Lu Changsheng's eyes locked onto the streak of white light coming his way.

A flying sword!

That was one of the most favored offensive methods by Immortal Masters and Dao Lords. However, this one was not a true flying sword, but merely a talisman. Still, the talisman contained some of the characteristics of a flying sword, and its offensive power was equal to the real thing. Its speed was also astonishing, entering Lu Changsheng's Sense Domain in the blink of an eye.

Within the Domain, Lu Changsheng perceived the talisman's power with even greater clarity. This was the purest and simplest kind of sword talisman, possessing only two qualities: sharpness and speed. But when speed reached the absolute extreme, and the strikes became unstoppable, how terrifying would the power be?

Lu Changsheng frowned. I can't block that! My divine fortifications would shatter on impact!

This was only a sword talisman. Moreover, it was not even being wielded by an Immortal Master, but by a Daoist apprentice using divine consciousness. And yet, its power was incredible. Even with his four layers of divine fortification and his ninety-times physical enhancement, he would not be able to withstand this attack.

Although Daoist apprentices did not possess mana, they could use divine consciousness to activate certain enchanted artifacts and talismans while using spirit stones. In a sense, when it came to attack power, there was actually little difference between Daoist apprentices and Immortal Masters. Even if an Immortal Master activated a sword talisman, it would have this same level of might.

Of course, if certain enchanted artifacts were activated with mana, they could unleash even more terrifying power. As for spells, they could only be cast with mana as well. But with talismans, once crafted, their power was fixed. Whether they were activated by an Immortal Master or not, their might remained the same. Therefore, the talisman attack Lu Changsheng now faced was, in truth, equivalent to an attack from an Immortal Master.

"Too bad you're not true Immortal Masters!" Lu Changsheng's gaze turned cold.

Daoist apprentices were, after all, just apprentices. They relied on divine consciousness to activate those talismans—and divine consciousness was a form of mental strength.

At its core, a Domain was a form of mental suppression, and normally such suppression had little effect on Daoist apprentices, given their impressive divine consciousness. However, Lu Changsheng was different: he had a Perfect Domain and the Heart Sword in his arsenal.

Rumble!

Without hesitation, he fully unleashed his Starry Sky Domain. The three Daoist apprentices were enveloped instantly.

"Huh? Why did the sky suddenly go dark?"

"Are those... stars?"

"This is bad... It's a Domain! Agh, I can feel my divine consciousness being suppressed... How is that possible?!"

Panic took hold of them. The three were still only apprentices, and their greatest reliance was on their divine consciousness. Without it, they could not activate talismans, wield enchanted artifacts, or use any of the means they depended on.

And now, their divine consciousness was actually being suppressed. This was unimaginable to them. It was not like they had never faced a Domain before. No matter how powerful the Domain of a Divine Fortification martial artist was, it should not be able to suppress their divine consciousness. At most, it would only inflict some mild pain.

"Sever!"

Lu Changsheng activated his Heart Sword. However, he did not strike at the three apprentices but at that flying sword, and the reason was simple: the talisman still contained the divine consciousness of the apprentice controlling it. The Perfect Starry Sky Domain could only suppress the divine consciousness of the apprentice himself; it could not directly stop the sword talisman.

The Heart Sword swiftly pierced the sword talisman.

"GHAAAAH!" The Daoist apprentice let out a shrill scream. "I-I've lost my connection to the sword talisman... H-he erased the divine consciousness I stored in it. I-Impossible!"

The apprentice was in complete disbelief. It made no sense for a Divine Fortification martial artist to be able to forcibly erase the divine consciousness stored in a talisman. And yet, Lu Changsheng had done just that.

Now, with no divine consciousness left inside the talisman and with no mana to rely on, the Daoist apprentice was left without any means of attack.

Whoosh!

The flying sword instantly reverted to its true form, turning into a simple talisman paper, and Lu Changsheng caught it in his hand.

"So this is a talisman?"

Lu Changsheng sensed it briefly, but it was of no use to him. He had neither divine consciousness nor spirit stones, so he had no way to activate the talisman. Still, studying it in the future might be beneficial. With that thought, he put the sword talisman away.

"Now it's your turn!"

Lu Changsheng wielded his Heart Sword again.

Whizz, whizz, whizz, whizz, whizz!

He understood very clearly that the Heart Sword ought to be used consistently. The stronger the opponent's mental strength, the faster he would improve.

"Aaaaaagh!"

"It hurts! It hurts too much!"

"He's using a mental technique! Someone quickly stop him!"

The three Daoist apprentices clutched their heads and rolled on the ground while crying out in agony. Still, their divine consciousness had not yet shattered. Even after Lu Changsheng had unleashed so many Heart Sword strikes, he still had not managed to annihilate their minds or shatter their divine consciousness.

However, Lu Changsheng did not have to rely on the Heart Sword alone. Once the three apprentices could no longer use their divine consciousness, they became ordinary people.

Shing!

The next moment, Lu Changsheng drew his saber. The crimson saber light split into three and tore through the air as it swept toward them. The three still held their heads in pain, but the moment they saw those crimson saber lights flying toward them, their eyes widened with terror.

N-No... I'm destined to become an Immortal Master, maybe even a Dao Lord... I can't die here...

Not like this!

