https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-302-301-Dragon-and-Tiger-Strike-in-Unison-I-Know-a-Little-Part-2-/12588593/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-303-302-Celestial-Treasure-Grand-Cyclic-Heavenly-Mirror-Part-2-/12588611/
Chapter 303: 302. Celestial Treasure, Grand Cyclic Heavenly Mirror (Part 1)
Chapter 303: 302. Celestial Treasure, Grand Cyclic Heavenly Mirror (Part 1)
Amid the clash of heavenly might, earthly forces, thunder, and fire, Ye Fen's physical body and divine soul were utterly destroyed.
Lei Jun watched calmly, his eyes fixed on his opponent.
Ye Fen, amidst the terrifying thunder and fire, managed to glance at Lei Jun.
However, with his life and soul destroyed, his vision darkened, and his consciousness faded.
The last image imprinted in Ye Fen's mind was of Lei Jun, cloaked in starlight, accompanied by the roaring Yin and Yang Thunder Dragons and the Yin Fire Tiger.
Dou Mu Star God's manifestation.
Xuanxiao Thunder Ancestor's manifestation.
Jiutian Thunder Ancestor's manifestation.
Jiuyuan Flame Ancestor's manifestation.
This Lei Jun possessed the divine might of four great daoist traditions simultaneously and had even cultivated the Dragon-Tiger Combined Strike alone...
He had hidden his true capabilities exceptionally well. Every time they thought he had revealed his true power, they would soon discover that his abilities were far from fully displayed!
At the moment of his death, as his consciousness flickered, Ye Fen suddenly had a moment of clarity.
At this moment, Lei Jun displayed strength far beyond his expectations.
But was this all he was capable of?
Did this Daoist have any more hidden aces up his sleeve?
Perhaps he hadn't needed to use them, as his current display of power was already more than enough...
Ye Fen suddenly recalled the great battle between the Celestial Master's Mansion and the Human Daoist Country on Dragon-Tiger Mountain.
The outside world still knew very little about what had truly transpired within the Pure Yang Realm.
Now, Ye Fen wondered if Lei Jun had played a far more decisive role than anyone had anticipated, allowing the Celestial Master's Mansion to crush the Human Daoist Country so swiftly...
As this thought crossed his mind, Ye Fen's consciousness blurred once more.
His divine soul and physical body were utterly annihilated by the raging brilliance of thunder and fire.
Lei Jun, in the form of the Dou Mu Star God, calmly watched as Ye Fen, a core high-ranking elder of the Qingzhou Ye Clan, turned to ashes, leaving nothing behind.
With a lift of his hand, he caught the flying Danqing brush, its power gradually fading.
At the same time, out of habit, he skillfully erased all traces of his actions using the power of the dark side of the heavenly book.
Then, Lei Jun turned to look in another direction.
There, Ye Fen's Canghai Map appeared, twisting and shaking.
This magical artifact was Ye Fen's proudest creation, a culmination of his lifelong learnings and continuous empowerment, with his divine power focused on a brush named Bihuai.
Even with Ye Fen's death, the mystery of the Canghai Map did not dissipate.
However, with Ye Fen distracted by Lei Jun's sudden appearance and attack, his control and mastery over the Canghai Map had wavered.
The person trapped within the Canghai Map was highly perceptive and seized this opportunity to launch a fierce counterattack in an attempt to break free.
In that patch of void, a small black hole had suddenly appeared.
The hole's edges were charred, as if the paper had been burned.
The shaking Canghai Map finally revealed its shape, but it had been burned through with a hole.
Within the hole, a faint glow could be seen.
At dawn, where the sea met the sky, the first light of daybreak appeared, and the sun began to rise.
On the vast ocean, within the Canghai Map, the sunlight also emerged.
For a moment, it seemed as if there were two suns rising simultaneously.
The light shining through the hole in the Canghai Map grew more intense, as if a sun were about to leap out onto the sea's surface.
The sunlight shot straight up into the sky, radiating heat and extreme sharpness.
Lei Jun was slightly surprised by this development.
With his current insight and vision, he quickly understood what was happening.
The person trapped within the Canghai Map had utilized a disposable spiritual object, burning its spiritual power to break free from the map, now that it was no longer under Ye Fen's control.
As the scorching spiritual power burned, it also consumed the Canghai Map, causing the spiritual powers of both to resonate in a peculiar way, leading to further changes.
