Chapter 378: Moonfall Technique

The wind howled, whipping up dust and mist that obscured visibility. Zhou Yuan’s figure vanished within it. After mastering the Void Transformation Technique, his physical body could become completely insubstantial, allowing him to subtly leverage his surroundings to conceal himself. He appeared and disappeared unpredictably, making it impossible to guard against him.

Xu Yan stood amidst the dust and mist, a cold smirk on his face as he surveyed his surroundings. Zhou Yuan’s action clearly indicated he wasn't planning passive defense; he intended to launch a counterattack to buy time.

“Clever, perhaps, but you seem to have overestimated yourself.”

Xu Yan’s body trembled, and a ring of azure Genesis Qi burst forth. The Genesis Qi transformed into countless fine threads, like ox hair, rapidly spinning in the area around him.

“While the Void Transformation Technique has its intricacies, it’s likely of little use against me!”

The fine threads of Genesis Qi whistled. Suddenly, a mocking smile appeared on Xu Yan’s lips.

“Caught you, little mouse!”

He shot forward abruptly. His longsword pulsed with sword-light, so sharp it seemed to tear through the void. Like a flash of cold light, it thrust directly towards a spot on his right.

That sword strike was exceptionally fierce.

A snow-white pen tip, like a spearhead, appeared out of thin air. Purple light pulsed unsteadily from its tip as it collided with the sword’s point.

However, in their collision, Xu Yan clearly had the upper hand. With a flash of sword-light, he directly shattered the purple light.

But as soon as the purple light shattered, the pen tip suddenly split apart, transforming into numerous hair-like chains that swiftly wrapped around the longsword, then coiled around Xu Yan’s body like giant pythons.

Xu Yan frowned. His Genesis Qi erupted, intending to shatter the chains.

However, those snow-white hairs were exceptionally tough, making it impossible for him to break free momentarily.

At this moment, Zhou Yuan’s figure appeared behind Xu Yan. His hands swiftly formed seals, and golden Genesis Qi soared skyward.

“Nine Dragons Scripture, Nine Dragons!”

He roared, and immediately, a fierce roar echoed. Nine streams of Genesis Beast Qi shot into the sky. They then devoured each other, transforming into a single Genesis Beast Qi radiating malevolent energy.

That enormous Genesis Beast Qi, hundreds of feet vast, roared downwards, charging ferociously towards the bound Xu Yan.

Its momentum was overwhelming.

Xu Yan looked up at the roaring, colossal Genesis Beast Qi. The malevolent energy made his eyes narrow slightly. Then, a hint of disdain curved his lips.

“The fully mastered Nine Dragons Scripture, huh... Junior Brother Zhou Yuan, if you used this attack against a Gold Sash disciple, few would be able to withstand it. But unfortunately, you still underestimate the methods of veteran Purple Sash disciples...”

The moment his voice fell, Xu Yan’s mouth suddenly puffed out. Azure Genesis Qi rapidly gathered within his mouth. The next instant, it violently erupted as a beam of azure light.

“High-Grade Minor Heaven Genesis Art, Azure Moon Cone!”

That beam of azure light, like an awl, was so fast it was almost imperceptible to the naked eye. Numerous disciples only saw a fleeting flash of azure light. Then, in the next instant, that azure light violently collided with the roaring Genesis Beast Qi.

Violent shockwaves spread out. The two formidable attacks annihilated each other upon impact.

Xu Yan’s body shuddered, finally breaking free from the snow-white hairs’ restraint. The hairs coiled back, and a mottled black pen shot backward, to be firmly grasped by a slender hand.

Zhou Yuan revealed himself, his Heavenly Yuan Brush pointed diagonally towards the ground.

“A veteran Purple Sash disciple is indeed this troublesome...” Zhou Yuan’s eyes narrowed slightly. It seemed his recent string of smooth victories had made him a bit overconfident. After all, the Cangxuan Sect was one of the giant sects in Cangxuan Heaven. Among them, every veteran Purple Sash disciple was chosen from tens of thousands. If these individuals were placed outside the Sacred Continent, they would undoubtedly be highly sought-after prodigies.

Moreover, the advantage of the Seventh Layer Alpha Origin stage was simply too great. Zhou Yuan himself was only at the Third Layer Alpha Origin stage. If not for his Heaven-Connecting Mysterious Python Qi being a top-tier Sixth-Grade Genesis Qi, and his somewhat mutated blood-red Qi Dwelling causing his Genesis Qi's profoundness to far exceed that of the Third Layer, he feared that just those few head-on clashes with Xu Yan earlier would have already depleted his Genesis Qi.

“No wonder the sect’s rule is to see who can last longer against them, rather than defeat them...”

Zhou Yuan’s gaze gradually sharpened. If that's the case, then let's see who can last longer.

He believed that once he was promoted to a Purple Sash disciple and entered the Fourth Layer Alpha Origin stage, he would face these veteran Purple Sash disciples without any reservations.

Zhou Yuan held the Heavenly Yuan Brush. His ethereal figure once again shot out like a wisp of smoke.

He still chose offense over defense.

Seeing this, Xu Yan sneered. His figure also shot out rapidly. His longsword pulsed with sword-light, transforming into countless sword shadows that directly engulfed Zhou Yuan’s vital points.

