Daqian Martial Saint

Deep within his Spirit Platform, his Spiritual Energy shone. The incredibly unripe Spirit Fruit Embryo, glowing with a halo of Spiritual Energy, seemed to shed some of its immaturity under this nourishment.

If this Spirit Fruit Embryo on his Spirit Platform became smooth, crystalline, and flawlessly formed, it would signify that Chen Ping’an had reached the Perfection of the Mid-Jade Balance Stage.

However, it was obvious that a single breakthrough in the Wandering Dragon Body Technique was far from enough to reach that point. The Spiritual Energy above the Spirit Platform only shone for a moment before gradually dimming. Although flickers of Spiritual Light still danced, it was nowhere near as active as before.

’Wandering Dragon Body Technique, Minor Achievement!’

Chen Ping’an slowly opened his eyes, a faint green light glowing within them.

Name: Chen Ping’an

Realm: Mid-Jade Balance Stage - Spirit Fruit Embryo

Martial Arts: Wandering Dragon Body Technique - Minor Achievement (0/640), Soul-Severing Saber - Minor Achievement (285/640), Dragon Elephant Dominating Body Technique - Perfection, Vajra Unbreakable Divine Skill - Perfection, Three-Point Human Tribulation Finger - Perfection, Great Vajra Palm - Perfection...

...

Although the Wandering Dragon Body Technique was a Top Divine Skill, a single minor breakthrough—and one from Entry Level to Minor Achievement at that—didn’t provide much of a boost to Chen Ping’an’s Martial Dao Realm. Comparatively, his cultivation was only a notch or two deeper than that of a Mid-Jade Balance Stage Grandmaster who had just consolidated their realm.

However, for Chen Ping’an, achieving the Minor Achievement Realm in the Wandering Dragon Body Technique was highly significant. While the gains to his realm were small, his combat prowess had risen to a new level.

As he cultivated the Wandering Dragon Body Technique to the Minor Achievement Realm, he naturally grasped its Basic Secret Technique, Wind and Cloud Illusion!

Once Wind and Cloud Illusion was deployed, his speed would skyrocket. Although the effect was short-lived and his speed would quickly return to normal after the burst, its strategic value was immense.

One could imagine a scenario: while locked in fierce combat, Chen Ping’an could use Wind and Cloud Illusion to burst with speed, instantly closing the distance with his opponent.

The Divine Skills he currently practiced all excelled in close-quarters combat. Once the distance was closed, even a Grandmaster of the Same Realm would likely suffer under Chen Ping’an’s direct assault. At the right moment, it could even be the key to securing victory.

Furthermore, if the battle turned against him, Chen Ping’an could also use Wind and Cloud Illusion to instantly create distance and avoid getting tied down.

In a fight between Grandmasters, a distance of five or six zhang could absolutely be considered close-quarters combat. Empowered by a Grandmaster’s True Essence, attack ranges were extremely long, and every move held Great Power.

Take Grandmasters who excelled at long-range attacks, for example. When they used their techniques, their full offensive might could cover a radius of a hundred zhang. A perfect example was the Gu Family’s female Grandmaster, Ice Soul Divine Needle Gu Qingchan, who was a master of long-range attacks. As her Profound Ice Divine Needle shot forth, crossing a hundred zhang was a matter of a single thought.

Of course, at greater distances, while the attack could still land, its power would be significantly diminished.

Now that his Wandering Dragon Body Technique had reached the Minor Achievement Realm, Chen Ping’an pictured the scenario. If he were to fight Gu Qingchan, as long as he could withstand her initial onslaught of Profound Ice Divine Needles, he could use Wind and Cloud Illusion to drastically shorten the distance and engage in a fierce, close-quarters battle.

Ice Soul Divine Needle Gu Qingchan’s attack power might be fierce, but before him, she was undoubtedly a glass cannon.

If he timed it right, he might just be able to pin Gu Qingchan down beneath him. Er... pin her down.

’Of course, this is all just my speculation for now. I’ll only know for sure after a real fight!’

But regardless, the breakthrough of his Wandering Dragon Body Technique to the Minor Achievement Realm meant that the shortcoming in his body technique was more or less shored up. As a Top Divine Skill, cultivating the Wandering Dragon Body Technique to Minor Achievement meant it was no longer a weak point for him among those in the Grandmaster Realm.

While it couldn’t be considered an advantage yet, it was barely sufficient.

’Idle speculation is useless. Only a real battle will make everything clear!’

”I hope this encirclement of the Ten Thousand Demons won’t disappoint me!” Chen Ping’an’s eyes glinted with anticipation.

...

「Deep within Sanqi Mountain.」

Beside a green stone cliff dozens of zhang high, people were gathered in small groups. These were the mid-to-high-ranking leaders of the Ten Thousand Demons suppression campaign.

Among them, even the weakest had a cultivation at the Profound Light Realm.

