The Nine Cauldrons

“Get lost!” A fierce yell resounded. With a Dark Blaze Rod in his grasp, the fierce beast-like juvenile, Teng Shou, acted as though he was a tiger watching its prey and glared at the visitor. Teng Shou was simple-minded, but he was able to distinguish whether the other party carried any threat. It was like how, previously when the Sixth Elder and Second Elder of the Rising Sun Trading Company came by, they had all visited in goodwill.

The Great Elder’s desire for battle heightened. Teng Shou could sense that...... the person standing before him was exceptionally threatening!

However, for Teng Qingshan’s sake, he would never step down!

“Ah Shou,” Teng Qingshan chided.

“This teenager is...?” The Great Elder swept his gaze over with creased brows. At this moment, Li Jun scuttled out from the house. She grabbed Teng Shou’s clothing and emitted a low growl, warning Teng Shou to not treat the guest with impertinence. Then as Li Jun lifted her head, she said, “Great Elder, Ah Shou does not understand the human language and has a wild temper, so please forgive him.”

Teng Qingshan quipped, “Ah Shou grew up amongst beasts. At present, he only has knowledge about a few simple words. Additionally, his mind is that of a child’s.”

It was then that realization dawned onto the Great Elder.

For Teng Qingshan’s sake, the Great Elder would not make things difficult for the fierce beast-like juvenile.

“Haha, let’s cease the nonsense! The reason for my visit today is to challenge you, Teng Qingshan, to a battle!” Great Elder’s gaze was electrifying and his momentum sharp.

“Teng Qingshan, do you accept it?” The Great Elder’s voice resounded with clarity.

A smile crept onto Teng Qingshan’s face. For a long time since his arrival on Duanmu Continent, Teng Qingshan had never encountered an opponent who provided him with excitement. He took a glance at the Great Elder before him, recalling the former’s accomplishments, and a thought crossed his mind, “The best amongst the experts ranked below the Martial Immortal? Please do not disappoint me!”

“Having the opportunity to challenge the Great Elder to a battle, I could not wish for more!” Teng Qingshan laughed forthrightly.

“Little Jun, bring me my Reincarnation Spear!” Teng Qingshan said clearly.

Li Jun immediately rushed into the house and retrieved the two-sectioned Reincarnation Spear from its sheath. The Reincarnation Spear weighed over one hundred Jin, but it was not heavy for Li Jun, who had reached the peak of the Postliminary Realm.

“Here!” Li Jun handed the spear over, biting her lip gently as she whispered, “Be careful!”

Teng Qingshan smiled at Li Jun and then took the two sections of Reincarnation Spear from her.

Li Jun then ran far away from Teng Qingshan, returning back to where Little Ping, Teng Shou, and Couchman Old Wang were standing as they watched. Teng Qingshan and the Great Elder were the only ones who remained by the Crescent Moon Lake.

“You are indeed straightforward!” The Great Elder chortled. “Teng Qingshan, my Sword Style is derived from Duanmu Deity’s 《Nine Thunder Blade Scrolls》. Even though I’ve only learned the superficial knowledge... that alone makes me capable of moving unhindered under the heavens.” Having said till here, the Great Elder extended his right hand to grab the handle of the gigantic machete on his back.

“Tink!”

The machete was unsheathed!

This was a terrifyingly huge machete which reached one’s neck when erected, and the surface of the blade reflected a chilling glint.

“This machete was crafted from a material called, ‘Silversnow Ore’, which can only be found in the Cloudy Dreamy Swampland. An inexhaustible amount of manpower and financial resources were spent during the collection of the beads of Silversnow Ore before this machete was finally forged. Its name is Blood Devourer.” The Great Elder held the machete in his right hand, while he stroked the blade with the left, as though he was caressing the skin of a lover.

“Zi, zi~”

Teng Qingshan spun the two sections of the Reincarnation Spear and attached them according to the spiral patterns as he spoke, “Great Elder, as for my spear art, it was through arduous polishing and diligent training during my childhood that I created the 《Five Elemental Spear Arts》. It has yet to reach completion. However, amongst the experts ranked below the Martial Immortals, I have yet to find an opponent who can match evenly with me!”

The Great Elder’s gaze gleamed!

‘Self-created?’

