Chapter 174: Chapter 7: Demon Buddha Inheritor, Dual Cultivation Secret Method

The next moment, the sword light shot straight toward Lady Qinxue.

Lady Qinxue seemed not to have expected Fang Cheng to be so terrifyingly powerful. Her expression grew a little complicated, and she couldn’t help but sigh, "What a fine Sword Technique!"

With that, she reached out and threw a sapphire-blue Thunder Pill.

BOOM!

The Thunder Light erupted.

A dazzling radiance blossomed in an instant. A tyrannical and immense force violently blocked Fang Cheng’s sword light.

Wherever the Ice Thunder passed, arcs of electricity swirled and frost drifted down. It was a bizarre yet strangely beautiful sight.

Fang Cheng’s figure flashed as he retreated explosively from the Thunder Light’s range, his robes covered in shards of ice.

Meanwhile, Lady Qinxue shot Fang Cheng a fierce glare, then transformed into a streak of ice-blue Thunder Light and fled straight toward the sky above Divine Pillar Mountain.

Just then, a glittering golden rope shot through the air and wrapped around the ice-blue Thunder Light. But with a dance of electricity and a flutter of snowflakes, it only managed to bind a wisp of ethereal energy.

Where was any trace of Lady Qinxue?

Fang Cheng swept the area with his Divine Sense and instantly detected a faint, almost nonexistent, energy signature in the distance.

Without a word, he transformed into an ethereal and indistinct Sword Aura and gave chase.

’This Lady Qinxue seems to be connected to the Dragon Elephant Wanderer. I might be able to learn some secrets from her.’

’After all, this involves the origins of the Void Ghost Marketplace, the Li Hen Demon Light, and the Joyful Zen Skill. I can’t let her get away!’

The Celestial Ghost Sword Escape was one of the finest Escape Techniques in the world, but unexpectedly, Lady Qinxue’s Ice Thunder Escape Technique was not the least bit inferior to Fang Cheng’s.

With one chasing and one fleeing, the two of them reached the vicinity of Divine Pillar Immortal City in the blink of an eye.

Without a sound, Lady Qinxue barged through the city gates before finally dropping her Escape Light.

Fang Cheng followed close behind. Right there on the main thoroughfare of the Immortal City, his Flying Fish Sword Light clashed violently with Lady Qinxue’s blade aura for over a dozen moves.

In the end, Lady Qinxue couldn’t hold on. The moment she showed a sign of faltering, Fang Cheng seized the opportunity, deployed his Immortal Binding Rope, and instantly bound her up tight.

At the same time.

The Immortal City Array had already been activated when the two began to fight, and the Immortal City Patrol had also rushed to the scene.

Above the Immortal City, spiritual light converged into a massive cyan hand, which suddenly pressed down on Fang Cheng.

Fang Cheng deployed his Fire Crow Gourd and poured a stream of Magical Power into it. Instantly, over a hundred Fire Crows flew out of the gourd to meet the hand, blocking the massive cyan construct.

For a moment, the cyan light and the fiery light intertwined and clashed, locked in a stalemate.

He walked over to Lady Qinxue, grabbed the woman bound by the Immortal Binding Rope, and prepared to leave the Immortal City.

A dozen or so Sensing Realm Immortal City Patrol members immediately moved to block his path. They stared at him with hostile expressions, showing no fear whatsoever.

The Cultivators on the street immediately scattered, and multicolored Restriction Spiritual Lights flared up over the shops on both sides to avoid being hit by the battle’s aftershocks.

Fang Cheng, still wearing his Suanni mask, saw this and pointed. The Flying Fish Sword leaped into the air, and a suffocating Sword Intent spread out, enveloping the dozen or so patrol members.

"The Yinluo Sect’s Law Enforcement Hall is on official business. Those who stand in my way will be killed without mercy!"

One of the patrolmen said, neither servile nor overbearing, "Even a Cultivator of the Yinluo Sect cannot fight wantonly in the Immortal City. Please come with us, Your Excellency!"

Fang Cheng sneered, "If I wanted to leave, you alone couldn’t stop me. Don’t throw your lives away for nothing."

"Such arrogance! Do you truly believe our Immortal City Array is made of paper?" Suddenly, a majestic voice called out from behind.

A middle-aged man in long cyan robes was seen slowly flying out from a distant city tower.

He held a Jade Ruyi, and with a gentle wave, the massive cyan hand in the sky swelled with power. Bolstered by the City Defense Array, it instantly expanded to two or three times its original size, scooped up all the Fire Crows, and crushed them viciously!

Wisps of fiery light escaped from between the fingers of the massive cyan hand, streaming down from the sky and returning to the Fire Crow Gourd to be nurtured.

Fang Cheng turned to look at the newcomer and saw that this Cyan Robe Cultivator’s Cultivation was impressively at the Mid-stage Life Talisman Realm.

Comparable to Madam Ye.

’It seems those who can guard an Immortal City’s gate are truly no ordinary individuals.’

The cyan-robed man was unaffected by the Immortal City’s Sky Ban Array. He flew down gracefully and looked at Fang Cheng coldly, stating sternly, "I don’t care if you are from the Yinluo Sect or the Flame God Palace. Since you have entered my Immortal City, you will abide by its rules. All who break the rules must go to the Prison Suppression Department to receive their punishment."

As he spoke, the massive cyan hand in the sky pressed down on Fang Cheng once more.

Fang Cheng shook his head, unwilling to waste any more words. He was about to use his Celestial Ghost Sword Escape to leave the Immortal City. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Although the massive cyan hand, formed from the power of the Immortal City Array, was mighty and fierce, it lacked subtlety.

