Volume 5 Chapter 66

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Volume 5 Chapter 66: The Battle of Powers (Part 2)

Seeing the golden shadow behind Jin Qinghan with three heads and six arms glaring furiously, Xu Qingfan was slightly surprised but immediately charged towards Jin Qinghan without any hesitation. As the fierce "Wind of Destruction" swept by, the ground shattered. The lingering power was already so strong, showing just how destructive the "Wind of Destruction" truly was.

About seventy years ago, in the finals of the big competition inside Jiuhua Gate, Jin Qinghan had used this magical technique against Feng Qingtian. It was this golden shadow that broke Feng Qingtian’s fire magic, proving the power of this technique as it overcame fire with gold.

Back then, the Diamond Dharma Phase behind Jin Qinghan had only two heads and four arms, but now with three heads and six arms, its power had increased more than dozens of times compared to its appearance.

When Xu Qingfan, transformed into the "Wind of Destruction," reached within three steps of Jin Qinghan, he saw the six arms swinging various Buddhist magical tools—golden bells, wooden fish, magic wands, Buddha lamps, Sharira, and Buddha swords—swinging down hard on the "Wind of Destruction." Suddenly, there was a loud rumble, the earth shook, and the power stirred up the clouds in the sky, causing them to change and swirl uncontrollably.

Wind is something without shape or substance; a sharp sword can pierce it, but the wind heals instantly, making it impossible to harm its essence. Therefore, Xu Qingfan, using the power of "Transform into the Wind," not only increased his speed but also often became immune to most of his opponent’s attacks during battle, gaining a significant advantage.

However, at the moment when the six arms of the golden shadow collided with Xu Qingfan transformed into the "Wind of Destruction," he felt a surge of emotions and immense pain that should not have occurred. More importantly, the "Flourish Qi" and "Withered Qi" mixed within the "Wind of Destruction," which he had been controlling, became more chaotic. The wind was almost on the verge of collapsing due to the chaos of these two Spirit Qis. Despite transforming into the wind, he was still pushed back several steps.

After the eight arms were swept into the "Wind of Destruction," although they nearly shattered it, they were also scattered into golden sparks across the sky and ground under the terrifying power of the "Wind of Destruction."

Just as Xu Qingfan was trying to stabilize the nearly collapsing "Wind of Destruction" and continue his assault on Jin Qinghan, he was shocked to see the damaged Diamond Dharma Phase behind Jin Qinghan glowing with golden light, as if flowing like water. As the golden light flowed, the broken parts of the form healed instantly, and the six arms that had turned to dust in the "Wind of Destruction" quickly started to restore.

What surprised people even more was that the six arms of the Diamond Dharma Phase, which Xu Qingfan originally thought were just decorations, began to show six different waves of Spirit Qi. The golden bell shook, the wooden fish was struck, and the sound of the sacred chant filled the air, bringing a sense of peace to Xu Qingfan, who could no longer feel any desire to fight. Under the influence of the sacred sound, the Spirit Qi within Xu Qingfan began to move slower and slower.

At the same time, the golden light on the Buddha lamp flickered, and each ray of light transformed into a golden sword, shooting toward Xu Qingfan. With a wave of the magic wand, golden light fell, and Xu Qingfan felt the space freeze. Even after becoming the "Wind of Destruction," he found it difficult to move, and his speed greatly decreased. The last sword, bearing immense power, charged fiercely toward Xu Qingfan.

Among the six arms, only the one holding the Sharira remained still.

This must be the true power of Feng Qingtian’s Diamond Dharma Phase, and before, he had to use the six arms to block the "Wind of Destruction" because he was in a hurry.

Seeing this scene, Xu Qingfan was greatly surprised but made a quick decision to stop fighting and immediately retreated, not stopping until he was over twenty yards away, where the influence of the golden light and sacred sound lessened slightly.

Although the "Wind of Destruction" was powerful, Xu Qingfan could not maintain it for long. After retreating, he returned to his original form, but those golden weapons formed from the gold blood that he had not destroyed, along with the golden swords converted from the Buddha lamp’s light, continued to attack him.

