Chapter 144: Divine Firmament Sect VS Divine Firmament Sect!

Inside the mansion, an uproar swept through the crowd.

The young Daoist who had suddenly broken through the gates was actually a disciple of the Divine Firmament Sect.

And his purpose here today was to apprehend the protagonist of the ceremony.

The soon-to-be-invested Prefect of Jiang'an, Gan Xingba!

Slowly turning around, Gan Xingba stared with narrowed eyes at this fellow sect brother who claimed he was here to arrest him. He stepped forward and raised his hands:

"I am Gan Xingba. I wonder which elder's disciple you are, and what crime I have committed that warrants being dragged back to the sect."

"Have you forgotten what wrongs you've committed?"

Walking slowly forward, Qi Xiu looked straight into Gan Xingba's eyes, pronouncing every word with resounding force:

"As a disciple of the Divine Firmament Sect, you entered officialdom without permission.

Enamored by the mortal world, blinded by lust and desire!

You disregard the years of cultivation and guidance bestowed upon you by our master!

Gan Xingba!

You have lost your mind!"

His stern shout cracked like a sudden thunderclap, the booming roar of thunder shaking the air.

The surrounding guests all turned pale, nearly collapsing to the ground in terror from the vibrating thunderous roar.

Stung by Qi Xiu's thunderous reprimand, a momentary clarity flashed in Gan Xingba's eyes, but it vanished instantly without a trace.

"How audacious! I am the personal disciple of Daoist Yunxiong, a mighty Dao-embodiment master of the Divine Firmament Sect.

Who do you think you are to scold me?!"

Arcs of lightning flickered in his eyes as Gan Xingba's aura surged; his long hair whipped wildly in the wind, and his robes snapped violently.

The sky above his head instantly condensed layers of murky, heavy dark clouds.

Lightning flashed and thunder rumbled, crashing and intertwining.

"You still dare to utter Master's name.

Gan Xingba, it was Master who sent me to apprehend you!"

With a fierce step forward!

Qi Xiu's thunder-path aura burst forth, matching Gan Xingba's in absolute intensity!

An equally thick and murky thundercloud accumulated above his head, with lightning bolts slithering like giant dragons across the firmament, radiating an earth-shattering and terrifying pressure.

Crack-boom!

Crack-boom!

Tit for tat, neither willing to yield!

Countless electric serpents collided and exploded in mid-air.

The entire Prefectural Office was completely engulfed under that gloomy thundercloud, with bolts of lightning poised to strike, looming vaguely overhead.

The observing guests below held their breath in absolute silence, their faces ashen.

They terrified lest a stray thunderbolt should smash down upon their heads.

To think the power of a thunder-path cultivator could be this terrifying!

At this moment, no one doubted any longer that this young Daoist was indeed a disciple of the Divine Firmament Sect.

For only disciples of the Divine Firmament Sect could wield such heavy and tyrannical thunder techniques.

"You—you said Master..."

Shock spread across his face as Gan Xingba said in disbelief:

"Impossible! I am Master's youngest disciple! Who on earth are you?

Do you know the grave crime of impersonating a disciple of the Divine Firmament Sect?!"

Facing Gan Xingba's interrogation, Qi Xiu furrowed his brow and cast a cold glance:

"Blindly infatuated with lust, to think you have spent all these years practicing the Dao and refining your arts,

only to utter such foolish words!

Gan Xingba, if you willingly submit and return with me, everything can be decided by Master.

But if you remain obstinate and fail to see the light,

Master also left word:

If I cannot bring you back alive, I am to beat you until you are dead!"

"Arrogant!"

In full view of everyone, and right at his own investiture ceremony, to be humiliated and scolded like this caused Gan Xingba's fury to reach its boiling point. With a fierce roar, he moved to strike.

"Husband!"

At that moment, Nian Yiyi rushed out from the rear and managed to intercept the impulsive Gan Xingba. She bowed respectfully toward Qi Xiu and said:

"This humble concubine is Nian Yiyi. Junior Brother, today is my husband's grand day. Might we..."

"Shut your mouth!"

Cutting Nian Yiyi off with an icy voice, Qi Xiu lowered his gaze to look down at her. From this woman, he sensed a faint trace of the exact same aura exuded by the evil infant:

"What kind of thing are you, daring to call me Junior Brother?

Wicked woman!

It was you who used your schemes to bewitch my senior brother's mind, wasn't it?

You've come just in time. I shall take the two of you back to the mountain gate together to await Master's judgment."