The three apprentices frantically tried to mobilize their divine consciousness and activate their own enchanted artifacts or talismans to block Lu Changsheng's strike. But under the suppression of the Perfect Domain, and with the Heart Sword continuously slashing into their minds, the three of them were simply powerless. They could only watch helplessly as the crimson saber light fell upon them.

Splurt!

The saber light cut through them like a knife through butter, splitting them in half vertically. In terms of physique, a Daoist apprentice's body was only comparable to the Body Tempering Realm and was nowhere near a martial artist at the Divine Strength Realm. How could they possibly withstand a strike from Lu Changsheng's saber?

"Pathetic." Lu Changsheng sheathed his saber. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

He was disappointed. In the Ancient Region, Daoist apprentices were supposed to be above Divine Fortification martial artists. Even Divine Treasury martial artists could only barely contend with Immortal Masters. In theory, they were considered to stand on roughly the same level.

Yet in actual combat, martial artists still fell short of Immortal Masters. As for Daoist apprentices, in a sense, their offensive and defensive capabilities were no different from those of Immortal Masters. Especially if the martial artist could not suppress the Daoist apprentice's divine consciousness, they should, for all practical purposes, be treated as an Immortal Master.

Unfortunately for those three apprentices, they had crossed paths with the worst enemy imaginable. Lu Changsheng had countered them perfectly with the suppressive force of his Perfect Domain. With the Heart Sword on top of that, their divine consciousness shut down entirely, and they were left powerless against his saber strike.

"Good heavens..."

The other martial artists at the scene were shaken. They had always known that Lu Changsheng was frighteningly strong and could fight above his realm, but seeing him cut down three Daoist apprentices as easily as dicing vegetables was utterly shocking.

"Is this how Lu Changsheng defeated that Divine Treasury martial artist? Unbelievable!"

"No, he didn't even materialize his Domain here. I guess he didn't even need to do that against those Daoist apprentices."

"They were completely suppressed! If it had been any other Divine Fortification expert instead of Lu Changsheng, they would've been cut down by that sword for sure!"

"A Perfect Domain and a mental technique... Those apprentices didn't stand a chance!"

"But those three served the Purple Dragon Dao Lord. Now that they're dead, how could the lord possibly let this go?"

"Go, let's leave now! We've stayed here for too long. The Purple Dragon Dao Lord might show some restraint with Lu Changsheng because of the Ancient Region Heavenly Sect behind him, but he won't hesitate to vent his anger on us!"

Following the spectacle, the martial artists immediately fled. They had seen too much, and lingering would invite a lot of trouble.

Lu Changsheng leapt over to the corpses of the apprentices. The three still had enchanted artifacts, talismans, and even pills on them. They had come well prepared, and their wealth was considerable.

But in the end, it all fell into Lu Changsheng's hands. Though these things could not be exchanged for contribution points and were of little direct use to martial artists, they could still be traded with Immortal Masters for many valuable things.

The Purple Dragon Dao Lord... Lu Changsheng frowned as he remembered the central figure of this incident.

A Dao Lord and master of the Purple Dragon Peak in the Immortal Spirit Sect was no ordinary figure. The strength of Daoist apprentices corresponded to Divine Fortification, and Immortal Masters corresponded to the Divine Treasury. As for Dao Lords, they stood above the Divine Treasury Realm.

Although killing the Purple Dragon Dao Lord's Daoist apprentices might not necessarily draw the attention of the lofty lord himself, it would certainly alarm the Immortal Masters on the Purple Dragon Peak. Lu Changsheng had no desire to face Immortal Masters right now. Daoist apprentices still had weaknesses, but that was not the case for Immortal Masters. Their arsenal was far more formidable.

What a pity... I only got halfway through comprehending the Storm Domain, and I even wasted a Dao Comprehension Pill...

Regardless, he knew he had to leave.

Whoossh!

With his departure, the Wolf Howl Gorge remained desolate, with only the dead spirit beast and apprentices left behind.

I wonder if the Purple Dragon Dao Lord will find out who killed the apprentices. Even if he traces it back to me, what's he going to do? I doubt someone as high and mighty as a Dao Lord would act personally.

As for Immortal Masters, the Ancient Region Heavenly Sect had already shown everyone the consequences of breaking the rules and using their status to bully Lu Changsheng.

If the Immortal Master were foolish enough to send Daoist apprentices after him, he would deal with them all the same. His Domain and techniques were perfectly suited to deal with Daoist apprentices, so they posed little threat to him.

Lu Changsheng did not return to the Ancient Region Heavenly Sect; instead, he went to a mountain ravine. No martial artists came here, as the place was not really known for anything. However, similar to the gorge, fierce winds howled through this ravine, making it ideal for comprehending the Storm Domain. So, Lu Changsheng remained there and kept taking Dao Comprehension Pills.

In the blink of an eye, three days passed. On the fourth day, Lu Changsheng activated the Storm Domain. The entire Domain was undergoing a rapid transformation. Terrifying storms surged within it, howling as though they could tear everything apart.

At last, Lu Changsheng had pushed the Storm Domain to Perfection.

This time, it took seven days. I used one extra pill, so thirteen in total.

Still, he was satisfied. As he focused on his heart force, he was almost certain it had risen by another fifteen marks, going over ninety. He summoned his status panel to examine the changes.