The result was the blinding and piercing scorching sunlight.
However, unless this scorching and unstable sunlight could be harnessed and transformed into an entirely new spiritual object, it would likely burn itself out and dissipate into the heavens and earth.
Lei Jun's heart stirred.
Perhaps this was the third-grade opportunity mentioned in the upper contract.
While Ye Fen's Danqing brush was excellent, it was most suitable for Confucian cultivators, especially those of the Qingzhou Ye Clan. For Lei Jun, its usefulness was limited and did not qualify as a third-grade opportunity.
However, this piercing and unique sunlight caught Lei Jun's attention.
Seeing that the Canghai Map had not yet fully unfolded, Lei Jun leaped into the air and intercepted the sunlight that was shooting towards the clouds and gradually dispersing.
He continued to gather the sunlight, which stabilized under the influence of his divine power and cultivation.
Eventually, the scorching spiritual power condensed and settled in Lei Jun's palm, resembling a tiny sun.
This "sun" flickered with light, radiating heat and light in all directions, like countless needle-like rays, dazzlingly golden and incredibly sharp.
[Solar Divine Light]
The name suddenly appeared in Lei Jun's mind.
He nodded slightly and stored it away for later research when he had some free time.
The power of the dark side of the heavenly book flowed, erasing all traces of Lei Jun's presence.
Under the protection of the Taiqing Eight Scenic Treasures, Lei Jun's figure once again disappeared from this world, as if he had never been there.
Below, on the vast ocean, the broken Canghai Map suddenly unfolded, and the space that had been folded and warped abruptly relaxed.
A figure appeared, shrouded in mist.
It was Fang Yue, who had been trapped within Ye Fen's Canghai Map.
Nearby, the corpse of the Tianli cultivator with whom he had been fighting lay on the ground.
Fang Yue did not immediately rush out of the broken Canghai Map, wary of a potential ambush by Ye Fen.
At this moment, he was protected by a majestic city.
Fang Yue had achieved the seventh level of the Confucian Chanting lineage's Insight Realm, and his chanted verses were infused with divine power, attracting and gathering spiritual qi, causing all things to appear as if they were real.
However, what caught Lei Jun's attention was that this majestic city was not solely created by Fang Yue's Confucian Chanting lineage abilities.
It was also infused with other spiritual objects to serve as support, further enhancing its defensive capabilities.
It seemed to be made of metal and rock, with a deeply hidden spiritual nature that was incredibly pure and heavy, resulting in a unique and impressive structure.
Lei Jun was very familiar with this substance.
It was the Lifeng Rock, a large quantity of which he had obtained from the Gaojia ancestral land in Zezhou.
The Lifeng Rock was not exclusive to the Jinzhou Ye Clan and the Zezhou Gao Clan.
Fang Yue, a Confucian cultivator who also had connections with the Tang Dynasty imperial family, managed to acquire some Li Fengyan, which was not surprising.
However, the Li Fengyan he was currently using to build the city was clearly from the batch that Lei Jun had obtained years ago.
Having possessed those Li Fengyan for a long time, Lei Jun was extremely familiar with them, and a mere glance was enough to recognize their origin.
Most of the Li Fengyan he had obtained had been transferred to Zhenzhen Tuyou in the Universe of the Heavenly Book.
So...
Lei Jun raised his eyebrows slightly as he looked at the appearing Fang Yue.
Comparing it to Zhenzhen Tuyou's behavior, it was indeed exactly the same as Fang Yue's.
He truly lived up to his words and did not speak falsely, although he did not mention his true identity, but he did not pretend in the slightest.
The amount of Li Fengyan that Fang Yue was currently using to build the city was far less than what Lei Jun had transferred to him before.
It could be guessed that most of the Li Fengyan was used to cultivate the students of the academy.
Especially with the newly established Jiaye Academy, it must have required an enormous amount of resources.
While relying on the Tang Dynasty imperial family, was he also spending his own money to subsidize the students?
Lei Jun recalled what Elder Lin Shan of the Tianmaster Mansion, who was currently studying at the academy, had mentioned—in recent years, the students cultivated by the academy had become increasingly influential. It seemed that both Xiao Chunhui and Fang Yue, the former and current deans, had put in a lot of effort.