"You dare!"

As if touched on his reverse scale, Gan Xingba completely lost control of his emotions. He leaped forward, instantly transforming into a terrifying bolt of lightning that surged forward like an enraged, roaring dragon!

"Run!"

Someone screamed, and in an instant, everyone in the courtyard scattered like startled birds, scrambling in a panicked swarm out of the Prefectural Office.

A duel between two thunder-path cultivators!

Even a fool knew it was time to run for their lives.

Otherwise, heavenly lightning had no eyes, and if you got blasted to death, you could only blame your own bad luck.

In a split second, not a single person remained inside the entire Prefectural Office.

With conflicted eyes, Nian Yiyi watched Gan Xingba charge into battle. Clenching her fists, she whipped around and sprinted toward the backyard.

Hum—

A protective true essence barrier manifested, like a reef in the vast ocean, standing completely unmoved as the waterfall-like torrent of lightning swept over it.

Third-Tier Thunder Formula: Geng-Metal Heavenly Lightning!

With eyes blazing with dazzling lightning, Gan Xingba raised his arms high. The thundercloud above churned as golden lightning bolts, thick as water barrels, roared downward, launching a ferocious and matchless assault toward Qi Xiu.

"Five Thunders Orthodox Law?"

Looking up at the descending lightning, Qi Xiu's expression remained calm:

"Judging by this momentum—imposing, upright, and grand—is this the Geng-Metal Heavenly Lightning?"

"And what if it is!"

With long hair flying and a majestic expression, Gan Xingba was wreathed in lightning radiance, resembling a descending Heavenly Lord of Thunder suppressing all directions.

"If it is, then you are in trouble."

Lightning similarly flared in Qi Xiu's eyes. The gloomy thundercloud above his head suddenly erupted with a deafening roar as he raised a hand and pointed toward the heavens:

"Because I practice the Bing-Fire Divine Lightning!"

Boom—

From its very center, the dense ink-black cloud transformed at a visible speed into a churning crimson expanse, where thunder and fire intertwined to illuminate the universe!

The endless sea of thunder and fire instantly overpowered Gan Xingba's golden light thundercloud.

With a flick of his hand, a crimson bolt of lightning tore through the void and shot into the sky, wrapping around the descending Geng-Metal Heavenly Lightning with overwhelming dominance. Sparks splattered and blazing flames surged, melting and grinding away the golden light.

The mutual restriction of the Five Elements!

Fire subdues metal!

Having shattered the lightning bolt, the remaining force slammed fiercely into Gan Xingba.

Bang!

Boundless lightning pounded against his protective true essence, yet failed to pierce that azure, glass-like defense.

"Nine Heavens Divine Firmament Thunder-Governing True Essence?" Seeing that the crimson lightning failed to break Gan Xingba's protective barrier, Qi Xiu narrowed his eyes slightly.

Gan Xingba was one of the only two direct family disciples under Daoist Yunxiong.

He practiced the orthodox core scripture of the Divine Firmament Sect: the *True Scripture of Nine Heavens Divine Firmament Thunder-Governing*.

The true essence cultivated from this scripture not only granted a heaven-sent advantage in commanding thunder techniques, but also possessed extreme resistance against lightning itself.

Even though Qi Xiu's Bing-Fire Divine Lightning naturally countered Gan Xingba's Geng-Metal Heavenly Lightning,

it could not inflict heavy damage on Gan Xingba, who was shielded by the Thunder-Governing True Essence.

"Hahaha, you are not a direct family disciple after all!"

Waving his hand to dissipate the surrounding thunder and fire, Gan Xingba laughed wildly with a blazing and unbridled expression:

"Fire can melt gold, but gold can also seal fire!

Watch me seal and extinguish this little flame of yours!"

Driving his internal true essence to its absolute limit, Gan Xingba's eyes flickered with lightning as a fierce and tyrannical expression abruptly rose on his face.

Ninth-Tier Thunder Formula: Geng-Metal Heavenly Lightning!

Crack-boom!

The thundercloud above shook violently as nine bolts of heavenly lightning surged forth simultaneously.

Electric arcs danced through the air with a crackling snap.

Over half of Jiang'an Prefecture witnessed this breathtaking and terrifying display of lightning.

With a slight shift of his gaze, a sound like a snapped chain echoed from within Qi Xiu's body.

In the void, a golden chain woven from countless talismans suddenly manifested, instantly snapping into several pieces before dissolving into golden light.

Boom—

The exact moment the golden chain shattered.

