Chapter 67: Innate with a Single Thought

Within the grand hall, the two young men clashed with ferocity. Cheng Feng, manifesting his nascent soul as an ethereal avatar, unleashed a torrent of arcane might. Qi Fei’s blade shattered in his grasp, exposing his disadvantage. Seizing the moment as Cheng Feng’s lips curled into a savage grin, convinced of imminent victory, Qi Fei suddenly invoked two of the Heart Demon Sect’s most fearsome arts—the Spirit Insight Mantra and the Blood Shadow Escape—hoping to strike his foe down before he could react.

Yet this prodigious talent of the Xuan Zhen Monastery, gifted with a preternatural affinity for the arcane, was able to divide his attention even as his soul left his body. Cheng Feng promptly conjured a powerful protective spell, narrowly shielding his corporeal form from harm.

Cheng Feng reeled at the revelation that Qi Fei, too, had mastered such inscrutable Daoist sorcery. Startled and wary, he cloaked his flesh in the shimmering phantasm of his soul, eyes fixed warily upon his adversary.

When Qi Fei had unleashed his blood-shadow escape, he had simultaneously employed the Spirit Insight Mantra and the subtle manipulation of elemental energies to conceal the ominous, deathly aura of his demonic art; even so, the profundity of his Daoist sorcery left all the experts in the hall thunderstruck.

A youth of the Danxia Sect, whose martial cultivation nearly touched the innate realm and whose true qi was renowned for its unyielding might, had also grasped such enigmatic Daoist magic. Had Cheng Feng not possessed monstrous talent, able to wield defensive Daoist seals even as his soul wandered, he would surely have perished under the onslaught of Qi Fei’s spell.

The assembly of masters, witnessing the tense confrontation between these two prodigies in the grand hall, could not suppress their astonishment. That Cangyun Mountain should harbor such twin paragons seemed a marvel; this duel would surely end in death for one. Who, they wondered, would meet their end upon Qingyang Peak today?

Qi Fei, well aware he could not contend with Cheng Feng’s soul avatar head-on, nonetheless forced his adversary into caution with the uncanny powers of the Blood Shadow Escape.

Wiping blood from the corner of his mouth, Qi Fei met Cheng Feng’s guarded gaze with a faint, mocking smile. “What now? Do you think you can take my life with that fierce stare alone? The appointed hour is nearly upon us. If we continue this stalemate, neither of us will prevail. Just how long do you intend to wait?”

Though his soul was out of his body, Cheng Feng’s monstrous gift allowed him to make his flesh speak, though the voice was eerily distorted. “I never imagined you, too, would master the Daoist spiritual soul—thinking to catch me off guard with your strange escape technique. You are far too naïve.”

As Cheng Feng’s raspy, uncanny voice echoed, his soul’s avatar transformed once more, casting a pale shadow above his flesh. In his hand, a ritual blade erupted in scarlet radiance, sending crimson sword-lights darting in every direction.

The hall instantly descended into chaos as sword-lights shot forth. Though Qi Fei used the Blood Shadow Escape to evade the deadly Daoist blades, he saw his master, Elder Sun, and others plunged into peril.

Cheng Feng, ever vicious and unscrupulous, had directed the brunt of his soul avatar’s sword-lights at the outer disciples of Danxia Sect.

Mo Zhanpeng, despite having recently tempered his body with the Eight-Armed Gale-Thunder Fist, had not yet achieved the fifth tier of martial cultivation and could not shield the disciples with protective qi. Elder Sun, only slightly stronger than his disciples, was no match for Cheng Feng. In moments, Mo Zhanpeng, Elder Sun, and their disciples were wounded by the avatar’s magic; some fell beneath the crimson sword-lights.

Qi Fei’s heart tightened with dread. Unable to bear seeing his master and Elder Sun imperiled, he had no choice but to hurl himself at Cheng Feng.

“Well come!” Cheng Feng’s face twisted into a grotesque smile as his soul avatar abandoned its assault on Mo Zhanpeng and the others, turning instead to meet Qi Fei’s aerial charge.

In a sudden burst, the ritual blade in Cheng Feng’s soul avatar’s hand shimmered with arcs of scarlet light, transforming into a barrage of sword-lights that beset Qi Fei from all sides.

Qi Fei’s eyes narrowed, his focus sharpening. As the storm of sword-lights bore down, his fists unleashed a series of thunderous, forceful strikes, each blow scattering the scorching Daoist energies like bolts of heavenly thunder.

Just as Qi Fei shattered the oncoming scarlet lights, the soul avatar of Cheng Feng above the hall suddenly dimmed. Qi Fei’s heart trembled with foreboding.

At that moment, a strange fissure split open on Cheng Feng’s brow. A blinding red radiance surged forth. With this power, his soul avatar transformed into a vast Daoist barrier, ensnaring Qi Fei midair.