Chen Ping’an stood amidst the crowd, waiting quietly. Several people stood near him; they were all core members of the Western Front Suppression Team from within the Garrison Commandant’s Office system. Figures like Zhong Zeyu, Xu Chongyuan, and Xiong Sanrang were among them. As for L? Boxu of the Qiankun Bureau and Xu Dejun of the Earth Fire Garrison Commandant’s Office, they were not present due to their serious injuries.

Chen Ping’an stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Zhong Zeyu, and the surrounding crowd seemed to subtly center around them. Besides their group, other factions had also gathered, such as powerful families supporting the region, personnel from the Qiankun Bureau, and their surrounding cliques. Overall, most of the people gathered here were from the Western Front Suppression Team, with a few mobile units and a handful of personnel from other fronts mixed in.

On the second day after Chen Ping’an’s Wandering Dragon Body Technique reached Minor Achievement, the latest news arrived: the precise location of the Ten Thousand Demons Sub-Altar had been confirmed. It had been narrowed down to a twenty-li radius deep within Sanqi Mountain.

The moment the news broke, the suppression teams on all fronts coordinated to tighten the encirclement, taking up positions everywhere. The area where Chen Ping’an and the others were located constituted the western sector of the encirclement. In addition to those present, elites from the Garrison Commandant’s Office and other major powers were densely deployed in the surrounding area, supporting each other and locking down the western sector completely.

They had gathered here today to launch the final, all-out assault on the Ten Thousand Demons Sub-Altar. As Chen Ping’an stood in the ranks, those around him were extremely courteous. When Xu Chongyuan of the Li Yang Garrison Commandant’s Office saw Chen Ping’an, he even managed to force a smile onto his stern face.

The strength Chen Ping’an had displayed that day, and his slaying of Blood Demon Hammer, had earned Xu Chongyuan’s deep respect. To the others present, Chen Ping’an’s prestige now faintly surpassed even Zhong Zeyu’s.

Hmm!?

Chen Ping’an sensed two extremely powerful auras rapidly approaching them from the southwest. He remained expressionless, not even glancing in that direction, and simply continued to stand there.

A few breaths later, Zhong Zeyu and the others beside him noticed the approaching auras.

”They’re here!” Zhong Zeyu said, his expression solemn as he looked to the southwest. Chen Ping’an, as if having just noticed, followed his gaze.

In the distant mountain forest, two figures streaked over. Their speed was like lightning, yet they made no sound at all.

Before long, the two figures appeared at the base of the green stone cliff. The moment they came to a stop, everyone greeted them in unison.

”Elder Yan!”

”Elder Qu!”

The two were dressed differently. One was nine chi tall, burly and stout, with knotted muscles like a walking mountain. The other had graying temples and stood with his hands clasped behind his back, exuding an extraordinary air.

Cloud-Pushing Mountain Palm, Yan Shibao!

Beidou Divine Fist, Qu Zhaocheng!

Since this suppression of the Ten Thousand Demons involved a Sub-Altar-level stronghold, it was only natural that Grandmaster reinforcements would be sent. The two had different temperaments. Faced with the crowd’s greetings, the nine-chi-tall, burly Grandmaster simply gave a slight nod in response.

The other one beside him, Beidou Divine Fist Qu Zhaocheng, replied with a smile, ”There’s no need for such formalities!”

”Our thanks, Elders!” the crowd responded in unison.

Neither of them had intentionally concealed their auras, so Chen Ping’an gauged their Martial Arts Realms the moment he saw them. Both were at the Early Jade Balance Stage. Among them, Beidou Divine Fist Qu Zhaocheng’s Martial Dao Realm was stronger than Yan Shibao’s, likely approaching the peak level for an Early Jade Balance Stage Grandmaster. Still, not as strong as Fiery Sun Palm Wang Xu had been.

’I wonder if I could kill them both at the same time with my current strength,’ Chen Ping’an mused silently.

’Defeating them wouldn’t be difficult, but killing them is another matter. Anyone who can become a Grandmaster has a few life-saving trump cards up their sleeve.’

’Without a fight, I can’t be certain of the final outcome.’

’It’s possible one would die and one would escape. It’s also possible they’d both be seriously injured in a desperate burst of power and flee. And it’s also possible... there would be no escape.’

’The only thing I can be certain of is that even if they teamed up, they would be no match for me.’

With Cloud-Pushing Mountain Palm Yan Shibao and Beidou Divine Fist Qu Zhaocheng on the scene, many assumed the final assault was about to begin. But to their surprise, the two Grandmasters simply stood in place without moving, closing their eyes as if waiting for something.

This scene left many people stunned.

’There are more Grandmasters coming!?’

Chen Ping’an was also rather surprised. He hadn’t expected the scale of this final assault to be so grand.

Just as everyone was pondering this, another figure streaked over from the distance.

...