"We need backup!"
Taoist Zhi Qing had just slain the old man in white. At the same time, Taoist Zhi Xiu used his Five Sounds Shattering Illusions and Five Elements Unity to annihilate the other four Demon Ghosts. It was then that they received a telepathic plea for help from Taoist Ling Ya.
"We’ve run into a powerful Demon and need backup!" Taoist Ling Ya’s voice echoed in their minds.
Sensing the location of Taoist Ling Ya’s Thunder Seed, Taoist Zhi Qing and Taoist Zhi Xiu took to the skies without a word, activating their Spirit Flying Jade Talismans.
The Spirit Flying Jade Talisman was a Spirit Talisman from the Shangqing Sect. Though called a Talisman, it was in fact a Magical Treasure. Forged from white jade, it allowed Cultivators with less than five hundred years of Dao Practice to fly. While there were restrictions on altitude and speed, it was far faster than traveling on the ground.
Moreover, the Dao Practice of Taoist Zhi Qing and Taoist Zhi Xiu was already so advanced that they could fully unleash the power of the Spirit Flying Jade Talismans, their speed rivaling that of ordinary flight techniques.
SWOOSH—
Two streaks of light tore across the sky, causing all the Demons and Ghosts in the mountain forests below to cower in terror.
Moments later, the pair crossed a small mountain range and arrived near another county town.
A fierce gale engulfed the valley beside the town. Within the winds, a purple sun flickered, thunderbolts rumbled, and a Celestial Pig Dharma Aspect appeared and disappeared intermittently.
However, the Celestial Pig Dharma Aspect was torn asunder by the gale the moment it materialized, while the thunderbolts and the purple sun wavered precariously in the wind.
’A Great Demon with over five hundred years of Dao Practice?’
Though surprised, Taoist Zhi Qing and Taoist Zhi Xiu were fearless. One unleashed the Five Sounds while the other manifested a Thunder Shield, and together they charged into the valley.
BOOM!
The Thunder Shield blasted a path through the gale. As the Five Sounds coalesced, a cyan shadow within the winds faltered for an instant.
Seizing that moment, a bolt of thunder erupted from the ground, surging upward to strike at a purple-clad figure on a nearby cliff.
The next moment, the cyan shadow flickered, intercepting and shattering the thunderbolt. It then landed on the cliff face, revealing a handsome young man in green robes. Beside him stood an enchanting woman dressed in purple.
As Taoist Zhi Qing and Taoist Zhi Xiu burst into the valley, the fierce winds swept back in, enveloping the area once more.
"Taoist Ling Ya, Taoist Yu Hua, Taoist Chong Xuan."
The two scanned the area and saw that Taoist Ling Ya of the Purple Sun Sect, Taoist Yu Hua of the Northern Emperor Sect, and Taoist Chong Xuan of the Shenxiao Sect were all present.
"The woman in purple is a disciple of the Illusory Flower Hall. This ’bird brain’ is her man," Taoist Ling Ya explained succinctly.
The handsome young man’s eyes widened in anger. "I am the Cyan Cloud Eagle, not some ’bird brain’!"
Taoist Chong Xuan snorted. He reached out, and a ball of raw thunderbolt materialized in his hand. With a slight movement of his fingers, the thunderbolt condensed into a Thunder Talisman as manifestations of rainbows, clouds, water, and ice appeared around it.
The next moment, the Thunder Talisman transformed into a beam of iridescent purple lightning and shot straight toward the young man.
"The Shenxiao Secret Technique, the Four Qi Thunder Talisman." Taoist Zhi Qing’s eyes lit up. ’That’s a Thunder Technique from the *Shenxiao Cross Celestial Scripture*. The Celestial Master’s Mansion only has a summary of it, not the complete Inner Cultivation Method.’
The handsome young man let out a long shriek. A gale, heavy with manifested Demon Power, swept out and intercepted the Thunder Talisman in mid-air.
Taoist Chong Xuan pursed his lips. "A pity my Dao Practice isn’t high enough. Otherwise, a single bolt would’ve been enough to fry him!"
Taoist Chong Xuan and Taoist Yu Hua had arrived with Taoist Ling Ya. They were a generation of cultivators behind Taoist Zhi Qing, and not as old as Taoist Ling Ya, so their Dao Practice was still lacking and had not yet reached a bottleneck.
"It doesn’t matter. His Magical Power may be profound, but his Demon Power is impure."
Sensing the demon’s Qi, Taoist Zhi Qing chuckled as purple lightning formed into a suit of armor covering his entire body. "If we join forces, we can take him down!"
"Insolence!"