Facing the overwhelming attacks, Xu Qingfan waved his right hand, and the "Five Spirit Bell" quickly protected him in the center. The sound of clashing filled the air, yet it could not harm Xu Qingfan at all. Amidst the melodious and ancient bell sounds, the influence of the sacred sound emitted by the Diamond Dharma Phase was dispersed.

With the "Five Spirit Bell" protecting him, Xu Qingfan was safe for the time being and no longer rushed to attack. Instead, he curiously observed the Diamond Dharma Phase behind Jin Qinghan in the distance and glanced again at the golden weapons made from Jin Qinghan’s blood that were still attacking around the "Five Spirit Bell." The golden swords created by the Buddha lamp’s golden light had already vanished after their attacks failed, but these golden weapons were not only very spirited but also seemed to absorb the Spirit Qi from the world to regain their strength, continuously launching attacks at Xu Qingfan.

After a moment, Xu Qingfan pointed to the various golden weapons attacking around the "Five Spirit Bell" and asked, "What ability do you understand?"

Jin Qinghan nodded slightly. After realizing that the golden weapons created from his blood could not harm Xu Qingfan, he waved his hand to gather the golden weapons together. In the shimmering golden light, the weapons began to blend into one another.

At the same time, Jin Qinghan stepped towards Xu Qingfan. From Jin Qinghan’s judgment, the only way to break the defense of the "Five Spirit Bell" was for his Diamond Dharma Phase to get closer.

Although Xu Qingfan guessed Jin Qinghan’s intentions, he did not care at all. He simply pointed at the Diamond Dharma Phase behind Jin Qinghan and asked, with a hint of uncertainty in his voice, "Eight Evil Consciousness King?"

The Eight Evil Consciousness King is the highest-ranked protector in Buddhism. With three pairs of eyes, he sees goodness, evil, and the self, while his six hands hold six magical tools that control the soul, thought, punishment, reward, the world, and the banishment of evil. He is very similar to the Diamond Dharma Phase behind Jin Qinghan.

After Jin Qinghan nodded again, Xu Qingfan smiled and said, "When did you become a disciple of Buddhism? Or are you perhaps a disciple of the faded ‘Pure Land Sect’?"

The Eight Evil Consciousness King was the Buddha worshipped by the "Pure Land Sect," but the "Pure Land Sect" was destroyed by the "Spirit Purging Cult" during the last great catastrophe. The current "Mercy Cloud Temple" is just a newcomer.

Jin Qinghan finally spoke, saying slowly, "My master accidentally obtained a piece of the ‘Pure Land Sect’ cultivation method. After studying it, I found it had similarities with the gold-type technique I was practicing, so I have been researching how to combine the two methods, and I eventually succeeded in creating this Diamond Dharma Phase."

Xu Qingfan nodded slightly, thinking that this three-headed, six-armed Diamond Dharma Phase represented a small success, while making each of the six arms possess unique powers would represent a great success. At this moment, Jin Qinghan was already close to achieving great success with five of the arms gaining powers.

That said, when Xu Qingfan was still in the late stage of the Inedia Stage, he could already perform the two-headed, four-armed Diamond Dharma Phase. Didn’t that mean his cultivation level was even lower when he was researching this technique? To create a cultivation method and succeed with such a low level of cultivation can hardly be described as exceptional talent. In comparison, the Blooded Spirit Weapon technique seemed ordinary. If it weren’t for Feng Qingtian competing with him, he would probably already be celebrated as the greatest talent in Jiuhua in a thousand years.

With such talent, Jin Qinghan had every reason to be proud, yet he was always overshadowed by Feng Qingtian. No wonder Jin Qinghan couldn’t stop thinking about his repeated defeats at Feng Qingtian’s hands.

As Xu Qingfan quietly reflected, the golden weapons made from Feng Qingtian’s blood gradually merged into one, becoming a dark gold short sword that looked ancient and dull but had an even more powerful presence. Jin Qinghan had already walked to within four yards of him, and with a few more steps, he would enter the best attack range of the "Eight Evil Consciousness King."