Fang Yue was on guard against Ye Fen, who was waiting outside, ready to launch another sneak attack, so he stabilized his position and did not act rashly.
However, after the Canghai Map fully unfolded, there was nothing but the boundless sea and the rising sun; no one was in sight.
If it weren't for the distant intertwining of black and white pillars, Fang Yue would have doubted that he was still trapped by Ye Fen, with another layer of painting outside the Canghai Map.
However, the sacrificial rites in the distance and the chaotic spiritual energy in the heavens and earth indicated that what Fang Yue saw before him was indeed the real world.
Then, where was Ye Fen?
Fang Yue looked around.
He was certain that someone else had just attacked Ye Fen from the outside.
That was why Ye Fen had lost control of the Canghai Map.
With peace all around and scarce traces of the battle, it seemed more likely that Ye Fen had met with disaster.
"I don't know which senior came to my aid, but Fang Yue is deeply grateful." He bowed towards the sea.
But there was no response for a long time.
After a while, Fang Yue stood up and said, "Have you already left?"
His expression was filled with admiration.
Although he did not know who the senior was, this person's kindness without seeking credit and anonymous act of goodness were truly the virtues of an ancient gentleman, which was the direction Fang Yue admired and strived towards.
"I am deeply grateful for the senior's benevolence, and I hope that there will be an opportunity to repay this debt in the future."
Fang Yue bowed once more to the four directions, even though he did not know if the senior had already left. He would personally remember this favor.
After the bows, Fang Yue put away his Li Fengyan and the damaged Canghai Map, then left the sea area.
Regarding Ye Fen's matter, Fang Yue himself was actually quite calm.
This was not the first time he had encountered such an incident.
He would not be taken advantage of without knowing the truth.
Naturally, he would report this matter to Her Majesty the Queen and the Tang Dynasty imperial family.
Although there was the damaged Canghai Map as evidence, without seeing Ye Fen and with no other corroborating proof, the outcome would likely be a stalemate, with the Qingzhou Ye Clan making some concessions to the Tang Dynasty imperial family.
Unless the two sides completely broke off relations.
However, Fang Yue's current mood and goals were not affected by the previous setback.
The top priority was still to suppress the Tianli cultivators' sacrificial rites and achieve the strategic goal of "closing" the Tianli passage to the human world.
So even now, as he went to meet Chu Xiuyuan and Ye Yan, Fang Yue remained calm and composed.
If there was anything that concerned him, it was the mysterious expert who had given him a helping hand.
The person did not show himself, and Fang Yue did not have the intention to probe into the senior's background. He believed that the senior had his own plans, but Fang Yue was curious.
It couldn't be a Tianli cultivator.
There were no clues from any other sources as well.
Speaking of mysterious experts, the first person that came to mind was the one who caused the deaths of Li Qingfeng and Li Hongyu, siblings.
However, his identity had already been revealed—he was Huang Xuanpu, the former head of Chunyang Palace.
He certainly wouldn't suddenly appear and kill Ye Fen, then disappear without a trace.
There were people capable of killing Ye Fen.
But to kill Ye Fen and then leave without touching the Canghai Map or harming him, Fang Yue found this person difficult to understand.
Ye Fen was a second-layer Eightfold Heaven cultivator. Even without the Canghai Map, it would not be easy to kill him and not give him any chance to escape. The strength of the attacker was evident.
Moreover, Fang Yue asked himself how long it had been since he left the Canghai Map.
Ye Fen was killed in a very short time.
The more Fang Yue thought about it, the more he felt the senior's vast and profound abilities.
He shook his head slightly, calming his mind, and continued on his way.
Lei Jun, cloaked in the Taiqing Eight Scenic Treasures and hidden from the world, calmly watched as Fang Yue left.
He retracted his gaze and turned north.
With the upper sign indicating the third-grade opportunity, the Solar Divine Light, already in his possession, Lei Jun did not linger in this place any longer.
Instead, he changed his direction and headed towards the sea area near the entrance of the Tianli passage to the human world, as he had planned earlier.
Although that direction corresponded to a medium sign, Lei Jun, being cautious and concealing his presence, intended to go and observe the situation.
According to the flow of spiritual energy in the heavens and earth, the battle on that side was not as intense as before.
Lei Jun also did not directly approach the innermost circle of the sea area.
