Chapter 112 - 74: Defeating the Daoist

Chapter 112: Chapter 74: Defeating the Daoist

Mu Xiaoyu wasn’t the only one who recognized Li Yinsheng’s voice. Liang Qiwu, standing at the peak, heard it too. He wondered if this second Daoist’s voice belonged to Li.

Not far away, a figure in a black silver silk robe soared into the sky on a Talisman Crane, heading straight for the massive face that blotted out the sun. Liang Qiwu rubbed his eyes. Wasn’t that Elder Li?

Li Yinsheng stood on a Talisman Crane with a wingspan of merely a dozen feet. Compared to the gigantic face, it wasn’t even the size of one of its eyes. "Fellow Daoist," Li Yinsheng called out, looking up at the massive visage and pointing a finger at it. "You’re blocking the sunlight."

Dozens of pale cyan Sword Lights materialized. Each one spanned nearly a hundred feet in length, roaring as they shot upward. In the blink of an eye, they tore dozens of huge gashes into the giant face, turning it into a sieve. Sunlight streamed down through the wounds, instantly illuminating the entirety of Bamboo Forest Peak. Countless specks of fine black powder drifted down from the gashes. Most dissipated into thin air, leaving only a scattering of insect corpses fluttering to the ground. This massive visage, looming like a dark storm cloud, had been formed by Chongyun’s Magical Power combined with these insects.

A fleeting, almost imperceptible trace of fear flashed across the battered giant face. It rapidly shrank, condensing into a ball of mist right in front of Li Yinsheng. Chongyun stepped out from within the mist.

"Impressive skills, Fellow Daoist. To think you’re a Sword Cultivator." A hint of apprehension flashed in Chongyun’s eyes.

He cursed inwardly, "Son of a bitch! How could those useless trash from Shouyi Temple fail to mention something as important as a Sword Cultivator Daoist being on this mountain! Or do they not even know about it at all? That would make them even more useless!"

"Your methods aren’t too shabby either," Li Yinsheng replied with a chuckle. "If I hadn’t stepped in, the bamboo of Huang Bamboo Temple would probably all belong to you by now, wouldn’t it?"

"What exactly is your relationship... with this Huang Bamboo Temple?" Chongyun asked probing.

"Not much of one. Huang Bamboo Temple is harvesting Cultivation Fruit and hired someone to hold the fort. I’m just here for the fun of it," Li Yinsheng answered honestly.

He cursed vehemently in his heart, "Do you just have too much free time on your hands?" Despite how absurd the "here for the fun of it" excuse sounded, Chongyun actually believed him. Compared to the idea that Huang Bamboo Temple had spent a fortune to hire a Sword Cultivator Daoist as a bouncer, "joining the fun" actually sounded far more plausible.

"I suppose I’m just out of luck, running into you today," Daoist Chongyun said. "I would ask that you return the Mother Insect and my Magical Treasure to me. I will surely repay this favor in the future. Alternatively, if there’s anything you require right now, we can discuss a trade. Otherwise, while my Thousand Insects Valley might not be a behemoth like the Taihao Immortal Sect, we are certainly not—"

Li Yinsheng shook his head, cutting him off. Thousand Insects Valley? It was yet another faction he had never heard of.

"Fellow Daoist, what do you mean by shaking your head?" A cold glint flashed in Chongyun’s eyes. Sword Cultivators might be strong, but a Gu Cultivator like him was no pushover in Magical Combat! Besides, even though he had lost his Mother Insect and Magical Artifact, neither significantly impacted his head-on combat capabilities. His fearsome reputation as Daoist Chongyun was forged by defeating seven fellow Daoists!

"As for this insect and the Magical Treasure, I have no intention of returning them," Li Yinsheng stated. "However, I’d like to ask—do you happen to have any other treasures?"

"Of course. I have plenty of treasures meant for life-and-death Magical Combat," Chongyun replied, his tone growing icy. "Are you suggesting I trade other treasures for the Mother Insect and Magical Treasure? I suppose it’s not entirely out of the question..."

"Not a trade," Li Yinsheng interrupted. "I want it all."

"Arrogant fool!"

Chongyun pinched his fingers to form a Technique. A cloud of crimson smoke erupted from the walnut-sized Insect Cage at his waist, shooting straight toward Li Yinsheng. These Smoke Poison Insects were meticulously refined; they carried fire poison and possessed True Flame within their bodies. The True Flame of just a single insect could melt thousands of pounds of solid rock into magma. And within this small cloud of crimson smoke, there were tens of thousands of them.

