Chapter 1202: Not Teaching

"That's a very famous technique, the Great Lamentation Demonic Palm, left behind by Ancient Sage Qiu Wu! Legend has it that Ancient Sage Qiu Wu, heartbroken by his mother's death and his inability to fulfill his filial duties by her side, created this palm technique. It embodies a deep lamentation for heaven, earth, and humanity, and possesses the ability to attack the soul and primordial spirit. One of its rumored moves involves descending from the sky!"

Zhang Jiuxiao quickly explained, his throat dry. As a member of a powerful clan, even though his bloodline wasn't pure and he didn't receive the best cultivation resources, his knowledge and insight were still extensive, far surpassing what could be found in a title empire like Qingyuan. Ancient Sage Qiu Wu, a renowned attendant of Master Kong, had an immense reputation. Even if the Great Lamentation Demonic Palm wasn't his most peak technique, it was still widely known.

Whoosh! As he spoke, the power in Zhang Xuan's palm intensified, gathering like a whirlwind and forcing everyone to retreat simultaneously. The wind may not cease, even if the tree desires stillness; the child may wish to care for their parents, but they are no longer there.

"Hmm?" Elder Gou's body trembled involuntarily, as if he too recognized the move. Ancient Sage Qiu Wu was the person he admired most, so he naturally recognized the Great Lamentation Demonic Palm. Just one look filled him with overwhelming excitement. He had sought it for years without success and never dreamed that this young man before him would effortlessly display it with such purity and power!

Swoosh! Before he could fully process his shock, he felt the palm strike bearing down on him. Zhang Xuan possessed the Eye of Insight and had reached the 'Subtlety Realm,' allowing him to grasp the nuances of combat with extreme precision. The Elder's emotional turmoil created a significant opening, which Zhang Xuan naturally spotted instantly. Elder Gou's primordial spirit was struck back into his body by a single palm. His body swayed twice, and he involuntarily staggered back seven or eight steps, his face flushing red as blood seeped from the corner of his mouth. He had clearly sustained a considerable injury.

"Elder Gou, at the Ethereal Incarnation realm, was injured by... Master Zhang?""They're three major cultivation realms apart...""This is too incredible..."The other master teachers didn't recognize the Great Lamentation Demonic Palm, but seeing Elder Gou injured, they all froze in disbelief. Elder Gou was a symbol of invincibility in their minds, the strongest in the Master Teacher Pavilion. For him to be forced back, spitting blood, in less than three moves was simply unheard of.

"Fortunately, we listened carefully during the lecture and didn't challenge him. Otherwise... we'd probably be lying on the ground by now!""Yes, Master Zhang is truly merciful..."Wiping cold sweat from their brows, everyone felt immense relief. Earlier, they had felt a little guilty for not being able to showcase their strength after being affected by the 'Words of a Master Teacher.' Now, that guilt had vanished. With such strength and profound zhenqi, even if they had rushed in, they wouldn't have stood a chance!

"Your move..." Stabilizing himself, Elder Gou suppressed his injuries and quickly looked over, intending to inquire further, but saw the young man opposite him strike again. This time, the palm force was even more robust. Although it didn't utilize the 'descending from the sky' momentum, its power was no less."Let me see if this is truly the Great Lamentation Demonic Palm..." Knowing he was in a fight, with no time for other thoughts, Elder Gou made his decision and met the attack. Previously, he had been using the spatial lock unique to Ethereal Incarnation realm experts. Now, he wanted to use his own zhenqi strength to truly battle his opponent.He crossed his palms in front of his chest, striking forward in layers like ripples on water. With each strike, a new ripple appeared in the air, emitting sharp sonic booms. This was the Saint realm mid-tier martial art, Ten Thousand Water Overlapping Clouds!Legend says this technique was created by a master teacher who gained insight from observing streams and flowing water. The overlapping palms were like continuous flowing water, and when combined, they covered the sky and obscured the sun like clouds. Elder Gou had practiced this technique for countless years, reaching a state of extreme mastery. With one move, the Great Lamentation Demonic Palm was blocked, unable to land.

Zhang Xuan didn't retreat either. His right palm's power continued, while his left hand rose, and with a gentle flick, stars spun at his fingertips, sending a rapid beam of light forward."Great Star Luo Finger Art?""Using a palm technique with one hand and a finger art with the other?"Everyone was stunned, and even Zhang Jiuxiao was dumbfounded, unable to believe his eyes. Palm techniques and finger arts were two distinct martial arts, and the methods for circulating zhenqi within the body for each were entirely unrelated. Normally, executing a palm technique first and then a finger art, or vice-versa, wasn't an issue. But... simultaneously performing a palm technique with the right hand and a finger art with the left... that was incredibly difficult! Not to mention them, even Elder Gou likely couldn't achieve it.

Whoosh! The Great Star Luo Finger Art pierced through the air. Elder Gou's Ten Thousand Water Overlapping Clouds immediately had a small hole punctured in it, and his palm force, like turbulent water, lost its previous defensive capability.Crack! At the same moment, the Great Lamentation Demonic Palm's power bore down, forcing him to retreat repeatedly."Incredible!" Elder Gou's eyes grew serious. He hadn't expected to be forced back again even after using his full strength. He changed his palm to a fist and charged forward once more.Boom, boom, boom! Both moved at extreme speeds, exchanging over a hundred blows in less than a minute.