Clang! Clang!

Two blurry figures collided like lightning in the square. Afterimages flickered. Each time a crisp clash echoed, a violent and astonishing Genesis Qi impact surged forth.

However, anyone could see that with each collision, Zhou Yuan’s figure was sent recoiling backward. Clearly, this was due to being suppressed in direct confrontation.

This made many disciples who were watching shake their heads secretly. After all, Zhou Yuan was only at the Third Layer Alpha Origin stage. Even with his numerous techniques, challenging Xu Yan across four cultivation layers was still too challenging.

Amidst countless gazes of pity, Zhou Yuan, intensely clashing with Xu Yan, remained remarkably calm. As the fierce battle continued, faint, almost imperceptible dragon roars emanated from his nostrils.

The Genesis Qi from heaven and earth was continuously drawn into his body, swiftly refined, replenishing his expended energy.

Dragon Absorption Art.

Zhou Yuan’s Genesis Qi might not be as profound as Xu Yan’s, who was at the Seventh Layer, but by relying on the profoundness of the Dragon Absorption Art, he could continuously replenish his expended Genesis Qi, thereby prolonging the battle.

As he was now, defeating Xu Yan was challenging, but if it came to delaying, Xu Yan likely wouldn't find it easy to simply sweep him aside...

Occasionally, his body would be grazed by the opponent’s sword-aura, leaving cuts. However, most of the damage was negated by the Heaven Flood Dragon Scales and the Void Transformation Technique, and did not affect his combat effectiveness.

Thus, time gradually slipped away as their battle grew increasingly fierce.

By this point, many disciples also began to sense something was amiss. They noticed that while Zhou Yuan was being suppressed and seemed quite disheveled by Xu Yan’s attacks, he nonetheless stubbornly held on under Xu Yan’s barrage.

“Huh?” Even Li Qingchan let out a slight sound of surprise, clearly having noticed something unusual.

Zhou Yuan’s Genesis Qi, though seemingly less profound than Xu Yan’s, nonetheless appeared exceptionally continuous and long-lasting.

Evidently, Zhou Yuan no longer held the mindset of defeating Xu Yan. He had rationally chosen to stall for time.

The Heavenly Yuan Brush collided with a sword shadow. Zhou Yuan’s figure was once again sent reeling back. However, observing his retreating figure, Xu Yan’s face gradually grew grim.

Because he saw the large incense stick burning behind them, and nearly one-fifth of it had already burned away.

His original plan was to humiliate Zhou Yuan and force him out within this one-fifth of the time. But looking at the current situation, although Zhou Yuan was suppressed by him, he remained energetic, and there was no sign of his Genesis Qi depleting.

“This guy... he’s like a turtle; not only is he tough, but he’s also incredibly resilient!”

Xu Yan took a deep breath, his eyes turning cold.

He couldn't continue wearing him down like this. Since Zhou Yuan was good at wars of attrition, Xu Yan would use the most direct method: one strike to destroy all his defenses!

Xu Yan cast a cold glance at Zhou Yuan. He released his longsword, and its blade slowly rose.

The Genesis Qi in the world gradually began to surge at this moment.

The longsword shot into the sky. Genesis Qi from heaven and earth converged, and a brilliant azure light gradually emerged. Ultimately, it formed an azure crescent moon in the sky.

From the crescent moon, moonlight emanated, like endless sword-aura, sending shivers down one's spine.

A terrifying fluctuation radiated from that azure crescent moon.

Outside the mountain range, numerous disciples watched this scene in stunned silence. The next instant, an uproar erupted.

“This Xu Yan is too ruthless. He’s just fighting a Gold Sash disciple, yet he’s even using a Heaven Genesis Art!”

“That must be Swordfall Peak’s ‘Moonfall Art’! A genuine Low-Grade Heaven Genesis Art!”

“This is just too unseemly...”

Numerous disciples whispered among themselves, expressing dissatisfaction with Xu Yan’s actions. After all, his Genesis Qi cultivation already held an absolute advantage, and now he was even resorting to a Heaven Genesis Art.

Did he think he was battling a veteran Purple Sash disciple of his own rank?

He was taking bullying too far.

However, no matter how much they voiced their displeasure, it couldn't affect Xu Yan at this moment. The latter stood in the center of the square, his gaze coldly fixed on Zhou Yuan.

How could he not know that using a Heaven Genesis Art against Zhou Yuan would make him look bad? But Zhou Yuan was simply too resilient. According to Xu Yan's estimation, at the previous pace, even if the incense stick burned out completely, he wouldn't be able to deplete Zhou Yuan's Genesis Qi.

Therefore, he could only resort to the most decisive method: using absolute power to destroy Zhou Yuan.

His arrogant gaze turned to Zhou Yuan. His hands slowly came together.

“I heard that when you fought Wei Youxuan, he used an incomplete Low-Grade Heaven Genesis Art. Then today, I, your Senior Brother, will open your eyes and let you witness...”

“What a complete Heaven Genesis Art truly is!”

“Moonfall Art!”

The moment his voice fell, the azure crescent moon suspended high in the sky plummeted downwards.

That streak of azure light seemed to cleave the heavens.