An incomparably terrifying, deep-as-an-abyss aura suddenly erupted from within Qi Xiu!

Rising straight from the ground, it soared into the firmament.

Spiderweb-like cracks instantly burst across the surrounding ground.

A violent wave of pressure, akin to a category-ten gale, nearly uprooted the entire Prefectural Office.

Lifting his gaze to smile at Gan Xingba, Qi Xiu folded his hands into his sleeves, his expression indifferent:

"I was just playing along with you, and you actually took it seriously."

Eighteenth-Tier Thunder Formula: Bing-Fire Divine Lightning!

If I am lacking in quality compared to you, I shall overwhelm you with sheer quantity!

Rumble!

Black clouds rolled and thunder-fire surged as a full eighteen thunder-fire electric serpents blazed with dazzling brilliance!

"What?!"

The overlapping layers of thunder-fire, akin to a ten-thousand-foot tidal wave, instantly melted Gan Xingba's ninth-tier Geng-Metal Heavenly Lightning, engulfing him with unstoppable momentum.

The intertwined dual powers of thunder and fire frantically ground away at Gan Xingba's protective true essence.

Eighteenth-tier thunder formula—where on earth did he get so much true essence!

Resentment flashed in his eyes. Having been a proud son of heaven since childhood, advancing smoothly along his cultivation path, and constantly hailed as a genius by his master Daoist Yunxiong,

Gan Xingba had never imagined that anyone in the Dao-Entry realm could possess thunder techniques stronger than his own.

Clap!

Clasping his hands together forcefully, Gan Xingba's eyes burned with extreme fury. A streak of golden light emerged from the center of his chest, spreading continuously outward across his skin as if it intended to transform his entire body into a golden statue.

"Oh?"

Noticing the shift in Gan Xingba's aura, Qi Xiu's eyes flickered with a surge of purplish light.

Within a special field of vision woven in black and white,

Gan Xingba's exterior was gradually transforming into a majestic, towering, and awe-inspiring Vajra clutching golden lightning!

"Wrathful Thunder Vajra Technique?!"

Recognizing the technique Gan Xingba was currently operating at a glance, Qi Xiu knew it was none other than Daoist Yunxiong's self-created supreme art—the Sacred Might Wrathful Thunder Vajra Technique!

Yet this technique was a miraculous art that could only be practiced once one reached the Blood-Stained Realm.

To think Gan Xingba was forcefully operating it while still in the Dao-Entry realm.

"No wonder even Master said this sixth senior brother possesses extraordinary talent,

able to forcefully operate a Blood-Stained Realm art while in the Dao-Entry realm.

Although he is doing so by force, unable to unleash its full power and bound to suffer severe backlash,

it is still more than enough to prove his potential and comprehension!

It is only a pity that such talent has strayed onto a crooked path."

Shaking his head gently, Qi Xiu stomped heavily onto the ground, causing the earth within a radius of a hundred meters to suddenly sink downward.

Shattering the void, layers of visible white shockwaves burst outward.

In a flash, Qi Xiu shifted instantly in front of Gan Xingba, gazing at him in his [Vajra Transformation] state.

"Since you believe this Vajra technique is your trump card for turning the tables,

then I shall defeat you using the exact same method,

so that you are forced to submit wholeheartedly!"

Before his voice had even faded, Qi Xiu thrust out a massive hand. His flesh suddenly erupted with infinite multicolored brilliance, radiating an ancient, indestructible, and primordial charm.

The tempering of thirty-six Primordial Beads day and night without rest
had long since pushed Qi Xiu's physical body to an indescribable realm.

To the point that he had even been forced to use [Sealing Talismans] to lock away a portion of his power, lest he inadvertently cause destruction to his surroundings.

Curving his five fingers onto Gan Xingba's protective true essence, Qi Xiu exerted slight pressure, causing the entire protective barrier to instantly emit an unbearable, cracking groan.

He was about to shatter Gan Xingba's protective true essence relying purely on physical strength!

"I'll ask you one last time: are you coming back with me or not?"

"Never!"

Roaring with indignation, Gan Xingba threw a punch accompanied by endless thunder, as if he intended to smash this bright, clear sky to pieces.

"Stubborn and irredeemable!"

His expression turning utterly cold, Qi Xiu met the blow with a punch of his own!

Clang—

A multicolored fist and a golden fist collided heavily together!

In an instant, the heavens and earth shook violently!

The terrifying, highly concentrated wave of pressure instantly enveloped them both!

...