Chapter 337: Chapter 168: What Man Doesn’t Want to Be Big

Not far from the Qingcheng Sword Sect’s grounds, the white-bearded Daoist suddenly bellowed, "Zhao Rui, get out here!"

His voice rolled like thunder, startling countless birds and beasts.

Everyone in the Qingcheng Sword Sect was jolted awake by the shout. They all hurriedly dressed and went to investigate.

After shouting, the Daoist’s figure floated into the air. He cast a contemptuous gaze over the Qingcheng Sword Sect disciples swarming out below.

"What business do you have with me?"

The words had barely left his lips when Zhao Rui’s figure appeared nearby.

"You’re Zhao Rui?"

The old, white-bearded Daoist sized up Zhao Rui, his eyes narrowing instantly.

"And who are you?"

"I am Cangwu Zi of the Qingcheng Sect."

"Never heard of you. Is it the Qingcheng Sect’s way to disturb people’s sleep for no reason?"

"You may not know me, but I certainly remember you. Over a year ago, you shattered my Divine Soul. You haven’t forgotten, have you?"

"Shattered your Divine Soul?"

Zhao Rui was taken aback for a moment, then he remembered. ’Could it be about that time Shouzhuo was possessed, and I drove the spirit out?’

"So it was you!"

"Good, as long as you remember. If I don’t get my revenge, my mind will not be at ease, and it will hinder my cultivation."

Cangwu Zi sneered and watched Zhao Rui in silence.

Hearing this, Yun Hao, who was on the ground below, immediately circulated his True Qi. With his longsword in hand, he prepared to rush forward and provide support.

"You all just guard the mountain gate." 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

Zhao Rui waved his hand, stopping him in his tracks. He looked at Cangwu Zi and asked, "Just revenge?"

"Of course, it’s just revenge!"

Cangwu Zi’s eyes were cold, his beard and hair fluttering slightly.

"Fine! Let’s go fight on the other side of the mountain!"

With that, Zhao Rui’s figure flickered and flew toward a distant mountain ravine.

Cangwu Zi sneered and instantly followed. The two flew one after the other, using the Soaring Void Step, looking just like Land Immortals.

The Qingcheng Sword Sect disciples watching from below were utterly mesmerized.

’So this is the power of the Dharma Realm!’

That ability alone was enough to crush any Martial Artist below the Divine Void Realm.

In the space of a dozen breaths, Zhao Rui and Cangwu Zi arrived at a ravine near Iron Anvil Mountain.

"Don’t tell me you thought that just because you defeated my junior brother Cangsong, you have the strength to contend with Qing City. How naive."

"Once I’ve killed you, I can destroy this pathetic Qingcheng Sword Sect with a flip of my hand."

The old Daoist Cangwu stroked his beard and continued his casual tirade.

"You talk too much!"

Zhao Rui casually struck, instantly unleashing Dragon Battle in the Wilderness.

The Dragon-shaped True Qi coiled and spiraled outward, accompanied by what sounded like a true dragon’s roar.

"How dare you!"

Furious, Cangwu Zi waved the Horsetail Whisk in his hand. Instantly, innumerable threads shot out from it, stretching longer and longer like a spiderweb and completely enveloping the Dragon-shaped True Qi.

With a slight tightening, the web reduced the Dragon-shaped True Qi to nothing.

Zhao Rui’s gaze sharpened. ’That Horsetail Whisk!’

’What a treasure.’

’It’s just like the Emei Divine Sword—an item imbued with Spiritual Qi.’

’As expected of a major sect from Gui Xu!’

A spark of covetousness lit up in Zhao Rui’s eyes.

’It seems I’ve underestimated the strength of Gui Xu Qing City after all.’

At the same time, a notification finally sounded from his system panel: "Replicable Martial Arts detected: Microdust Brushing Skill. Replicate?"

’Replicate!’

’There’s even a specific Martial Arts technique for it?’ Zhao Rui replicated it without hesitation.

In the brief moment Zhao Rui was distracted, the Horsetail Whisk, having annihilated the Dragon-shaped True Qi, was brandished by Cangwu Zi and continued its sweep toward him.

Zhao Rui’s figure flickered as he fired several blasts of Piercing Palm Force at the whisk, slowing its assault.

In an instant, Cangwu Zi floated over. As he swung the Horsetail Whisk, True Qi surged out, sweeping through space like a giant broom, clearing everything in its path.

Zhao Rui used the Dipper Step to dodge while shooting a blast from his Profound Yin Sword Pointing technique at Cangwu Zi.

The two clashed in midair, exchanging dozens of moves in an instant.

This Duster Technique was unlike ordinary weapon skills. It blended hard and soft principles, featuring both fierce, powerful sweeps and soft, entangling attacks. Excellent for both offense and defense, it was incredibly formidable.

Zhao Rui launched a fierce offensive, but every one of his attacks was neutralized by the man’s Horsetail Whisk.

"Is that all you’ve got?"

Cangwu Zi scoffed. "Nothing special. Cangsong really was a useless fool."

Seeing Zhao Rui at the end of his rope, he swept his Horsetail Whisk, instantly closed the distance, and launched a ferocious attack.

Zhao Rui dodged aside. Just then, Yun Hao’s voice called out from the ground below.

"Junior Brother, use my sword!"