The gathered experts stared, astonished, at the spectacle: a grand Daoist ward wrought from myriad sword-lights and blazing fire, looming in the air. It was said that Daoist Master Cangsong had bestowed the sect’s treasured Red Sun Pearl upon Cheng Feng. With its help, though his cultivation was short of the soul-leaving realm, Cheng Feng could summon a power rivaling the transformation stage.

Qi Fei, not yet of the innate realm, found himself trapped within the barrier of Red Sun Pearl and soul avatar. His mind wavered in distress. This spell radiated overwhelming power; even the Blood Shadow Escape could not break such a ward. Desperate, Qi Fei mustered a shield of protective qi, straining against the relentless attacks of the magical array.

To kill Qi Fei, Cheng Feng did not hesitate to fuse the sect’s treasured Red Sun Pearl with his own departing soul; the resulting barrier, it was said, could baffle even innate martial masters. Secure in his advantage, Cheng Feng thought: No matter how formidable Qi Fei’s Daoist escapes, he will not break my magic barrier.

Beset on all sides, Qi Fei’s protective qi faltered, cracks appearing beneath the ceaseless onslaught. He had reached the end of his rope.

Chu Qingyun looked up at Qi Fei, trapped in mortal peril, and a trace of regret flickered across his face. This youth of Danxia Sect, with his formidable martial foundation and uncanny Daoist arts, had inspired in Chu Qingyun a keen desire to recruit him. Yet Cheng Feng, aided by treasure, had attained a might belonging only to the transformation stage. For all Qi Fei’s abilities, it seemed he would not escape death today.

Sima Yan, still deprived of the Dan Ding Sect’s spirit herbs by Qi Fei, now watched anxiously as Cheng Feng’s sorcery bound him. Yet, before so many witnesses, Sima Yan dared not intervene.

Mo Zhanpeng and the others, seeing Qi Fei risk all to save them, were beside themselves with worry.

Qi Fei, trapped within the magical array, saw his protective qi about to shatter under its blows. In that moment, he thought of the Daoist adept Zhuo Jiner; only she, perhaps, could save him now. Yet she was nowhere to be seen, and as despair crept in, a dark thought crossed his mind: Would he really die at Cheng Feng’s hands this day?

Unwilling to await death, Qi Fei summoned every last vestige of elemental energy, sustaining his failing shield, and recalled the words Zhuo Jiner had spoken when discoursing on the Dao.

The innate realm, she had said, is but a single thought away. To break through to innate martial cultivation and awaken the soul’s primal insight, one must first possess an unwavering Daoist heart.

He had reached the sixth tier not long ago, and his command of elemental energy was profound. Guided by Zhuo Jiner, he had forged a resolute, unyielding will; perhaps, then, the innate realm was truly within a single thought. His only hope was to grasp its mystery before his shield was destroyed.

Lacking guidance, Qi Fei could only desperately recall his previous duel with the innate master Sima Yan.

The power of the innate realm was terrifying. The protective qi was as impregnable as iron walls; the Thunderclap Palm, when wielded with innate force, could shatter worlds. Qi Fei knew that his own shield and the Eight-Armed Gale-Thunder Fist lacked such overwhelming might.

If an innate master were trapped within this magical array, how would they respond? Remembering the day in the Scripture Library, when Sima Yan’s innate shield had left his hands bloodied, Qi Fei felt he was on the verge of understanding something crucial.

As Qi Fei struggled to fathom the secret of the innate, his shield finally shattered under Cheng Feng’s relentless assault.

Driven to desperation, Qi Fei invoked the Blood Shadow Escape—yet within this soul-powered, Red Sun Pearl-fueled array, even that incredible art could not break its bindings.

Having expended much of his elemental energy maintaining his shield, Qi Fei could neither muster another nor escape with the Blood Shadow Escape. Death seemed certain.

Cheng Feng’s soul avatar unleashed a deluge of scarlet sword-lights, raining destruction upon Qi Fei. With a roar that shook the heavens, Qi Fei unleashed a final, desperate blow.

The sword-lights exploded in midair; the great beams supporting the hall collapsed with a thunderous crash, plunging the entire structure into chaos.

Cheng Feng’s soul avatar, empowered by the Red Sun Pearl, struck Qi Fei with its full might. Convinced that his foe could not possibly survive, Cheng Feng’s face twisted in a savage grin as he slowly drew his soul back into his body.

Mo Zhanpeng and the others gazed in despair at the shattered ruins, certain that Qi Fei had perished and Danxia Sect faced imminent calamity.

“The duel between Elder Yang’s disciple Cheng Feng and Elder Mo’s disciple Qi Fei is settled. The auspicious hour has come; Elder Yang shall now assume the mantle of Danxia Sect’s leader. Surely Marquis and Master Sima have no objection?” In the aftermath, Daoist Cangsong hurried to install Yang Zheng as sect chief.

Chu Qingyun looked somber, while Sima Yan’s eyes flashed coldly. At that moment, a stir arose from the heap of rubble atop the ruined hall.

A flicker of doubt crossed Cheng Feng’s eyes. Could it be that Qi Fei had survived? How could this be?