Martial God-Book 2 - Fame Spreads - Chapter 38 - The Challenge

The heavens and lands glimmered with the snow’s silver radiance, and the entire forest resembled a sculpture carved out of white marble.

As He Yiming stood in silence atop the snow-covered ground of the forest, facing the destruction that could only have been caused by an inhumane power, countless emotions welled up inside him.

Ever since he’d started cultivating Internal Energy, the strongest move he’d executed was undoubtedly that stunning blade strike which he’d carried out against that Gold-Crowned python and was produced by exhausting all the Internal Energy inside his body instantaneously and bringing out his body’s potential to the extreme.

However, after that day, he’d never produced such a powerful move again.

Even after accomplishing the greater success in five-phases techniques, he hadn’t been able to use this move again. Every time after accumulating his strength for a long time, he would be absolutely incapable of bringing it out instantaneously.

Today, he’d unexpectedly completed the refining of Reclining Moon Blade, integrated the fist concept of Silk Palm on a snowy day with the blade, then even produced a move that could only be described as world-shaking.

The meridians inside his body seemed to have become capable of enduring the backlash of this move. Five phases operating in turns had thoroughly brought out the potential of the engendering loop.

The power of this blade strike was even higher than the former one by a bit. However, more importantly, He Yiming didn’t lose consciousness due to exhaustion like before. Although he still felt completely exhausted and had burned out an enormous amount of True Qi instantaneously, during the time he took another breath, energies in the external world had begun to converge and enter his body in huge amounts, allowing him to replenish his True Qi.

Of course, the incoming of True Qi was nowhere near the amount that the strike had consumed. Currently, his body only had sufficient True Qi to allow him to perform simple actions. However, if he wished to execute another such strike, that would be absolutely impossible to do within a short period of time.

He calmed his mind and sat down by this frightening twenty-meter-long straight line.

his brows creased as he’d begun to contemplate.

The blade strike of the past demanded every single bit of the Internal Energy inside his body, and thus, was able to bring out such a strong might even when he was in the Houtian realm that it killed a Gold-Crowned python in a single use.

Although the current blade strike was also equally powerful, he was currently already in Xiantian realm.

There was unexpectedly hardly any difference between the ultimate moves of Houtian and Xiantian realms. This shouldn’t be the case at all.

If he truly desired to produce this might, it seemed like he would have to similarly arouse all his True Qi instantaneously. If this was the case, he still had a long road to tread….

Withered Tree technique instantly operated to the peak, immediately increasing the speed of external energies entering his body.

He Yiming took one full hour before standing up again. The tip of his foot slightly jumped, following which, the three-hundred-sixty jin heavy Reclining Moon Blade immediately flew up and into his hand. He then started to wave the big blade, performing simple moves and stances.

This time he’d not used Silk Palm, but those forms of [Splitting Mountain Thirty-Six Forms] which he’d complete mastery over.

However, he was evidently not using the five-phases techniques in alternation. Usually, by purely using metal-type Primordial Energy, this metal-type battle skill’s power could be brought out to the extreme.

[Splitting Mountain Thirty-Six Forms] was a metal type battle skill. All of its forms were straightforward. The only difference compared to the ordinary battle skills was that this battle skill’s circulation route was quite innovative and could vividly display the potential of True Qi.

As He Yiming smoothly carried out the moves of the first form, there was even a dim, golden aura surrounding his body. Moreover, the Reclining Moon Blade, which was producing wind-cleaving sounds and flickering with a golden glow, seemed heavenly and majestic.

Among the sixteen forms, in addition to straight up-and-down chops that weighed down like Mt. Tai, there were also left-and-right horizontal slashes that brought complete annihilation along the way. However, regardless of whichever form, they all claimed assistance of a strong power. With every increase in the power of the user, the might of this battle skill also seemed to gain a ten fold increase.

With such a tremendous gain, this technique was extremely powerful even when taking Xiantian battle skills into account.

Half an hour later, He Yiming eventually retracted the blade. He was already quite satisfied with his martial skill.

He swept his gaze around. This section of the forest had already been wrecked by him. Especially the black soil that seemed to have come out due to an explosion, looked extremely frightening.

