Chapter 1218: Exposing Identity

Lord Siheng admitted that in his youth, he loved to fight, was not well-read, lacked a deep understanding of history, and often confused unofficial accounts with official records. His colleagues secretly referred to him as the "Illiterate Divine Lord."

But what did that matter? The Emperor had praised him as "pure of heart and courageous." Could anyone else receive such praise from the Emperor? Those who called him illiterate were simply jealous!

"Ask anything you want, I know everything!" Lord Siheng fumed, his hair practically bristling.

"What is the Tinder Dynasty?""I don't know.""What are the effects of the nascent Samsara Dao Fruit?""I don't know.""Why does the Central Heavenly Emperor want the nascent Samsara Dao Fruit?""I don't know." The more Lord Siheng spoke, the more unsure he became; he seemed unable to answer a single question."Where is the Central Heavenly Emperor?""I know this one... wait, you're trying to trick me!"

Lu Yang and his companion were quite disappointed that he had caught on.

The appearance of Lu Yang and his companion significantly boosted everyone's confidence. Both sides of the conflict involved legendary figures, and it was widely believed that the older one was, the more powerful they became. However, with Young Cult Master Lu's side having more people, they naturally held the advantage.

Mu Baiyi, however, was deeply worried. He had long heard that nascent Dao Fruits possessed various incredible divine abilities, allowing a Half-Immortal to completely overwhelm a Tribulation Transcender. Seeing it today, it was indeed true. Although Young Cult Master Lu and his companion were young and promising, they were ultimately still at the Tribulation Transcension stage. Whether they could defeat Lord Siheng remained to be seen. He hoped they possessed trump cards powerful enough to defeat Lord Siheng.

"Everyone, retreat!" Mu Baiyi shouted loudly, maintaining order and directing the cult members to evacuate. Battles involving Tribulation Transcenders were world-shattering; remaining in place would be inviting death.

"You're seeking death!" Lord Siheng was utterly enraged. What did it matter if these two were from the Heavenly Court Cult or not? Regardless, they had no protectors, and they were certainly no match for him!

"Weak Water Staff Arts!" Lord Siheng wielded his long staff, and a mist gradually began to appear around him.

"I'd like to see what use this feeble staff technique has!" Meng Jingzhou was incredibly brave, charging straight into the fray. A body cultivator at the peak of Tribulation Transcension could sweep across the world; no other cultivator dared to engage him in close combat.

The moment his fists met the long staff, Meng Jingzhou understood Lord Siheng's strategy. This staff technique was evidently modeled after "water," using softness to overcome hardness, capable of neutralizing an opponent's force. But could he truly neutralize it?

Meng Jingzhou's aura shifted, as if he were an emperor presiding over the world, looking down upon all others. "Peerless Supremacy Fist!"

Lord Siheng instantly felt the opponent's increased power. Even as he used his staff technique to neutralize the force, it still left his arms numb. "What kind of monster is this?!"

"Haha, with this level of skill, you dare call yourself a Divine Lord?" "Old Lu, didn't I tell you? There's no need to trick information out of people like him; a good beating will make them spill everything." "Even the prisoners in our family's dungeon are stronger than you."

The more Lord Siheng listened, the angrier he became, like a raging lion. Lu Yang seized the moment when Lord Siheng's attention was entirely focused on Old Meng. He pointed his Green Edge Sword at Lord Siheng, causing the divine lord's body to drop uncontrollably, kneeling on the ground in a perfectly standard posture.

Meng Jingzhou had been waiting for this exact opportunity. His fist force erupted, and he unleashed a barrage of punches, each powerful enough to shatter a star, all striking Lord Siheng's face and completely disfiguring him.

"Not only is he illiterate, but his combat prowess is also terrible.""You're quite eloquent. I hope you're as stubborn when you fight your own shadows!"

Lord Siheng continuously retreated, simultaneously locking onto Meng Jingzhou and activating his nascent Yin-Yang Dao Fruit. During their exchange, he had noticed that the opponent's Yang energy was outrageously abundant, even surpassing that of a Pure Yang Immortal Body.

"Come on, come on, I'd like to see what kind of shadow you can conjure!" Meng Jingzhou was brimming with confidence.

Space twisted, and a shadowy Meng Jingzhou gradually materialized. Its face was softer than the real Meng Jingzhou's, with long flowing hair and a graceful, alluring figure. Every movement exuded an inexplicable charm, and its chest was conspicuously well-endowed.