Instantly, a longsword shot through the air, flying straight toward him.

"A piece of scrap metal, and you dare call it a sword!"

Cangwu Zi shot out a blast of Palm Force, intending to strike the longsword from the air.

Zhao Rui hurriedly used the Dipper Step to snatch the longsword first, simultaneously spinning around to counter with a palm strike that neutralized the incoming Palm Force.

Longsword in hand, Zhao Rui instantly formed a Sword Technique seal, stepped through the air, and danced with the blade.

"By the glorious might of the heavens, all evil is banished! Thunder of the myriad realms, heed my command! Strike!"

A sudden clap of thunder echoed as lightning coiled around the longsword. Arcs of electricity ripped through the darkness like a thunder dragon shattering its chains and revealing its vicious claws.

Seeing this, Cangwu Zi hurriedly waved his Horsetail Whisk. An endless torrent of entangling threads, imbued with a strange power from his True Qi, shot out to envelop Zhao Rui.

Zhao Rui flicked his sword, and the thunder dragon charged forward, crashing into the web of threads conjured by Cangwu Zi’s Horsetail Whisk.

CRACKLE! Sparks of electricity flew in every direction.

The Thunder Power instantly shattered the entangling True Qi of the Horsetail Whisk, erupting in a burst of dazzling Starlight that illuminated the entire ravine.

At that moment, Zhao Rui descended like a falling star, sword in hand, and instantly appeared before Cangwu Zi.

Cangwu Zi swung his Horsetail Whisk to block the sword. The two then exchanged a palm strike across the distance, and both of their bodies trembled from the impact.

’How can he possess such strong True Essence Power?!’

Cangwu Zi’s face was pale and grim. He had assumed that even though Zhao Rui had entered the Dharma Realm, he would be, at most, at the very initial stage.

’The True Essence condensed from his True Qi couldn’t possibly compare to my own decades of accumulation.’

But that last blow had left him utterly aghast.

’This boy must not be allowed to live!’

A vicious glint flashed in Cangwu Zi’s eyes. His figure flickered, and he charged forward once more.

The Horsetail Whisk in his hand suddenly transformed into a behemoth the size of a towering ancient tree, sweeping viciously toward Zhao Rui.

Not to be outdone, Zhao Rui also imbued his longsword with Dharma Power, Refining Void into Reality. It transformed into a colossal sword seventy or eighty feet tall, which he slashed horizontally at Cangwu Zi.

The two colossal weapons collided in midair, unleashing an earth-shattering BOOM.

One’s Sword Techniques were fierce, the other’s whisk movements were exquisite. Their battle caused the very earth and rock of the ravine to crumble, kicking up violent winds and clouds of dust, as if the mountain itself was being torn apart.

Far away on the other side of the peak, the members of the Qingcheng Sword Sect watched, their hearts trembling in terror.

’Is this the Dharma Divine Power?’

An endless, thunderous light surged in Yun Hao’s eyes. Never before had he felt his qi and blood boil with such intensity.

If the Grandmaster Realm was about gaining superhuman strength and rising above mortals, then the Divine Void Realm was about obtaining the power of the Divine Soul and breaking free from the body’s mortal shackles.

But upon reaching the Dharma Realm, one could turn the illusory into the real, gaining the ability to create something from nothing.

With this level of power, forget missiles; even if hit by an atomic bomb, one could likely survive as long as they weren’t at the epicenter.

Within the ravine, the two figures flickered at extreme speed. In just a few moments, they had exchanged nearly a hundred moves.

"Replication of Microdust Brushing Skill complete. Reward: +1 Advancement Point!"

The system’s "replication complete" notification chimed in Zhao Rui’s mind.

Cangwu Zi saw that despite their long battle, Zhao Rui showed no signs of flagging. On the contrary, he seemed to grow more vigorous, his techniques becoming more and more refined with every exchange.

He wielded numerous Cultivation Techniques and Martial Arts with the ease of moving his own limbs, their execution growing ever smoother.

A sense of foreboding began to grow in his heart.

’Don’t tell me this brat is using me as a whetstone for his techniques?’

"This is outrageous!"

Cangwu Zi roared, shooting fifty to sixty meters straight into the air. The True Essence around him exploded, and Infinite True Qi condensed upon his body.

Instantly, a giant version of Cangwu Zi appeared before Zhao Rui’s eyes.

"Boundless Celestial Venerable!"

Cangwu Zi’s eyes bulged as two streams of True Qi shot from them toward Zhao Rui.

’Fuck, is this a Heaven and Earth Dharma Aspect or a damn Suzaku? Motherfucker, how shameless can you be? Using a Dharma Aspect on yourself.’

Zhao Rui jumped in fright and hurriedly used the Dipper Step to dodge.

Just then, a system notification chimed in his mind: "Replicable Martial Arts detected: Profound Dome True Self Aspect! Replicate?"

’Replicate!’

’Only a fool would pass up a show-off technique like this.’

Zhao Rui’s eyes lit up with greed again. He remembered watching anime in his past life; the Heaven and Earth Dharma Aspect had fascinated him for ages.

’Even if this thing is just a Low Tier, nerfed version of the Heaven and Earth Dharma Aspect, who cares? As long as it makes you bigger, it’s good enough.’

’What man doesn’t want to be bigger?!’