With his brows creased, he thought for a few moments, then raised the Reclining Moon Blade and issued a few chops onto the Jadestone bed furnace which didn’t resemble either a furnace or bed.

With every chop, the bed was immediately cut in compliance to the blade. Soon, it was cut into ten uneven parts by him.

With a slight poke, ten rocks appeared sailing in the air before dropping down over the black ground in succession.

Following which, He Yiming’s figure moved about in the snow like lightning while pouring snow and soil over this path.

After a while, the path had been completely straightened out by him. Although it still looked quite terrible, at least, it was not as frightening as before.

As long as there was another snowfall, this path would have another layer of cover. The only eyesore was that there wasn’t a single grass or weed growing on this path. It would certainly feel quite strange to spectators.

However, here in the forest’s depths, after a few years at most, trees and dense vegetation would certainly grow once again and completely cover up all these marks.

After accomplishing all this, He Yiming dismantled the Reclining Moon Blade, patted his butt, and leisurely walked down the mountains.

This time, repeatedly travelling back and forth, he’d already wasted a whole day. However, despite that, the extent of his current excitement could be estimated from his external appearance.

However, when he returned back to the Yuan family, he felt an extremely grave atmosphere pervading the manor.

This time, the eyes of the servants that encountered him, apart from apprehension, also contained heavy expectations and joy.

He Yiming felt quite puzzled. ‘What happened with these people? Could it be they stopped believing that I am a devil’s reincarnation in merely a day’s worth of time?’

An individual approached him in hurried steps. It was Yuan Lixuan who was in charge of keeping them entertained.

Previously, he’d always been lurking around He Yitian. Only when He Yiming displayed unimaginably tremendous strength, he eventually discovered that the most frightening among He family’s young generation was not He Yitian, but He Yiming who appeared to be nothing more than an ordinary youngster.

Currently, upon seeing He Yiming, he frantically rushed to him and said, “Sixth elder brother He, you’re finally back.”

Goosebumps broke out on He Yiming’s body. This form of address, wasn’t it a bit too affectionate? Moreover, this person’s age was evidently a lot bigger than him. Even if He Yiming’s face had been twice as thicker, he wouldn’t have been able endure such reception.

Squeezing out a little smile, He Yiming said, “Brother Yuan is too polite. Do you know where my eldest uncle and brother are?”

Yuan Lixuan immediately said, “Sixth elder brother He, elder uncle He and brother He are both in the main hall.” He took in a deep breath, then supplemented, “Fan family’s elder young master has come along with two spongers for a visit. Elder uncle Earnest is there with them.”

He Yiming’s eyes momentarily shined with a radiance that could dissuade one from meeting gaze with him, ‘Didn’t expect while I had gone to refine the sword, these people will actually come knocking at the door.’

Yuan Lixuan’s rection was the exact opposite of He Yiming’s. His heart trembled, and his entire body, as if fallen into an ice cellar, began to faintly contract. He thought to himself, ‘Which realm has this guy actually cultivated to? How can his aura be so strong? It seems even more frightening than the uncle’s!”

“How long have they been here?” He Yiming asked in a heavy voice.

“They have just arrived, merely about a cup of tea’s worth of time.” Yuan Lixuan quickly replied.

He Yiming faintly nodded at him, then headed to the main hall in large strides.

Although he’d not arrived in Yuan family for too long, he hadn’t overlooked the way to the main hall.

The reason was that as long as one walked straight forward from the entrance, he would certainly arrive at the main hall. Nobody could forget such a location.

Yuan Lixuan eagerly followed after him, but he was quite anxious inwardly. It seemed like Fan family could no longer endure and had decided to act but he’d no way of knowing whether Yuan family would be able to overcome this challenge.

When He Yiming arrived in the main hall, he discovered that the atmosphere in the main was not hostile as he’d imagined and was instead warm and affable.

But as soon as he entered, he attracted everybody’s gazes.

Apart from Yuan Earnest, his eldest uncle and brother, there were three more unfamiliar people.

