“You talk too much!”

Lu Yang was enraged. So what if my transformation requires a few extra steps? It’s still the Heaven-Earth Dharma Manifestation!

Having grown into a titan hundreds of zhang tall, his voice had also changed. Deep as rumbling thunder, reverberating through the mountain valleys.

Lu Yang drew the Qingfeng Sword. As it was an immortal sword, it could change size along with him.

Meng Jingzhou didn’t hold back either. His dharma manifestation’s shield and halberd collided, sending ripples through space, while the Qingfeng Sword let out a piercing cry.

Two opposing sounds clashed, triggering a massive explosion at the center of the battlefield, causing the entire space to shake.

The dharma manifestation’s eyes shot a crimson light pillar several zhang wide, resembling molten magma. Even before they reached Lu Yang, he could feel the violent power within.

“Split!”

The Qingfeng Sword slashed downward, splitting the crimson light pillar in two. The severed beams streaked past Lu Yang on either side, instantly incinerating the white sandalwood tree grove beside Meng Jingzhou’s cave abode and gouging two deep trenches in the ground, their surfaces vitrified into glass.

The dharma manifestation strode forward, leaving a trail of flames with every step. It stamped its foot, cracking the earth, and launched its enormous body into the air. Its head touched the heavens, and its feet stepped upon the earth. Pure yang flames swept across the sky, dyeing it crimson red, as if the firmament were bleeding.

The halberd tore through the sky, bringing a sea of fire crashing down against the Qingfeng Sword. The clash of metal rang out like thunder. At the same time, the shield whooshed past, aimed straight at Lu Yang’s ribs.

With a flick of his left hand, Lu Yang summoned the jet-black Chengying Sword, blocking the fierce strike. A casual tremor of his wrist produced sword shadows that blotted out the sky. Each one was enough to level a mountaintop, forcing Meng Jingzhou to remain vigilant.

“War-Ceasing Art!”

Meng Jingzhou’s use of the shield and halberd was no longer chaotic, following a rhythmic pattern instead.

The War-Ceasing Art was a combat technique that Meng Junzi had created for Meng Jingzhou.

Having carved out his reputation through combat in the late Great Yu era, Meng Junzi had participated in countless battles of all manner, accumulating a wealth of combat experience. Based on the characteristics of Meng Jingzhou’s dharma manifestation, he had developed the War-Ceasing Art—stopping war through war and stopping bloodshed through blood.

A raging storm of spirit energy erupted. The two titans at the center of the battlefield could reshape the terrain with every move. The area before Meng Jingzhou’s cave abode had already become unrecognizable. No one would be able to tell that this was where Meng Jingzhou resided.

“One Sword Into Ten Thousand Swords!”

Countless blades sprouted beneath Lu Yang’s feet, jutting from the ground like small hills, restricting Meng Jingzhou’s movements.

“Great Sun Magma Arrows!”

Molten magma flowed from the dharma manifestation’s colossal form, bubbling and steaming, scorching the earth and searing space. The spirit energy grew so hot that even cultivators of the same level wouldn’t dare refine it, lest it burn their meridians.

The magma was suspended in the air and spun rapidly, transforming into arrow after arrow that shot forth with explosive force.

“Bring it on!” Lu Yang’s eyes lit up. I knew Old Meng still had some interesting moves hidden.

The blades converged before Lu Yang, forming a shield. The magma arrows shattered upon contact with the shield of blades, ripped apart by the released sword qi.

Meng Jingzhou seized the opportunity, charging forward with his shield raised. The two shields collided, both shattering into smithereens.

The force of the impact sent the two flying backward. Meng Jingzhou regained his balance first. Seeing Lu Yang yet to steady himself, he charged again.

The dharma manifestation lunged forward, knocking aside Lu Yang’s defense. With their distance now too close, Lu Yang was forced to abandon his sword and engage in hand-to-hand combat.

Lu Yang’s fist slammed into Meng Jingzhou’s dharma manifestation, but he found it far harder than his own body. His attacks couldn’t breach its defense, while every blow from the dharma manifestation left Lu Yang wincing in pain.

By performing Heaven-Earth Dharma Manifestation, Lu Yang had only increased his physical size. On the other hand, Meng Jingzhou’s dharma manifestation was an enhanced version built upon his physical form, which was already slightly stronger than Lu Yang’s. Now amplified by the dharma manifestation, a pure contest of strength and defense would put Lu Yang at a disadvantage.

