time.

But then, as if suddenly realizing something, he abruptly turned to look at the right side of the fourth Dread Knight, where the fifth Dread Knight was. A simple, outlined figure, flickering slightly, hovered above it.

In Bai Xiao's view, the portrait was filling in at an unimaginable speed, covered with all sorts of colors and details.

The image only came up above the neck, revealing the face.

"it's me?"

Bai Xiao's pupils suddenly shrank to the size of pinpoints, and his aura surged forth.

He almost instinctively threw a punch.

But in an instant, all the images vanished, as if it had all been an illusion. The portrait on the wallpaper remained just a blank outline.

"Magic Bird Secret Book..."

"Demon Bird..."

He slowly turned around, muttering to himself, a certain resolve growing stronger. Bai Xiao took a deep breath, and instantly, the skull mark on the back of his hand flashed.

A vague feeling of being about to escape a terrifying nightmare crept over me.

He lowered his right hand and glanced out the window one last time from the ninth floor of the Big Dipper Temple. Beyond the area shrouded in holy light, amidst vast expanses of mist, were enormous, terrifying creatures gathering.

The power of fear, overwhelming and engulfing the world.

Bai Xiao's gaze swept over a certain spot and then stared straight at it.

"That is……"

"Boom!!!"

The world spins, time reverses.

Bai Xiao seemed to have crossed the barriers between worlds and reappeared in the real world. He suddenly woke up in bed and rolled over.

Just as I was about to escape the nightmare of fear.

Bai Xiao was startled to see a mysterious figure riding a jet-black warhorse and wearing knight's armor. He was shrouded in black mist, and the surrounding scene resembled a twisted demon from hell, with arms reaching towards the sky.

He wasn't sure if it was Bai Xiao's hallucination, but he had a feeling that it was...

"Senior Brother, Wu Binghe."

He took a deep breath and stood there silently for a full ten minutes, deep in thought.

Bai Xiao finally recovered from his daze, and then took out the secret manual he had obtained this time from his pocket. It contained diagrams of hundreds of holes, and fusing them into one book would definitely greatly improve the endurance of the Dragon Elephant True Scripture. Bai Xiao walked out of the room and headed directly towards the martial arts arena.

The location near the entrance.

A figure in black was already waiting.

"what's up?"

White Owl stopped in his tracks.

"Master, Chairman Shen asked me to tell you that the date for the martial arts tournament has been set. The opening ceremony will be held at eight o'clock in the morning, five days from now."

Ghost Face spoke.

Five days later?

Bai Xiao muttered to himself, then asked.

"What's the latest news about the Eastern Secret Martial Arts Realm?"

Ghost Face pondered for a moment, then immediately replied.

"The Sword Demon of the Possa Sword Pavilion has emerged from seclusion. Furthermore, he's begun inviting top experts from the Eastern Martial Arts World, planning an Eastern gathering before the Martial Arts Tournament begins. Perhaps other top experts have also broken through their seclusion or returned due to the tournament, making such a rare opportunity for a gathering. Pavilion Master, if I'm not mistaken, that Sword Demon will most likely invite you as well. After all, your achievements are certainly enough to place you among the top..."

Five minutes later, at the martial arts dojo.

Bai Xiao adjusted his overall condition to its best, and his breathing became calm.

This time, entering the Nightmare of Fear brought him far more than just these pore diagrams. Bai Xiao's gaze sharpened, and information slid down his line of sight.

[Your profession "Martial Arts Master" has been upgraded to +1680 experience!]

Your profession "Martial Arts Master" has been upgraded to LV.3!

……

【Occupation: Martial Arts Master LV.3 (1280/9200)】

(Extractable)

He perked up and used the Dark Red Modifier without hesitation.

"Dark red!"

Instantly, the sky was bathed in rosy light, and potential points were continuously extracted.

The numbers in the Dark Red Modifier are rapidly increasing.

About five or six breaths later.

[Dark Red Modifier]

Potential Points: 108.8 → 348.8

A full 240 potential points.

This brought his reserves back to a fairly ample level.

Bai Xiao snapped out of his daze and glanced at the diagrams of pores in front of him.

"A secret technique derived from terrifying nightmares, which ordinary people cannot use..."

With a sudden thought, he began to study these secret techniques.

After fully grasping the basics and memorizing them, he suddenly activated the enhancement.

"Balanced transformation".

"Transform these three secret manuals!"

Suddenly, his mind jolted, and his entire Martial Arts Master class panel glowed brightly. A mysterious fluctuation of balanced transformation swept over his body.

"Crash..."

A variety of thoughts quickly surfaced in Bai Xiao's mind.

These pore diagrams have all been transformed into secret martial arts techniques that can be cultivated.

[Remaining conversion attempts: 0]

He slowly exhaled a breath of hot air.

So what comes next?

"Raise all porosity diagrams to perfection."

"Then, use the Forbidden King to fuse and enhance a top-tier secret technique!"

"Transformed into the general outline of stomata..."

(End of this chapter)