Among the three strangers, one was a twenty-seven or twenty-eight year old young man while the other two seemed like middle-aged men.

The young man’s face was handsome. Especially, his two long sword-like, dark eyebrows which resembled like two feathers of a goose, two eyes that gleamed with wisdom, and a faint smile that seemed to have always been there.

As for the two spongers, their faces, on the contrary, carried a kind of sallow countenance, as if suffering from malnutrition.

However, as soon as He Yiming’s vision fell upon them, his brows slightly creased.

He’d already stepped into Xiantian realm. He could easily see through the true strengths of Houtian realm cultivators. That young man didn’t amount to much. Despite being bigger than He Yitian by a few years, his Internal Energy was merely at the seventh layer.

However, the two middle-aged men were not simple. Although they were not tenth layer experts, their cultivation was still at the ninth layer. Moreover, from their breathing tempo, he felt that they must have cultivated in the same technique. Moreover, from the small movements they had made, He Yiming could tell that if these two acted together, they would certainly have a high mutual coordination.

Merely a passing glance was all He Yiming needed to understand so many things. This was the reason Xiantian realm’s powerful cultivators were so frightening.

When they inspected someone, they didn’t merely use their eyes, but at the same, by using their connection with the external world through the Worldly Qi, they could often discern many things that others couldn’t by paying attention to minute details.

As Yuan Earnest saw He Yiming, his eyes immediately shined. The current He Yiming’s status in his mind was no longer any inferior to that of He Quanxin. Therefore, when he saw him return, he felt even more at ease.

“Nephew He Yiming, hurry over here,” Yuan Earnest chuckled and said, “I will make the introductions. This gentleman is Fan family’s elder young master Fan Vastsun- a brilliant talent in the Zheng Tong county’s young generation.”

Fan Vastsun gracefully smiled and said, “Uncle Yuan is too flattering. How could my little bit of skill catch the eye of the He brothers.”

Yuan Earnest chuckled once before saying, “These two gentleman are spongers of Fan family- Mr. Xiao Yifan and Mr. Xiao Yilin.”

Even after hearing Yuan Earnest’s introduction, these two continued to loftily sit on their chairs, turning a blind eye on He Yiming.

A furious expression flickered on Yuan Earnest’s face but was quickly suppressed.

He Yiming faintly nodded at them and was about to walk to his eldest uncle’s side when he saw his eldest brother He Yitian signaling him with eyes.

Following his eldest uncle’s vision, he saw that in the arrogant gaze’s of the two Xiao brothers, there was actually a hint of provocation. But their target of attention was his eldest uncle, not him.

He Yiming immediately understood that his eldest brother had actually been angry at these two individuals. However, since he was not an opponent for them himself, he wished for He Yiming to act.

Faintly nodding, He Yiming’s feet paused but immediately saw He Quanxin’s brows slightly creasing as he said, “Yiming, come sit beside me.”

Helpless, He Yiming shrugged towards his eldest brother and obediently walked to his eldest uncle’s side and sat down.

Currently, he still had the three-hundred-sixty jin heavy Reclining Moon Blade on his back. However, when he sat on the chair- as if the blade didn’t weigh at all, the chair didn’t even sway in the slightest.

Fan Vastsun and the spongers didn’t know but Yuan Earnest and others clearly knew the weight of the long cloth wrapping on He Yiming’s back. Their eyes immediately revealed a trace of admiration, even He Quanxin was no exception.

They could also counteract the weight of Reclining Moon Blade with the help of Internal Energy. However, accomplishing this feat in such a carefree manner, as if it was nothing, that would be too hard to accomplish.

After the two sides exchanged a few lines, Fan Vastsun’s words suddenly took a turn, “Uncle Yuan, this time I’ve come to represent Lord Weiyu.”

Yuan Earnest’s smile immediately disappeared as he calmly said, “So it was because of Lord Weiyu. Could nephew Fan not be aware that as of now Lord Weiyu has already been expelled out of the clan by my father and can no longer be regarded as a member of our Yuan family? His activities no longer has anything to do with our Yuan family.”