“The name of this spear is Reincarnation! The materials were forged with Ten Millennia Coldsteel and Star Pattern Steel, and it has accompanied me through numerous perils. It was obtained from a Purple Radiant Flood Dragon’s Flood Jade Pool. As for this Reincarnation Spear, it was forged under the joint efforts of my father and my grandfather, without stopping to sleep or rest!” As Teng Qingshan held the spear in his hands, his gaze hardened!

In Teng Qingshan’s heart, although the materials used to craft the Reincarnation Spear could not be compared to Dark Blaze Rod, the importance of it far exceeded that of the Dark Blaze Rod because it had been forged by his father and his grandfather!

The Great Elder vaguely perceived Teng Qingshan’s growing desire for battle and could not help but exclaim, “Alright! Then show me the prowess of your self-created spear art!”

“Let me see, with my own eyes, the might behind the self-created blade art created by Duanmu Deity!”

Their voices reverberated in the air.

The Great Elder vanished from his spot instantly, drawing a streak of indiscernible trace of green light as his Blood Devourer Blade hacked straight toward Teng Qingshan!

“Swoosh!”

However, Teng Qingshan stood firmly on the ground, his gaze sharp like a blade. At this moment, what remained in Teng Qingshan’s sight was just the Great Elder’s Blood Devourer Blade which was about to hack at him. “Ha!” Teng Qingshan heaved out a furious roar, and the Reincarnation Spear was instantly turned into a streak of silver meteor, while the surface of his body undulated faintly with Internal Supreme Force.

His strength was unleashed to the extreme!

Both his physical strength and explosive strength of his Internal Supreme Force assimilated and exceeded a staggering 1,200,000 Jin!

“Swish~”

The tip of the spear brought with it a spiralling force which ripped the air apart before colliding with the Blood Devourer Blade!

“Rumble~~~”

The massive impact sent fluctuations rippling outwards swiftly in all directions, sending the accumulated snow fluttering gracefully in all directions. It was as though a giant had stirred the lake.

“Crack~~~” A large amount of thick chunks of ice and turned into fine powder. Resembling water ripples, the cracks spread outwards incessantly until the entire surface of the Crescent Moon Lake split completely into fragments.

The mass amounts of snow were shaken up so much that the snow filled the sky.

The aftermath had also affected the faraway Blunt Vanadium Stone Tablets. Thankfully, the distance was a bit too wide, so merely two of the Blunt Vanadium Stone Tablets had been knocked into the air. However, it wouldn’t be that easy for the Blunt Vanadium Stone Tablets, which had been preserved for five to six thousand years, to be damaged.

Teng Qingshan, who had retreated five to six paces back, scrunched up his brows inadvertently as he witnessed this scene. “If we clash here, the Blunt Vanadium Stone Tablets may get damaged in the process. It may even affect Little Jun and the others.”

“Swoosh!”

Similarly, the Great Elder had also been blown away into the air. However, he flitted off quickly into the distance, launching himself off from a trunk of a tree which towered into the skies. His voice then came surging over afterward, “Teng Qingshan, let’s resume our battle on a spacious mountain!” The Great Elder seemed to have noticed as well that this was not the ideal location for a fight.

“Alright!” Teng Qingshan chortled loudly, and his figure flickered twice before appearing once more at a distance of one hundred Zhang away.

Within the forest, towering trees were everywhere in sight. With the support of the trees, Teng Qingshan propelled himself toward the lofty Godly Axe Mountain as well.

......

Standing by the Crescent Moon Lake, Li Jun and the rest exclaimed in astonishment.

“Incredible! His speed exceeds what the eyes can capture.” Old Wang shook his head as he sighed in admiration. “Rising Sun Martial Saint, an expert otherwise known as the best amongst the experts ranked below Martial Immortals... If he went against the Dong Clan, who knows... who is stronger...” Although he was sighing, Old Wang’s eyes shone momentarily with a bizarre light.

Li Jun and Little Ping held hands. Along with Teng Shou, all of them looked in the direction of the Godly Axe Mountain.

“Rumble~~~”

From the Godly Axe Mountain, a sound, which seemed as though the heavens had collapsed and the mountains had split from the wrath of the gods resounded suddenly.

