Martial Cultivator

Three Streams Manor had stood for several hundred years, producing countless astonishing and brilliant qi refiners. It was precisely because of these qi refiners that Three Streams Manor step by step grew from an obscure minor sect of qi refiners into the present-day leader of southern qi refiners.

These qi refiners who had left bold strokes throughout the history of Three Streams Manor, without exception, after ascending to immortality[passing away], all had memorial tablets set up within this Ancestral Hall.

Now that the Ancestral Hall was destroyed, these geniuses of past generations appeared once more, all turning their gaze toward the black-robed young martial artist.

”What audacity! How dare you destroy the Ancestral Hall of my Three Streams Manor!”

A voice, like an exploding thunderclap, descended from the clouds. At the same time, heavenly lightning churned in the clouds, countless arcs of electricity spreading outward.

Golden bolts of heavenly lightning rolled through the sea of clouds, like snarling golden dragons, roaring without end.

Above all of Three Streams Manor, the sky was now filled with heavenly lightning.

Those bolts of lightning crisscrossed, forming in that instant what seemed like a vast net of lightning. Such a grand sight could scarcely be found anywhere in the world.

From among the many figures, a tall silhouette stepped out. He stretched forth one hand toward the heavens, and the lightning in the sky suddenly converged upon him.

It was a sight that left everyone present dumbstruck.

As the golden heavenly lightning descended to the mortal realm, the figure gradually became clear. It was a middle-aged man in a green robe, with a pale, beardless face and a purple-gold crown upon his head.

Someone, not knowing who, suddenly spoke. ”That is... Daoist Yingshan?!”

Daoist Yingshan?

This name, few cultivators of today remembered clearly, but for the lineage of qi refiners, these two words were nearly impossible to ignore.

Daoist Yingshan had been a Manor Lord of Three Streams Manor in a certain generation, and at that time, the undisputed number one qi refiner. He began cultivating within Three Streams Manor, and in merely sixty years stepped into Nepenthe. A few short years later, he reached the end of Nepenthe, becoming the foremost genius not only among qi refiners of that era, but even beyond them.

In that generation of qi refiners, none stood higher than Daoist Yingshan. Among his contemporaries, he was like a towering mountain, standing immovable, with no one daring to claim they could surpass him.

Daoist Yingshan mastered nearly every daoist technique of the qi refiners, and even opened several new secret arts upon the foundation of existing ones.

In the history of the qi refiners’ lineage, he had left behind a profound legacy.

And among the shadows of these past qi refiners, Daoist Yingshan stood foremost, the first to strike, his might overwhelming.

More and more disciples of Three Streams Manor gathered, looking up from the lakeside with tears streaming down their faces.

Today was perhaps the most challenging moment in the history of Three Streams Manor, but in such a time of crisis, their teachers and ancestors did not stand idly by. Though they no longer belonged to this world, at this moment they still stood forth.

Yet beneath the heavenly lightning, the young martial artist only pressed a hand upon his saber’s hilt, silently watching Daoist Yingshan, who now seemed like an ancient god of thunder.

Daoist cultivators were most adept at lightning spells, but the techniques of qi refiners seemed somewhat different.

Chen Chao raised his head. The lightning above already illuminated the sky.

”You’re already dead, why bother jumping out again?”

Chen Chao exhaled a turbid breath. The lightning suddenly crashed down like a torrential storm, instantly engulfing the young martial artist before him.

From the lakeside, the crowd stared at the mountain peak where the Ancestral Hall of Three Streams Manor once stood. The lightning engulfed it completely. Such might, none present could possibly escape from such terrifying power.

Liang Jinjin clenched her fists, her nails unconsciously piercing into her flesh until blood flowed, staining her hands.

Yet the woman seemed not to feel the pain, only staring at the mountain peak, her eyes full of worry.

This scene fell entirely into Sage Bamboo Moon’s eyes.

She already had some conclusions in her heart.

This spectacle lasted for about half an hour. Zhang Nanting who was already at death’s door, knelt in the mountainside forest, murmuring, ”The ancestors have manifested, slaying the villain...”

Before he finished speaking...

The lightning across the sky suddenly paused. Then, a saber light, more brilliant than the lightning itself, erupted atop the mountain, as if the heavens and earth had split from the peak. A long line, snow-white with a glint of gold, rapidly tore through the sky.

The first thing it cut through was the lightning that had already submerged the mountaintop.