But just then, Xu Qingfan suddenly smiled slightly and said, "Since that’s the case, I won’t hide my abilities any longer. You’ve already seen my first move, ‘Wind of Destruction’. Now let me show you my second move."

Upon hearing Xu Qingfan’s words, Jin Qinghan hesitated, feeling a sense of warning rise within him. He noticed that Xu Qingfan remained in place, not making any special moves. Furrowing his brow, he became alert, and at that moment, the golden weapon made from his blood suddenly lunged toward Xu Qingfan, while Jin Qinghan quickened his steps towards him.

"This move I call ‘External Manifestation’." Facing the dark gold short sword and Jin Qinghan’s approach, Xu Qingfan remained calm and merely smiled.

As Xu Qingfan spoke, Jin Qinghan suddenly felt a wave of caution and quickly stepped back, only to see a figure appear in front of him. As this person raised their hand, a storm of flames enveloped him, then vanished in an instant. Although this figure disappeared quickly, Jin Qinghan was astonished to notice that the person’s face looked almost exactly like Xu Qingfan’s, except without Xu Qingfan’s calm and elegant aura, the dark red phoenix tattoo on his cheeks, or the faint scar.

At the same time, just as Jin Qinghan’s dark gold short sword was about to reach Xu Qingfan, a figure appeared to block him, using its strong body to stop the powerful sword. Although the short sword seemed to have a will of its own, searching for weaknesses to continue attacking Xu Qingfan, it was firmly held back by this figure. Despite looking clumsy, the figure moved quickly, blocking the sword just as it approached Xu Qingfan. The sword was quick and powerful but could do nothing against this barrier.

This figure still looked exactly like Xu Qingfan.

The two figures that appeared one after the other were Xu Qingfan’s two external manifestations—Xu Zhiyuan and Xu Ying.

After Xu Zhiyuan and Xu Ying appeared, Xu Qingfan himself removed the defense of the "Five Spirit Bell." Although the "Five Spirit Bell" was very strong in defense, it used up a lot of Xu Qingfan’s Spirit Qi and Divine Sense. While Xu Qingfan had no worries about defense when using it, he felt restricted in attack.

After removing the defense of the "Five Spirit Bell," Xu Qingfan did not hesitate. He moved his hands quickly, sending endless "Wind of Destruction" towards Jin Qinghan.

Earlier, when Jin Qinghan kept getting closer, Xu Qingfan ignored him, hoping that Jin Qinghan would not be able to defend himself when he was attacked.

On the other side, the "Eight Evil Consciousness King" magic wand in Jin Qinghan’s hands swung continuously, unleashing golden light that suppressed the flames Xu Zhiyuan cast. But when he saw Xu Qingfan’s "Wind of Destruction" approaching, he frowned even tighter. Just as he was about to use "Eight Evil Consciousness King" to defend, Xu Zhiyuan’s figure suddenly appeared again, bringing a powerful fire toward Jin Qinghan.

In a difficult situation, Jin Qinghan had no choice but to let "Eight Evil Consciousness King" fight against the elusive Xu Zhiyuan while he faced Xu Qingfan’s "Wind of Destruction" himself.

Jin Qinghan quickly waved his hands to face the incoming "Wind of Destruction," and the clear sky turned dark with clouds. Suddenly, several lightning bolts struck down fiercely on the "Wind of Destruction," quickly scattering it.

"You have actually learned Thunder Magic? Good!" Xu Qingfan nodded in praise. Although his words seemed easy, his hands continued to wave rapidly, launching "Wind of Destruction" to attack Jin Qinghan.

Thunder Magic is very difficult to master. It takes a single person’s strength to control the power of nature, and if one is not careful, they could suffer backlash. The reason Feng Qingtian practiced Thunder Magic might be because his gold-type cultivation method was always restricted by his fire-type cultivation method.