Suddenly, countless black and white specks of light materialized around him. An Array formed without warning, enveloping both him and the newly released Smoke Poison Insects.

Cave Profound Array: God-Suppressing Head.

Chongyun felt his entire body stiffen. It was as if a thousand layers of shackles had been slapped onto the soul within his Sea of Consciousness. Overwhelming Suppressing Power pinned him down instantly, leaving him completely immobilized. The Smoke Poison Insects he had released simply dropped from the sky, devoid of life. These insects possessed very little Spirituality and barely any soul. Crushed by the God-Suppressing Head, they weren’t just suppressed—they were outright killed!

"So you’re an Array Cultivator! You despicable coward!" Chongyun flew into a rage, cursing through gritted teeth. "You deliberately set up this trap and pretended to be a Sword Cultivator to make me lower my guard! Do you Orthodox Dao hypocrites also stoop to such vile tricks?"

He glanced around frantically, panic swelling in his heart. Among the numerous Trapping Arrays, those that suppressed the soul and Divine Sense were the most troublesome. After all, from Divine Powers and Magical Treasures down to Talismans and Magic, every single one required Divine Sense. Even with the most profound techniques at one’s disposal, having one’s soul pinned down meant nothing could be cast. But why was this soul-suppressing Array so bizarre? It didn’t look particularly sophisticated. In a battle between Daoists, merely restricting an opponent’s Divine Sense would be the absolute limit of such an Array. So why was its Suppressing Power so terrifyingly potent now, rendering his soul completely paralyzed?

Seeing his opponent immobilized, Li Yinsheng raised his hand and stacked several more Trapping Arrays on top of him. Only then did he voice a question that had been bugging him. "Fellow Daoist, what is your relationship with Shouyi Temple?"

To his surprise, the moment the question left his lips, a look of extreme anxiety overtook Chongyun’s face. He garbled out a few unintelligible incantations, and his body immediately began to twist and mutate. His previously human skin rapidly turned pitch-black and hard, and his eyes shifted to a bloody crimson. A pair of transparent, membranous wings sprouted from his back, and four antennae poked out from the top of his head. In the blink of an eye, Daoist Chongyun looked more like a giant insect than a human. He grew to nearly twenty feet tall, his aura surging violently in tandem. This appeared to be some sort of Secret Technique. As his form abruptly mutated, a hazy streak of light propped itself up against his Black Armor, causing the Suppressing Power of the God-Suppressing Head to seemingly "slip off" him. Only twenty to thirty percent of its force actually landed.

"You shouldn’t have asked!" Chongyun hissed, his voice raspy. He writhed and thrashed against the God-Suppressing Head and the other Trapping Arrays, looking very much as if he was about to forcefully tear his way out.

Li Yinsheng was momentarily taken aback. What was going on? Why the sudden outburst?

He had no idea that to reassure Shouyi Temple into collaborating, Chongyun had signed a blood oath with a Grand Daoist of the Divine Travel Realm from their sect. This blood oath wasn’t even Magic; rather, it was an incredibly ancient and insidious form of Witchcraft and Gu Skill. The consequences of violating it were a fate worse than death. The oath did not dictate the success or failure of their endeavor, nor did it measure how much effort he contributed. It only prohibited him from selling out Shouyi Temple. Furthermore, this betrayal did not distinguish between intentional or unintentional acts. As long as Chongyun was the cause of Shouyi Temple being "exposed," the blood oath would trigger.

Therefore, upon realizing Li Yinsheng’s intentions, Chongyun had panicked, deciding to activate the Lifebound Gu within his body at all costs. This Lifebound Gu was a trump card held by all Daoists of the Thousand Insects Valley. Nurtured within their bodies year-round, it boasted numerous wondrous applications—such as merging with its master in critical moments like this. It temporarily provided a massive boost in Cultivation, granting a tyrannical Physique akin to that of a half-step Body Cultivator. However, every time the Lifebound Gu was utilized, it sapped the lifespan and Cultivation of both the Cultivator and the Gu itself.