He stopped from a distance, mainly observing the flow of spiritual energy in that area.
Overall, both sides seemed to be in a stalemate.
"It seems that the decisive moment hasn't arrived yet." After observing for a moment, Lei Jun retracted his gaze.
The fact that it hadn't reached the final moment meant that both sides' top experts still had some strength in reserve.
In such a situation, they might be distracted and pay attention to the surrounding environment.
Therefore, Lei Jun did not continue to approach but instead looked for a relatively calm and hidden place in the nearby sea area, calming his mind and waiting.
While waiting, he entered the True One Law Altar Cave within the Heavenly Book.
With a wave of his hand, several objects appeared before Lei Jun, laid out in a row.
A Confucian inkstone, shimmering with moonlight, as if it were made of white jade.
The Bihuai brush, newly acquired from Ye Fen.
And the Solar Divine Light, gathered together like a sun, but when scattered, it resembled countless golden rays.
Lei Jun first placed the Moonlit Inkstone and the Solar Divine Light together.
The radiant power of the sun and the moon reflected off each other, a dynamic interplay of light and shadow.
The sun's spiritual essence tended to be more scattered, while the moon's was more condensed and focused.
In a sense, they embodied the harmony of yin and yang.
However, for Lei Jun, who already possessed the Two Extremes Immortal Body, he didn't need to specifically cultivate this similar state of harmony.
So, after a moment's consideration, Lei Jun waved his hand, moving the solar divine light to the side.
He then placed the Moonlit Inkstone and the Bihuai Brush together, contemplating their arrangement.
Lei Jun pondered for a moment, then summoned a high-quality Confucian ink stick with his fingers, placing it next to the brush and inkstone.
This ink stick was a gift from his senior martial brother, Wang Guiyuan, who had returned to the secular world for a period before coming back to the cultivation path.
The ink stick seemed to emanate the Confucian principles of the Chu Clan from Suzhou.
Lei Jun had kept this ink stick untouched, neither refining nor altering it, mainly using it to gain a deeper understanding of Confucian cultivators and their practices.
With the brush, ink, and inkstone assembled, all exuding the essence of Confucian culture, Lei Jun fell into deep thought.
He mused that if he could acquire some high-quality paper, he might be able to attempt something innovative.
Of course, there were also potential challenges.
For instance, the Bihuai Brush and the Confucian ink stick were both products of the traditional Confucian teachings of the Tang Dynasty, influenced by the classical studies of the Chu Clan.
On the other hand, the Moonlit Inkstone originated from the Confucian principles of Tianli.
There was a degree of conflict between these two sources.
To harmonize them, Lei Jun would need to carefully contemplate and experiment.
But if he succeeded, the result would surely be extraordinary... Lei Jun nodded slightly.
With another wave of his hand, he put away the brush, inkstone, and ink stick together.
All that remained before him was the solar divine light.
Lei Jun studied the radiant light, his mind buzzing with ideas.
He took out his Xuanxu Mirror, examining it alongside the solar divine light, deep in thought.
At that moment, Lei Jun's eyes flickered, and the profound Tian Tong Di Che incantation quietly circulated in the depths of his eyes.
He exited the True One Law Altar Cave within the Heavenly Book and gazed into the distance.
There, at the gateway connecting Tianli and the human world, an intense battle raged once more.
Lei Jun observed for a moment, his eyebrows furrowing slightly before smoothing out again.
At first glance, the situation seemed unfavorable for the Tang Dynasty cultivators.
Had Chu Xiuyuan, in his old age, finally reached his limit against their opponents?
Although the top expert on the opposing side was also an elderly man, he might even be older than Chu Xiuyuan.
However, with the power of Tianli's mountain and river aura boosting their strength, Tianli cultivators could endure and become powerful through sheer longevity, without suffering the decline that typically came with age.
Nonetheless, Ye Yan, Chu Xiuyuan, and Chu Yu were well aware of this situation.
Logically, they shouldn't have allowed themselves to fall into such an unfavorable position so easily.
Perhaps it was a strategic move, luring their enemies into a trap? Lei Jun didn't speculate further and simply observed quietly.
The battle raged on, and the defensive line of the Tang Dynasty cultivators gradually retreated.
More Tianli cultivators seemed to be pouring out from the gateway.
Lei Jun's gaze remained fixed on the distant battle.
(End of Chapter)
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