Amid the vast sea of lightning, that single line instantly split it in two - completely separate, unrecognizable from one another.

Daoist Yingshan, among the countless phantoms in the sky, suddenly furrowed his brow. Even he had not expected that after the young man was engulfed by the lightning, he would not only remain intact but actually cut through the lightning itself.

As the lightning was cleaved, from the gap rose a black figure. Perhaps due to its speed, traces of lightning still clung to it as it soared upward, appearing like a golden ribbon.

In reality, the lightning that had reacted late was now chasing the rising black shadow.

Daoist Yingshan’s expression did not change. He willed the golden light to follow the black shadow, forming a colossal golden dragon that opened its massive jaws, aiming to swallow the ascending figure whole.

But the young martial artist, blown by the violent wind, gripped Cloud Mud and slashed toward the sky. The terrifying saber beam tore through the golden light, also cleaving several silent illusions alongside it.

The lightning behind him pursued relentlessly. Chen Chao remained unfazed. After that slash shattered the boundless lightning, he twisted his body and surged toward Daoist Yingshan.

Daoist Yingshan did not move. A sudden gust rose behind him, blowing directly at Chen Chao, causing his stance to wobble for a moment.

From the wind, Daoist Yingshan produced a willow leaf whose origin was unknown, holding it before his eyes.

A leaf to block vision.

The scene before Chen Chao instantly shifted. The world’s colors began to fade, turning from vibrant hues into black and white.

Even the golden dragon, still in pursuit, slowly transformed from gold to black and white.

Chen Chao narrowed his eyes and turned, slashing toward the black dragon’s head. His blade qi surged like a mighty river, endless and unbroken.

In the current world, in terms of sheer amount of qi, few in the younger generation could rival Chen Chao.

”Villain! Using brute force to prove your Dao, it’s merely a minor Dao, yet you dare to challenge Heavenly Dao?!”

Daoist Yingshan squinted at the young martial artist before him. Cultivators often held disdain for martial artists; a sentiment deeply ingrained. Facing the one who had already destroyed the Ancestral Hall of Three Streams Manor, Daoist Yingshan could feel no goodwill.

After cleaving apart the black dragon, Chen Chao finally turned, letting the gust of wind whip his robes around him.

”When did a dead man like you ever get to claim you can represent Heavenly Dao?”

Chen Chao snorted coldly, gripping the Cloud Mud in his hand tighter. Then, he mocked, ”If you really so amazing, could you have watched me demolish your Ancestral Hall so helplessly?”

”You...”

Daoist Yingshan’s eyes were filled with killing intent. “If I were still alive, would an uncouth martial artist like you dare to act so arrogantly?”

Chen Chao clicked his tongue. “Oh? End of Nepenthe and you’re so arrogant? Who isn’t end of Nepenthe?”

......

......

In this black-and-white world, voices could not reach the outside. Otherwise, anyone who heard this would be dropped-jawed in shock.

This young martial artist had really reached the end of Nepenthe too?

“What is there to fear from a martial artist at the end of Nepenthe?!”

This time it was not Daoist Yingshan who spoke, but the other phantoms. Their voices were chaotic, clearly more than one person speaking at once. Several of them were speaking simultaneously.

Chen Chao lifted his head and casually threw out a single word.

“Oh.”

After saying this, Chen Chao’s figure flashed past. Daoist Yingshan’s expression changed slightly, because in that instant he had almost been unable to perceive Chen Chao’s movement.

By the time he saw Chen Chao, the young martial artist was already in front of him.

A slash of saber qi immediately followed.

Daoist Yingshan stepped back. The saber cut across, causing a ripple in this black-and-white world.

But Chen Chao, having forced Daoist Yingshan back with a single slash, did not immediately follow up. Instead, he moved toward the dense phantoms and suddenly delivered a slash.

Terrifying saber qi instantly passed through one of the phantoms.

Then countless black-and-white strands surged in front of Chen Chao, wrapping around his wrist. Before they could fully control him, Chen Chao’s other hand grabbed the strands and pulled with force, tearing the threads emerging from the void apart.

Chen Chao’s expression remained cold. Before Daoist Yingshan could react, he cut through each of the unseen phantoms one by one.

Finally, only Chen Chao and Daoist Yingshan remained in this place.

”Your turn.”

Chen Chao glanced at the Cloud Mud in his hand. There was no blood on it, and the hilt had not turned snow-white.