"Why is it a woman?!" Lord Siheng stared in astonishment at the shadowy Meng Jingzhou. He then looked at the real Meng Jingzhou: "Are you actually a woman?"

"No way in hell!" This time, it was Meng Jingzhou's turn to explode.

Lu Yang stroked his chin, vaguely understanding the situation. Ninefold Immortal had once mentioned the possibility of transforming Old Meng's Pure Yang physique into a Pure Yin physique, which would also necessitate a gender change, a prospect Old Meng had vehemently rejected. Lord Siheng's nascent Yin-Yang Dao Fruit could create a completely opposite person, which meant it had manifested Old Meng with a Pure Yin physique, perfectly verifying Ninefold Immortal's earlier statement.

Meng Jingzhou was enraged at the sight of his Pure Yin self. Without waiting for the shadow to make the first move, he immediately charged forward to fight it. Today, he was determined to settle who was superior!

Lord Siheng's gaze fell on Lu Yang: "Now it's your turn!" He repeated his tactic, once again activating his nascent Yin-Yang Dao Fruit.

Lu Yang, without haste, unleashed a rarely used, peerless karmic divine ability: "Reversed Yin-Yang." Lord Siheng had originally locked onto Lu Yang, but just as he was about to manifest a completely opposite shadow, he discovered the opponent's Yin-Yang had shifted, as if he had transformed into another person, rendering all his prior preparations utterly futile.

"What if you can alter Yin-Yang? I'd like to see how many times you can do it!" Lord Siheng once again activated his nascent Yin-Yang Dao Fruit, and Lu Yang continued to unleash Reversed Yin-Yang. After several such repetitions, Lord Siheng nearly burst out cursing. If this stalemate continued, they would be fighting until tomorrow without any resolution.

"Do you think I have no other recourse just because you possess a karmic divine ability?!" His nascent Yin-Yang Dao Fruit had other uses.

Black flames appeared in Lord Siheng's left hand and floating ice crystals in his right. Naturally, these were far inferior to the Immortal Fire and Profound Ice created by Ninefold Immortal, but this move was still potent enough to put a Tribulation Transcender in a life-or-death crisis!

Lu Yang, however, showed no fear of this move. Facing the endless incoming flames, he lightly flicked his Green Edge Sword, unleashing clusters of sword qi to envelop and imprison them. The ice crystals transformed into countless ice cones, piercing towards Lu Yang. A single touch from these cones would instantly stiffen one's body with frost, a fatal threat in battles among peers!

Lu Yang wielded his Green Edge Sword, ensuring nothing could approach him within three feet. Any ice cones that came close were effortlessly split in half by the blade.

"This is impossible! What kind of sword is that?!" Even a sword of Immortal Treasure grade couldn't possibly ignore the extreme cold of those ice cones, unless it was an actual Immortal Sword! Yet, in this world, only two individuals were capable of forging Immortal Swords: Ying Tianxian and Emperor Yu Wu Yao. Both were mysterious and had vanished without a trace for eons. Their Great Qian Dynasty didn't even possess a single Immortal Sword!

Lu Yang offered a meaningful smile that held no actual information, leaving Lord Siheng to interpret it himself. Lord Siheng had no time to dwell on it. He sensed an intense danger from Lu Yang's sword technique; the slightest misstep would mean decapitation. "What kind of sword technique was this, so exquisitely refined!"

From not far away, Cult Master Chi had been observing for a while before hesitantly asking the two individuals beside him, "Don't you think Young Cult Master Lu's sword technique looks remarkably similar to Lu Yang's Immortal Sword Art? We even saw it in the extreme north."

Mu Baiyi and Liu Zhen's expressions instantly changed upon hearing this. They hurriedly tackled Cult Master Chi to the ground, clamping their hands tightly over his mouth. "As if you were the only one with eyes! Who couldn't tell that Young Cult Master Lu was using the Immortal Sword Art? What that implied was self-evident. But was this something that could be openly stated?!"

Even while fighting, Lu Yang was attentive to his surroundings. Hearing Cult Master Chi's words, he turned his head and offered a gentle smile. "Oh, I originally wanted to keep up the act for a bit longer, Cult Master Chi. Why did you have to blurt it out? Now, what am I to do?"