Seeing five Mages, all with Dao Practice inferior to his own, making such outrageous claims, the handsome young man flew into a rage. The gale engulfing the valley intensified, and with a leap, his body dissolved into wind and swept toward them.
The Five Qi churned in Taoist Zhi Xiu’s chest as he unleashed the Five Sounds, disrupting the corresponding five energies within the young man’s organs.
With a flicker, Taoist Zhi Qing moved, his speed shockingly no slower than the youth’s. The thunderbolt in his hand morphed into a Thunder Spear. With a single wave, countless Thunder Needles shot forth.
At the same time, purple Qi billowed around Taoist Ling Ya. His Inner Alchemy True Qi manifested as a great purple sun, radiating endless violet light that pushed back against the surrounding gale.
It was only because of the great disparity in their Magical Power that the gale was not completely dispelled; otherwise, the wind would have vanished wherever the purple light touched.
Taoist Yu Hua’s Cultivation was also far too inferior to the young man’s. The Divine Statue manifested by his Celestial Pig Great Curse could barely withstand the gale, so he switched to casting the Celestial Pig True Form Ghost Killing Spell, the Marshal Demon Suppressing and Ghost Extinguishing Spell, and the Three Days Demon Destruction Divine Spell, among others.
The magnificence of the Northern Emperor, the Divine Power of the Celestial Pig, and the manifestation of the Four Saints all coalesced into a Divine Light that suppressed demons.
As an heir to the Shenxiao Sect, Taoist Chong Xuan internally cultivated the *Shenxiao Cross Celestial Scripture* and the *Profound Secret Meaning*, while externally practicing the *Nine Heavens Thunder Crystal Concealment Book* and the *Great Cave Five Thunders Secret Technique*. His mastery of Thunder Techniques was even more orthodox than that of the Celestial Master’s Mansion.
As he attacked, thunder boomed. He unleashed Celestial Thunder, Divine Thunder, Water Thunder, Dragon Thunder, and Community Order Thunder—all of the Five Thunders were present.
Although his Dao Practice was not yet high, and his power couldn’t match Taoist Ming Yu’s Five Directions Yang Thunder Spell, the Five Thunders circulated in harmony with the Five Elements. While suppressing the enemy, they were also able to empower Taoist Zhi Qing.
BOOM!
Within the small valley, the five followers of the True Dao fought fiercely against the Cyan Cloud Eagle. Despite the significant gap in their Dao Practice, with the addition of Taoist Zhi Qing and Taoist Zhi Xiu, they had turned the tide and were gradually gaining the upper hand.
’This is impossible!’ The handsome young man was shocked, furious, and filled with disbelief.
’Everyone knows that while a gap in Dao Practice isn’t insurmountable, the opponents still need to be relatively close in power. A three-hundred-year cultivator might stand a chance against a four-hundred-year one, especially with enhancements from powerful Magic and Magical Treasures.’
’But major thresholds like five hundred or a thousand years were a completely different story.’
’Unless you possessed a heaven-defying Magical Treasure, it was impossible to fight across such a vast gap in realms.’
’Longer lifespan, a qualitative transformation of one’s Magical Power, a transcendent Mental Realm... there was a reason why cultivators who passed the five-hundred-year mark were called peak experts or Sect Leader Level figures!’
’It was because they really could dominate a region, founding their own lineages for centuries!’
’It was nearly impossible to defeat such an expert with sheer numbers of lower-realm opponents. The gap was just too vast; quantity was meaningless.’
’But what was he facing now?’
’Five Mages of varying and uneven realms, not a single one of whom had crossed the five-hundred-year threshold, yet they were somehow managing to suppress him!’
’The purity and density of their Dao Practice Magical Power were actually superior to his own!’
’He was a pure-blooded Cyan Cloud Eagle!’
’I soar above the Nine Heavens and weave through colorful clouds! I roam the azure skies and fly across the four seas! A single beat of my wings carries me a hundred miles! No prey I target ever escapes my grasp, and no one can stop me when I wish to leave!’
’I look down upon the world, carefree and unrestrained!’
SCREECH—
The young man let out a piercing shriek. His Demon Power condensed, and he transformed into a nearly invisible blur, his hand lashing out to tear off Taoist Zhi Xiu’s head.
Taoist Zhi Xiu’s expression remained serene. In that split second, the Yellow Talisman in his hand spontaneously combusted.
The next moment, a flicker of lightning appeared in his hand, and a ball of violet-gold electricity laced with Thunder Fire instantly enveloped the young man.
"AGH!" the young man shrieked, flying backward in retreat.
Taoist Zhi Xiu casually flicked non-existent dust from his palm. "That was a Second Tribulation Thunder Summoning Talisman from my senior martial uncle. How did you like it?"