"Elder Gou, in his youth, had unparalleled talent and mastered countless martial arts. In this series of exchanges just now, he's used at least a dozen different ones, right? That's impressive, and I can understand it. But... Master Zhang seems to have used even more—over eighty martial arts already..." A master teacher, his face pale, watched the battle unfolding in the arena and couldn't help but murmur to himself.Elder Gou was over nine hundred years old and had been an elder for more than five hundred. Given such a long lifespan, it was understandable for him to have learned and mastered many martial arts. But Master Zhang was only twenty years old, yet he also displayed so many martial arts, each extremely powerful, executed with effortless ease, clearly demonstrating profound understanding... How was this possible?

"He's used eighty-seven already..." a master teacher remarked. Hearing this, the others also paid attention, their eyes widening in disbelief. They themselves spent countless effort on each martial art, even dedicating their entire lives, yet struggled to achieve mastery. But this person before them effortlessly displayed techniques, each mastered to at least the Grand Completion stage... It was simply unbelievable.

"It seems... Zhang Jiuxiao's title as the number one genius will have to change!" everyone thought with emotion. Previously, they had considered Zhang Jiuxiao an insurmountable height. But seeing the young man before them, they realized the two were simply not on the same level.

"That's not right..." Unlike the others' shock, Master Wu on the side frowned."Master Wu, what's wrong?" a master teacher asked, approaching him."Master Zhang's greatest strength is finding and exploiting subtle flaws in techniques and cultivation methods. Yet, in this battle, he hasn't done that. Instead, he's displayed so many martial arts... It feels like he's honing himself?" After pondering for a long time, Master Wu voiced his doubts. The others present might not be aware of Master Zhang's abilities, but he had witnessed them firsthand. He could spot flaws in others' cultivation techniques and martial arts with a glance, exploit them, and achieve unexpected results... Yet, fighting Elder Gou for so long, displaying an endless array of martial arts, he wasn't attacking any weak points. It seemed he wasn't trying to defeat his opponent immediately, but rather... honing his own strength!

"Honing?" The master teacher staggered. If someone had told him earlier that a Spirit Severing realm cultivator fighting an Ethereal Incarnation realm expert wasn't trying to win but instead aiming to hone himself... he would surely have thought the person was mad or foolish. Yet, having witnessed countless miracles with his own eyes, and now hearing Master Wu say this, despite finding it hard to believe, he knew it was true! Honing himself even while fighting Elder Gou... Just how immense was this person's confidence, and how formidable was his combat power?

Boom, boom, boom! After three more moves, forcing Elder Gou to retreat, Zhang Xuan finally exhaled a mouthful of stale air. Master Wu's guess was accurate; he was indeed honing his martial arts. It was rare to encounter such an opponent who could push his full strength to its limit. The many martial arts he had learned in the Combat Master Hall became increasingly fluid and integrated with each use."As expected of an Ethereal Incarnation realm expert, I'm truly not his match right now..." Zhang Xuan sighed inwardly, shaking his head. Although his combat power had steadily increased, unfortunately, without breaking through to the Embryic Soul realm, the gap between him and an Ethereal Incarnation realm expert was still too vast. Relying solely on strength, he couldn't win.While it was extremely difficult to defeat the opponent in a direct power-for-power battle, when it came to defeating them... he had many more methods! His palm rolled and pressed down, blocking the opponent's attack. Zhang Xuan raised an eyebrow and flicked his finger lightly. Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh! With a series of whirring sounds, hundreds of formation flags shot out, instantly landing around Elder Gou.

He lightly tapped his foot on the ground. The formation was instantly activated. In Qiu Wu Palace, he had already reached the level of a peak 7-star formation master. Defeating his opponent purely by strength was difficult, but with the aid of a formation, it would be much easier.Whoosh! A dense mist arose, engulfing Elder Gou. The formation Zhang Xuan set up was a mid-tier 7-star formation. Its power wasn't overwhelming, but even if Elder Gou wanted to break free, it would take at least ten or more breaths of time. Given that their battle was already closely matched, ten or more breaths... could effectively decide life or death.

With the formation activated, everyone could see nothing. Their spiritual sense couldn't penetrate it either. They only felt intense tremors from the ground and an increasingly loud booming sound, leaving them all utterly terrified.Crack! After approximately fifteen seconds, the formation slowly dissipated, and the formation flags were drawn back into Zhang Xuan's storage ring with a wave of his hand. Seeing the battle end so quickly, everyone simultaneously looked towards Elder Gou, and froze on the spot. The Elder, who moments ago had appeared with the immortal aura of a crane-haired youth, now had his head buried below the ground, his entire body covered in blood, with not a single intact spot. Clearly, in that short span of time, he had endured a frantic assault, beaten so thoroughly that even his own father wouldn't recognize him.

Splat! Elder Gou pulled his head out of the ground. Far from feeling pain over his defeat, he looked at the young man before him with eyes full of anticipation and excitement. "Master Zhang, may I ask... was that the Great Lamentation Demonic Palm of Ancient Sage Qiu Wu you just displayed?""It was!" Zhang Xuan nodded, not denying it."I wonder... this set of palm techniques..." Elder Gou hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and blurted out, "Could you teach me?""Oh? You want to learn?""Yes!""No!"