If he was determined to leave, these people truly couldn’t stop him.

Suddenly, a voice called out, "Hold on!"

At the sound of this voice, the massive cyan hand in the sky froze in mid-air, unable to move.

A young master dressed in magnificent, wide-sleeved robes, holding a folding fan, was seen strolling leisurely out of a shop by the street.

When the Cyan Robe Cultivator saw this person, he immediately bowed and said, "Greetings, Third Young Master."

The other Immortal City Patrol members also bowed in salute.

The young master smiled. "At ease." He then turned to Fang Cheng, cupped his hands, and said, "I have long heard of the astounding Divine Techniques of the Ten Fiends of the Yinluo Sect’s Law Enforcement Hall. Seeing them today, I can confirm they live up to their reputation. I am Cen San, and my master is the Lord of the Immortal City. A pleasure to meet you!"

Fang Cheng looked at Cen San, his gaze shifting slightly. He realized this person was a woman disguised as a man. Though her features were handsome and dashing, she couldn’t completely hide the gentle, graceful charm unique to a woman.

Compared to Dongfang Xiong’s senior sister, Mo Rongyan, this woman possessed a stronger heroic aura.

Fang Cheng said coolly, "So you are the esteemed disciple of the Lord of the Immortal City. I’ve heard much about you."

Cen San chuckled, not minding the insincerity in Fang Cheng’s pleasantries. She pointed at Lady Qinxue, who was still bound by the Immortal Binding Rope in Fang Cheng’s hand, and said, "Daoist Brother, I observed the Escape Technique this woman just used. It seems to originate from a master of the Demon Dao. I wonder if you have ever heard the name of the Demon Buddha?"

She delivered the last sentence using a voice transmission technique, ensuring no one else could hear.

Fang Cheng’s expression flickered. He replied via voice transmission, "You know of the Demon Buddha?"

Cen San smiled. "I have an ancient text in my residence that contains legends about the Demon Buddha. Unfortunately, I have only read a small part of it. If you are interested, Daoist Brother, you are welcome to be a guest at my residence and peruse it at your leisure."

A glint in his eyes, Fang Cheng gave Cen San a deep look, wondering what her objective was.

Cen San met his gaze and asked with a smile, "What’s wrong? Are you afraid to go, Daoist Brother?"

Fang Cheng remained noncommittal. "If you are sincere, Fellow Daoist Cen, you can bring the book to find me outside the city. I have other matters to attend to right now, so I will take my leave."

With that, he stored Lady Qinxue in his Water Cloud Bead. His entire body then abruptly transformed into an ethereal, illusory sword light, which vanished without a trace after a slight shimmer.

Even though Cen San and the Cyan Robe Cultivator had locked onto him with their Divine Sense and were watching with rapt attention, neither could perceive how he had left.

...

「Outside Divine Pillar Mountain.」

「Atop a small hill.」

Fang Cheng leisurely dropped his Escape Light and found a secluded spot to sit down cross-legged.

’A wise man does not stand under a crumbling wall,’ he thought. The Immortal City was, after all, someone else’s territory. How could he linger there?

Outside the Immortal City, however, he had the Vertical Earth Golden Light Talisman refined by Madam Ye and the Sword Light Talisman from his senior sister, Cai Li. With both offensive and defensive options, he could come and go as he pleased.

In the battle just now, the Black Cat Taoist and Jiang Nianjun had been manageable, but this Lady Qinxue was truly a handful.

The Nine Heavens Cold Ice Technique she cultivated was quite extraordinary, and her mastery of it was remarkably high. Her strength was far above that of an ordinary Life Talisman Cultivator.

’I wonder what her origins are?’

Fang Cheng set the matter aside for now. While restoring his energy, he began to sort through the storage bags of the Thousand-Faced Insect and his two companions.

He opened the three storage bags one by one. As expected, the Thousand-Faced Insect’s was the most valuable!

The man had over 500,000 Lower-Grade Spirit Stones, three Second-Order Magical Artifacts, and a dazzling array of Spiritual Elixirs and Wondrous Medicines, Talismans, and jade slips. He was truly worthy of being an Evil Cultivator who had secretly taken control of a major Noble Family.

Cultivators from sects and Noble Families would never carry their inheritance Cultivation Techniques with them; only Loose Cultivators were an exception!

Over the years, the Thousand-Faced Insect had toyed with countless Female Cultivators. Combined with his secret control of the Wen Family, he had amassed a great number of Secret Technique Formulas. Unfortunately, most of them were of a low grade and didn’t catch Fang Cheng’s eye.

Such were the unorthodox paths.

He had immersed himself in these miscellaneous techniques for many years, which was how he had gained the means to control the many Cultivators of the Wen Family. But relying on such minor paths, one could not go far in the end.

After a brief search through the Thousand-Faced Insect’s jade slips, Fang Cheng found the man’s core inheritance.

—The Supreme Yin Yang Xuanyuan Treasure Scripture.

Unfortunately, it was only a fragment!

Furthermore, it was a transcribed copy, with no inherited true intent.

Fang Cheng gave it a quick look and found that this fragment contained the Heart Methods for the Sensing, Life Talisman, and Life Soul realms.

There were also three Secret Techniques. The first was a Dual Cultivation Secret Method: the Yin Yang Harmony Skill.

An Escape Technique: the Yin Yang Heaven Escape Technique.

And a Secret Technique for altering one’s physical form and energy signature: the Xuanyuan Illusion Body Technique.

Beyond these, Fang Cheng found one other peculiar item in his storage bag.

—An Emotional Demon!

...