“How’s that, Old Lu? With weapons, you’re better than me. But in close quarters, you can’t compare to me.” Meng Jingzhou laughed heartily. Old Lu hasn’t executed underhanded moves like the Immortal-Exterminating Sword Array, which means that this is a test for him to identify weaknesses in the Heaven-Earth Dharma Manifestation.

Now that those weaknesses have been exposed, it’s time to end this.

“Heaven-Shaking Eight Forms!”

The Heaven-Shaking Eight Forms performed by the dharma manifestation were devastating, driving Lu Yang back step by step. Even if he could block the attacks, his body wasn’t tough enough to withstand the force.

“So I’m lacking defensive moves...” Lu Yang reflected on everything he had learned. Most of his techniques were offensive.

“Wait, there’s actually one!

“Old Meng, don’t think you’re all that impressive just because your dharma manifestation is tough. I have a defensive move too. Sixteen-Foot Golden Body!”

A golden body sixteen feet tall suddenly appeared. The two locked in fierce combat immediately went quiet.

“Hahahaha—” Meng Jingzhou couldn’t hold it in anymore. He doubled over laughing, barely maintaining his dharma manifestation.

Lu Yang’s eyelids twitched. My Heaven-Earth Dharma Manifestation is hundreds of zhang tall, while the Sixteen-Foot Golden Body isn’t even larger than my palm. So what if its defensive power is high?

“I have an idea!” A flash of inspiration struck Lu Yang.

“Sixteen-Foot Golden Body, Sixteen-Foot Golden Body, Sixteen-Foot Golden Body...”

Lu Yang conjured a horde of Sixteen-Foot Golden Bodies and plastered them onto himself like armor, covering himself from head to toe.

Having grown larger by devouring earth and spirit qi, Lu Yang’s large spirit energy reserves had multiplied several times over, allowing him to cast the Sixteen-Foot Golden Body repeatedly.

“How’s that?” Lu Yang showed off his new armor. This time, my defensive power should be more than adequate.

Meng Jingzhou’s eyelids twitched. Old Lu has little figures strapped all over him. I can’t begin to describe how bizarre this looks. Even I find it downright sinister. If someone claims that Old Lu is a prominent figure of the diabolic path, it wouldn’t feel out of place.

“Heaven-Shaking Eight Forms!”

Although the appearance was atrocious, the defensive power was genuine. Meng Jingzhou’s Heaven-Shaking Eight Forms struck Lu Yang, but the Sixteen-Foot Golden Bodies absorbed most of the force, leaving Lu Yang completely unharmed.

“Hiss, it actually works.” Meng Jingzhou hadn’t expected the defensive power of the armor of Sixteen-Foot Golden Bodies to be this high. It’s almost absurd.

”With this, the Heaven-Earth Dharma Manifestation is complete.” Lu Yang grinned. Testing it against Old Meng has indeed helped me identify and fix the flaws.

“My white sandalwood grove! What are you two rascals doing? Is this a place to fight?”

Third Elder noticed the commotion and flew into a rage. The clash between those two rascals is no less destructive than a battle between Fusion cultivators. The land and trees have been utterly obliterated!

Under the intense heat, the soil had turned to glass, and the trees had long since become charcoal.

Our sect has so many open spaces. Why must you two fight here? And this grove, my beloved sandalwood grove! I’ve carefully tended to it for years, yet it is now all reduced to ashes!

Though this was Meng Jingzhou’s cave abode, it was also Third Elder’s mountain peak.

In his fury, Third Elder didn’t restrain his strength. He threw one punch at each of them, hammering the titan Lu Yang and the dharma manifestation Meng Jingzhou into the ground until only their heads remained.

He glared fiercely at Meng Jingzhou. “If I don’t teach you a lesson, you’re going to turn the world upside down. Brat, go to the Mountain-Moving Sea-Filling Sect for two months of compulsory labor before coming back!”

The Mountain-Moving Sea-Filling Sect was a Great Xia sect responsible for the post-battle restoration of terrain damaged by battles between cultivators.

Meng Jingzhou nodded vigorously.

As Lu Yang was the Taciturn Daoist Priest’s disciple, Third Elder couldn’t exactly punish him.

When Third Elder left, the two crawled out of the earth, still shaken and covered in dirt.

“It’s all your fault. You just had to come and test your moves against me.”

“It’s no big deal. Isn’t it just two months of learning at the Mountain-Moving Sea-Filling Sect? I’ll accompany you.”