"You... despicable Array Cultivator! Once I get out of here, we’ll see what Arrays you have left! I’ll tear you apart alive!" Chongyun struggled against the Trapping Arrays like a bug trapped in pine sap, but his bloodshot insect eyes overflowed with murderous intent.

His previous apprehension toward Li Yinsheng stemmed solely from the opponent unleashing dozens of devastatingly powerful Sword Lights in one breath, leading him to mistakenly believe the man was a Sword Cultivator. But since this person was actually an Array Cultivator who had set a trap in advance, those Sword Lights must have been the effect of some special Array, right? A powerful Array Cultivator was certainly no easy opponent, but considering this man had the geographical advantage and had set up an Array Formation ahead of time, the fact that his Arrays were only at this level proved he was likely a newly advanced Daoist. Furthermore, the fact that he hadn’t even used a Magical Treasure for Flying in the Sky was proof enough of his shallow foundation. Since that was the case, he, Chongyun, would teach this reckless young Daoist a harsh lesson.

Facing Chongyun as he fought desperately to break free, Li Yinsheng raised an eyebrow and activated another Array he had kept hidden.

Killing Array: Rising Bull.

Originally, Rising Bull was not a Killing Array but a Trapping Array. It suppressed enemies by restricting their Magical Power, somewhat similar to the God-Suppressing Head. However, while the God-Suppressing Head restricted Divine Sense, Rising Bull restricted qi. Later on, a Cultivator practicing the Array of Profound Mystery had a stroke of genius. They realized that Rising Bull’s method of restricting Magical Power could absolutely be repurposed for lethal offense. The modified Rising Bull no longer restricted the opponent’s Magical Power; instead, it intercepted a wisp of the target’s internal Magical Power and caused it to violently expand and erupt, shattering their meridians and internal organs. Though it lost its suppression effect, its lethal application made it impossible to guard against.

Daoist Chongyun let out a piercing shriek. His sturdy Insect Armor abruptly exploded from the inside out, turning into a sky full of blood mist.

"Huh?" Li Yinsheng blinked in surprise. The Rising Bull was indeed a Killing Array, but there was no way it could instantly kill Daoist Chongyun in his insectoid form, right? He swept the area with his Divine Sense and immediately noticed something amiss. The exploded cloud of blood mist still seemed to pulse with life force and fluctuations of Divine Sense. Moreover, most of the mist had escaped the range of the God-Suppressing Head, spreading out over hundreds of yards.

Sure enough, in the next instant, every single drop of blood within the mist transformed into a blood-red insect resembling a ladybug, numbering in the countless thousands. Like pouring rain caught in a gale, they fluttered down, aiming straight for the Patrol Disciples scattered across the mountain below.

Li Yinsheng didn’t know what trick Daoist Chongyun was trying to pull, but he absolutely could not let him succeed. Using the Rising Bull’s attack as cover to self-destruct and transform into tens of thousands of blood insects was simply a tactic to break into pieces, making him impossible to defend against. Li Yinsheng pinched a Technique with one hand, channeling Qingxuan Divine Light into his Magical Power and blending the two. While he still didn’t know any profound Magic, the Qingxuan Divine Light provided a massive boost to any spell!

Wind-Gathering Skill.

An entry-level Magic now gathered all the wind across Bamboo Forest Peak. Endless gales converged from the ground and the forest, shooting up into the sky. The violent winds swept all the descending blood insects back into the air, swirling them into a massive tornado that firmly trapped every single bug within its eye.

Li Yinsheng drew another wisp of Qingxuan Divine Light and hurled a Technique into the hurricane.

Burning Wind Skill.

In the blink of an eye, miles of sky were set ablaze. After being mixed with a large amount of Qingxuan Divine Light, the flames of the Burning Wind Skill could no longer be considered ordinary fire. Every last blood insect was incinerated in the blaze, leaving behind only a single, waist-high insect darting frantically back and forth amid the raging firestorm.

Li Yinsheng frowned slightly. It was a pity that the foundation of the Burning Wind Skill was too weak; even with the Qingxuan Divine Light, its power was capped. He flickered, appearing right in front of the insect, his eye twitching involuntarily. It had the body of an insect, but the head of Chongyun.

Upon seeing Li Yinsheng, Chongyun let out a strange shriek and spat out a crystal-clear Talisman. The Talisman shattered, enveloping Daoist Chongyun. He instantly transformed into a streak of light, fleeing rapidly into the distance.