Fan Vastsun’s face remained unchanged, “Uncle Yuan, such words are not good. Lord Weiyu, after all, is the blood-related eldest son of Yuan family. Although he hasn’t received the seat of the clan leader, in any case, he still possess Yuan family’s most purest bloodline. How could he be so easily expelled out of the clan?”

Yuan Earnest coldly laughed and said, “Nephew Fan, this seems like an affair of our Yuan family that has nothing to do with you, no?”

Fan Vastsun’s smile remained completely intact, “Originally, our Fan family was unrelated. However, uncle surely already knows that I’ve married Lord Zeyu’s grandaughter.” His eyes shined momentarily as he said, “As my wife’s husband, I can’t watch her father being subjected to such grievances in his own family and do nothing about it.”

Yuan Earnest’s corner of the mouth curled into a smile, but this smile brimmed with coldness, “In that case, how is nephew Fan intending to intervene?”

Fan Vastsun spoke with a faint smile, “Lord Weiyu has asked me to convey his message. According to the tradition of the clan being passed onto the blood-related eldest son, Yuan family belongs to his own self. Therefore, second lord Zeyu and uncle can move out of the main clan within ten days,” The smile on his face intensified, “This way, everybody takes a step back, and there will be room left for both sides to be able to see each other in the future.”

Yuan Earnest was furious but he smiled and said, “And if we don’t agree?”

Fan Vastsun bitterly laughed and said, “If you don’t agree, that would be troublesome. I’m afraid Lord Weiyu will personally come to claim his possession.”

He Yiming’s thoughts slightly stirred. These few days Fan family has been completely silent, but now all of a sudden, they are overbearing and threatening, simply not leaving any room for retreat. Don’t tell me they don’t know eldest uncle is also a tenth layer expert?

Before Yuan Earnest could speak, He Quanxin let out a long laugh and said, “Little brother Fan really talks big. In that case, please sir, come and claim it by all means.”

Yuan Earnest let out a sigh of relief and threw a grateful glance at He Quanxin. Confronting Fan Vastsun, he couldn’t be that confident. After all, Fan family also had a frightening tenth layer expert looking over them.

“Elder young master, we two brothers have already said, we should directly take what belongs to us. Why should we nag with them? If they don’t agree, we’ll just have to send them off.”

A coarse voice sounded, which belonged to one of the two spongers- Xiao Yifan.

He Yiming immediately noticed that although this man said ‘elder young master’ his tone had no respect for the latter. However, Fan Vastsun immediately turned his body on the chair and faintly smiled, “Uncle Xiao, please advise. I will be sure to learn.”

He Quanxin’s complexion immediately sank. Even with his cultivation, he couldn’t help but feel furious.

He slowly stood up. His vision sharpened as a sword as he said, “Little brother Fan, this is Yuan family’s matter. According to the norm, you and I, both should stay out of it. However, since little brother is so overbearing, this old man will also not hold back. However, I ask little brother Fan to be extremely prudent. Some matters are not to be meddled with. Otherwise, not only there will be no benefit, you might lose whatever you have instead. Then it will be too late to regret.”

Fan Vastsun’s complexion slightly changed. He was able to calmly confront Yuan Earnest. However, before a tenth layer expert’s threat, he couldn’t make himself ignore it.

Xiao Yifan and Xiao Yilin exchanged a glance. Conveying their intentions to each other, they simultaneously stood and cupped their hands towards He Quanxin, “Many thanks for brother He’s guidance.”

Before their words even sounded, they’d already taken a step forward. And with this step, their bodies had already covered the distance and arrived before He Quanxin.

Four arms twisted at an extremely strange angle, as if they didn’t have any joints at all, and whipped at He Quanxin like maces bringing along wind-cleaving sounds.

He Yiming’s pupils constricted. Their actions were absolutely out of everybody’s expectations.

Two ninth layer Internal Energy cultivators were actually battling against a tenth layer expert fair and square. This had already gone beyond their understanding.

Although ninth layer and tenth layer only had a difference of one layer, this one layer was like the difference between heavens and underworld. Advantage of two against one absolutely couldn’t counteract this difference.

They couldn’t help but think, “Are these two actually a duo of lunatics?”