The Godly Axe Mountain was not a sole, lofty mountain but a part of a continuous range of mountains. However, amidst these mountains, the Godly Axe Mountain stood the tallest. At this moment, on a mountain top to the west of the Godly Axe Mountain, trees had been wrecked and collapsed. At the top, there was a sunken stone pit where the surrounding mountain ramparts had fissured.

“Haaa!!” Teng Qingshan heaved out a breath suddenly and walked out from the stone pit. He stared at the Great Elder, who stood on a rock opposite of him.

At present, the Great Elder’s face was slightly flushed.

“Haha, this move is indeed ferocious!” Teng Qingshan let out a sonorous laugh. If the slash toward the Crescent Moon Lake could be described with a single word, ‘swift’, then that earlier blow would be a heaven falling and earth rending word, ‘fierce’. Even Teng Qingshan, who possessed exceptional physical strength, was thrown into the mountain by the rebounding force.

However, if the mountain rock contended with Teng Qingshan’s body...

It would be akin to comparing tofu to a piece of steel. The impact did not manage to inflict even the slightest of damage to Teng Qingshan’s body.

“Who would’ve thought that I, who has wandered unhindered under the heavens for so many years, would encounter someone who can receive the Bursting Thunder Blade of the 《Nine Thunder Blade Scrolls》 and emerge without any wounds.” The Great Elder admired Teng Qingshan from the bottom of his heart, because the technique The Great Elder had performed placed a large burden on his own body. Moreover, he had no way of performing that technique in succession.

“Receive my third strike!”

The Great Elder guffawed.

“Pa!”

A streak of thunderbolt struck toward Teng Qingshan!

“This—is this really a thunderbolt?” Teng Qingshan was startled. Be it the two techniques the Great Elder had performed previously or the Thunder Blade Martial Saint, Fu Dao at that time—both moves had appeared to be lightning but were in fact the Innate True Origin which contained the quality of a thunderbolt. However...... the thunderbolt which struck toward him now—

It was actually the authentic thunderbolt of the natural world!

Moreover, the Great Elder was actually cloaked within the streak of thunderbolt! In a flash, he appeared before Teng Qingshan and was about to hack the blade toward him!

“Incredibly fast speed!”

Teng Qingshan was taken aback once more.

“The third technique of the Five Elemental Spear Arts——”

Teng Qingshan dared not to hold back. He raised his right arm, and a powerful external rotational force was instilled onto the Reincarnation Spear. Instantly, the tip of his spear seemed as though it was a dragon emerging from the water, or a sharp awl drilling a hole through the heavens. It streaked through like a lustrous silver meteor, releasing an ear-splitting hiss as it crashed into the thunderbolt!

“Toxic Dragon Drill!!!”

“Boom~~”

In the midst of a cacophony of chaos...

The weakened might of the lightning travelled along the Reincarnation Spear and struck Teng Qingshan. A numbing sensation spread throughout his body, and he was sent flying backwards once more, this time into another mountain. This created another large pit as well as deep grooves which ran along all four directions.

Teng Qingshan was miserable, but that Great Elder was much more miserable!

Teng Qingshan had a tougher body! The instant force of the Reincarnation Spear was extremely strong!

The Blood Devourer Blade rebounded off the Reincarnation Spear and struck the Great Elder’s body. He spewed out a mouthful of blood, and his entire being heaved backward into another mountain like a meteorite. As he smashed into formation a terrifyingly large pit in the mountain ramparts, the Great Elder’s entirety sank into the pit.

“What a terrifying blow.” Teng Qingshan strode out from a pit once more. He then glanced toward the mountain in the distance. “This Great Elder—he has already touched the edge of the ‘Dao’. That blow contained the Dao of Lightning!”

Teng Qingshan knew......

Without an understanding of the Dao of Lightning, it was impossible to manipulate real lightning. Although the scant amount of lightning was not strong, the real strong point was...... that slash which deflected Teng Qingshan’s Toxic Dragon Drill. However, this shred of lightning showed the opponent’s strength.

“You foul creature!” An outraged roar came from the stone pit in the mountain ramparts ahead.

In tattered clothing, the Great Elder’s pathetic figure flew out from the pit. Simultaneously——

“Roar~~~” A colossal creature, with a triangular golden head, scuttled out from the pit fiercely. With its wheel-sized eyes and spotty, golden pupils, the creature glared at the fleeing Great Elder!