Just as Jin Qinghan was about to use Thunder Magic to attack Xu Qingfan, Xu Qingfan gave him no chance to catch his breath. The "Wind of Destruction" continuously came at Jin Qinghan.

Jin Qinghan lost the initiative and, with no choice, could only continue to use lightning magic to resist.

And so, Xu Qingfan’s "Wind of Destruction" faced Jin Qinghan’s "Five Thunder Techniques," Xu Ying confronted Jin Qinghan’s Blooded Spirit Weapon, and Xu Zhiyuan went against the "Eight Evil Consciousness King." For a moment, Xu Qingfan and Jin Qinghan were evenly matched.

In fact, the "Eight Evil Consciousness King" was the most powerful spell in Jin Qinghan’s arsenal. Xu Zhiyuan, with only the power of his external incarnation, could not resist it. However, Xu Zhiyuan was just an external incarnation, and the control of the "Eight Evil Consciousness King" over the Divine Sense was ineffective against him, reducing its power by a third. Moreover, Xu Zhiyuan’s fire Spirit Qi attacks countered the golden essence of the "Eight Evil Consciousness King," and with his incredible speed, he was hard to catch. For a moment, the "Eight Evil Consciousness King" could do nothing against him.

About the time it takes to burn a stick of incense, Jin Qinghan’s brows furrowed even tighter. He didn’t expect Xu Qingfan’s strength to be so great, and his magic so mysterious. Although he was clearly stronger in skill, he could only achieve a stalemate. This was even without Xu Qingfan’s strongest move—Little Black joining in.

"It seems I have to use that move."

Jin Qinghan sighed softly in his heart. While his right hand continued to wave and cast lightning magic, his left hand dropped, beginning to shimmer with a dark golden light.

※※※※

The power generated from the contest between Xu Qingfan and Jin Qinghan was much stronger than the match between Xu Qingfan and Feng Qingtian thirteen years ago. As soon as they began, the elders on the front mountain noticed it.

Surprised that the two had such strength, they dared not delay and quickly rushed toward the spot where Xu Qingfan and Jin Qinghan were competing. The scene of the battle between Xu Qingfan and Feng Qingtian thirteen years ago was still vivid in their memories. Now, with Jiuhua about to be reborn, if the two were seriously injured in the match, it would be very bad.

But just when the group of elders flew to the back mountain, they suddenly sensed a wave of Spirit Qi that made their hearts race. It shook violently and then disappeared in an instant, as if some terrifying magical power had been unleashed. When the elders arrived, they found chaos everywhere, and the match between Xu Qingfan and Jin Qinghan had already ended.

Jin Qinghan’s left arm was completely shattered, while Xu Qingfan was using some kind of power to help him heal. Golden and silver lights surrounded Jin Qinghan’s left arm, and the visible bones began to heal and fill out.

Seeing that both of them were safe, the elders let out a sigh of relief. Apart from Gongsun Huasa, who grumbled a bit, the other elders quietly withdrew.

After Gongsun Huasa left, Jin Qinghan’s left arm, which was nearly just bones, healed under Xu Qingfan’s third power, "Way of Life and Death." Xu Qingfan then smiled and said, "In the end, I still lost."

Jin Qinghan shook his head slightly and said, "If you had let Little Black fight, I wouldn’t have had the chance to use that move."

Xu Qingfan smiled gently, neither agreeing nor disagreeing, and advised, "Your last move was too overpowering. You must remember that hard things can break easily. It can hurt both you and your opponent. This time, to avoid hurting me, you intentionally reduced its power. Still, it caused your entire left arm to collapse. If you had gone all out, even if you had defeated your enemy, you would have ended up hurting yourself."

Jin Qinghan nodded to show he understood, but then asked, "How does my strength compare to Feng Qingtian’s?"

Xu Qingfan sighed softly and after a moment of thought, slowly said, "Compared to Feng Qingtian thirteen years ago, you two are evenly matched. If you used that move, victory would be certain. But as I just said, if you use that move, even if you win, your body will fall apart, so it’s better not to use it in the future."

A look of contemplation appeared in Jin Qinghan’s eyes.