Traveling the Heavens in Thunderbolt

Chapter 34: The First in Taoism
The two said no more and announced the official start of the martial arts competition.

Ning Daoqi's palms turned into the shape of bird pecks, and he mobilized the energy of heaven and earth to transform it into thousands of bird shapes, pecking towards Ling Donglai.

It is his famous unique skill, "Eight Blows of Sanshou." The Eight Blows are not a set of moves but eight kinds of essences. The essence lies in the word "empty". Emptiness can give rise to vitality, so this emptiness is infinite. When purity leads to emptiness, this emptiness becomes reality. Between emptiness and reality, although there are hundreds of differences, they are all the way of nature, mysterious and profound, neither big nor small.

However, Ling Donglai remained motionless. His palms transformed into a net that covered all of Ning Daoqi's attacks, leaving him no chance of escape.

Ning Daoqi's attack changed again, turning into a combination of reality and illusion, showing the true meaning of the Eight Pounces. Sometimes his face showed the innocence of a child fighting birds, and sometimes he showed the composure of an old man fishing. He evolved all kinds of situations in the world, and the attack of his hands also changed with the changes in his face, pretending to be birds, cranes, fish and other animals, attacking Ling Donglai.

On the other hand, Ling Donglai used strangeness to counter strangeness, and speed to counter speed, without any pause. His palms were like the Milky Way, blocking all of his attacks.

The two men moved across the bridge at an astonishing speed, and the aftermath caused the water under the bridge to splash upward into the sky and then fall like a rainstorm.

Seeing that he was unable to defeat Ling Donglai with the first few moves of the Eight Punches of Free Hand Fighting, Ning Daoqi straightened his celestial bones, his sleeves moved without wind, his beard and brows stretched, and his appearance unexpectedly became mighty and unstoppable. He simply threw a punch, and made a series of mysterious and wonderful changes that were beyond any description, but was blocked by Ling Donglai with the same powerful force again. He was like a light boat, placed in Ning Daoqi's Eight Punches of Free Hand Fighting, and no matter how rough the waves were, he could always sail freely on the waves, safe and sound.

The fight between the two men fascinated the onlookers, and the sound of their fists colliding was like thunder in the ears of the onlookers.

Everyone was only impressed by Ning Daoqi's calmness, and even more impressed by Ling Donglai's ability.

Even after the fierce battle with Ning Daoqi, he still showed no signs of fatigue. His strength has indeed reached the level of a grandmaster. After today, the martial arts world will enter a new era.

After seven free-hand attacks, he still couldn't take down Ling Donglai. Ning Daoqi felt that the man he was facing was like an abyss, unfathomable, and like the sea, endless. His own all-out attack was like a huge wave hitting a reef, unable to shake him at all.

Ning Daoqi finally felt the pressure that Martial Master Bi Xuan faced that day. He had played all his cards, but his opponent remained calm and composed. How could he not be anxious?

Fortunately, his determination was strong and he did not lose his original intention. Otherwise, he would have been like Bi Xuan, confused and trying to use force to break strength, and ultimately defeated.

But this is not a long-term solution.

Then Ning Daoqi calmed down his mind and swung out with his palm, separating himself from Ling Donglai.

After the two separated, Ning Daoqi began to accumulate his own momentum in preparation for the final decisive move.

Everyone present understood that this martial arts duel was about to end.

Just as everyone was holding their breath, Ling Donglai suddenly said, "Although Sanren's strength is slightly stronger than Bi Xuan, it is a pity that you have not reached the state of unity of man and nature (Supreme Master), and ultimately you cannot discuss the Tao with me. It seems that no one in Middle-earth can discuss the Tao with me anymore." His words were filled with desolation, shocking everyone.

It was because the implication of his words was that he ignored Ning Daoqi and everyone present.

Before Ning Daoqi could speak, he saw that Ling Donglai's aura changed again, but it was not as ordinary as before, but as if the power of heaven and earth was in him. He only stepped lightly on the ground with his left foot, and through the bridge surface, the entire river under the bridge was stirred up with endless ripples.

Then he said: "This palm strike will end this battle." With a light palm strike, he contained all the mysteries of heaven and earth.

Ning Daoqi only felt that the entire Luoyang City had disappeared, and only he and Ling Donglai were left between heaven and earth. The palm that the latter hit him with seemed to carry the danger of the universe, causing waves to surge in his still heart, but he had no way to avoid it and could only take it head-on.

Although he used the final form of the Eight Punches of Sanshou to resist, showing his free and unrestrained intention, he was no match for the danger of heaven and earth, and was easily crushed by Ling Donglai. After that, he was hit on the chest with a palm, and flew out with red spit from his mouth. The first person in the Middle Earth, "Sanren" Ning Daoqi, was defeated!

Just when everyone was shocked, Ling Donglai appeared in front of Fan Qinghui as if emerging from the ground.

Without waiting for her to respond, he said to her, "It is said that the Cihang Sword Canon is one of the four great books in the martial arts world. In a month, I will visit the Emperor's Peak. I hope that Master Fanzhai will allow me to borrow this book."

After saying this, he left without waiting for Fan Qinghui to reply, taking away the titles of "the number one person in Middle-earth" and "the number one person in Taoism".

The intention was that Cihang Jingzhai could not refuse.

Looking at Ling Donglai's receding back, the eldest son of the Li family finally lost his composure and blurted out in praise: "He is truly an unrivaled master."
-
I am the dividing line -
Since the battle of Tianjin Bridge, Ling Donglai's name has been spread far and wide by those interested in Taoism. It can be said that everyone knows him.

He first defeated Wu Zun at Yanmen Pass, and then defeated San Renzhi at Tianjin Bridge in Luoyang, proving to the world that he was far more powerful than the three great masters, and became the number one in Taoism after Tianshi Sun En, and also the number one in the world.

The subsequent movements naturally became the focus of everyone.

The news that Ling Donglai was going to Cihang Jingzhai to read the "Cihang Sword Canon" after the battle in Luoyang was spread by someone with ulterior motives. In less than five days, it spread to all parts of the martial arts world.

This is because this matter is in line with the interests of various forces, such as Buddhism, Taoism, and the Demonic Sect.

It is understandable that the Taoist and Demonic sects spread this matter, because if Ling Donglai can decipher the "Cihang Sword Canon", he can use this incident to damage the reputation of Buddhism, which is at its peak.

But why should Buddhism also get involved?
Haven't you seen that Ning Daoqi vomited blood and retreated after borrowing the "Cihang Sword Canon"? This made the Cihang Sword Studio famous, and made its unique skills one of the four great martial arts books, along with Changsheng Jue, Daoxin Zhongmo, and Zhanshen Tulu. Ning Daoqi, who belonged to the Taoist sect, owed a favor because of this incident and became a thug of the Buddhist sect.

Fan Qinghui has great confidence in his sect's unique skills, because the founder of the Cihang Sword Classic, Di Ni, had seen the "Heavenly Demon Strategy" and got a glimpse of the method of breaking the void from it, and evolved the "Immortal Embryo" and "Death Pass" of the Cihang Sword Studio. In a sense, it can be said to be the ninth branch of the Demon Sect besides the two sects and six paths.

This is why people who cultivate the Tao and plant demons in their hearts are particularly likely to attract people from Cihang Jingzhai.

But because of this, the martial arts of Cihang Sword Canon is too extreme. The person who practices it must have extreme emotions in order to practice it to perfection or even complete it. Only people like Qin Mengyao who came later can practice it to perfection.

It is completely different from the qualities of indifference, calmness, and forgetfulness required by Taoist skills, and is even the opposite. This is why Ning Daoqi vomited blood after watching the "Cihang Sword Classic".

The Buddhist sect can use this to make Ling Donglai, the current number one man in the world, owe them a favor, for future use.

The one-month period has arrived, and all forces have once again focused their attention on Emperor Peak.

On the appointed day, the sun was scorching hot on the Emperor's Peak in the Yumeng Mountain in Jiangdong.

The host, Fan Qinghui, and his disciples had been waiting outside the seventh gate for a long time.

I saw a person coming from the distance, like a fairy from the sky, and landing in front of everyone. The person was Ling Donglai.

(End of this chapter)