The Divine Martial Stars

"This matter has become very interesting.

"What do you mean by saying that the Grand Mountain Ancient Sword is acceptable?"

Li Mu really wanted to ask the young Taoist priest named Indestructible if the descendants of gods were all so reckless. "The divine sword of a sect is very important. How can it be exchanged at will? Could it be that the Grand Mountain Ancient Sword is much more valuable than the Pure Yang Sword, so this Taoist priest wants to gain an unfair advantage?"

He wanted to call the old faker and find out the truth. After all, the Grand Mountain Ancient Sword meant a lot. However, on second thought, he realized that the old faker didn't seem to have a phone.

"Back then, I reached an agreement with Senior Yu to have a fight with his successor," the young Taoist priest said, "Today is the perfect day to do that. Mr. Li, you're known as the God of War. Please accept my request so I can learn from you."

His eyebrows were shaped like swords, and the look in his bright eyes suggested that he was eager to have a try.

Li Mu had long fostered a very good Taoist mindset, but for some reasons, something stirred in his mind. The young Taoist priest's stance ignited his competitive spirit.

"Are you the so-called descendant of a god?"

The old faker said that the young Taoist priest was very powerful. Now, Li Mu wanted to test him.

He surveyed his surroundings.

The young Taoist priest named Indestructible understood why Li Mu did that. He said, "Indeed, I'm afraid that the entire Baoji City would be reduced to ashes if we were to go all out in a fight. What's more, my master highly respects Senior Yu. If I hurt you accidentally, I would feel a little guilty. How about this? Let's have a different type of competition and determine the outcome with three moves."

Li Mu was annoyed when he heard that.

"This monk is not modest at all."

"Alright, how do we compete?" Li Mu asked.

The young Taoist priest named Indestructible said with a smile on his face, "Let's compete for skill, will, and strength. He who causes damage to anything other than himself, including even a leaf or a brick, due to poor control of his power will be deemed the loser. What do you say?"

Li Mu said, "Okay."

The young Taoist priest laughed. He said, "Back then, Senior Yu was invincible, and he was indeed a peerless master of martial arts. My master and many of his friends were once defeated by Senior Yu. Mr. Li, you have won the honorary title of the Eastern God of War. You're an accomplished disciple trained by a great master. It's just that some of my friends and I refuse to acknowledge defeat without giving it a try. Mr. Li, please compete with me without holding back any of your power and skill."

He took off his Taoist Robe and hat and handed them to the little Taoist novice next to him. The tight and short inner robe made him look even more handsome, slender and gentle.

"Mr. Li, please." He gestured with his hand.

Li Mu said, "Back then, my master took… borrowed the sword. Today, you should go first."

The young Taoist priest said, "In that case, it would be impolite to refuse."

He pulled the horsetail whisk out from his collar, held it in his left hand with its silver threads hanging around his shoulder, and made a gesture of respect with his right hand. Then, he shifted his feet into a T-step position, regulated his breathing, turned his right palm outwards, and did a seemingly slow palm strike at Li Mu.

In the eyes of ordinary people and practitioners, it was just a normal move, nothing extraordinary about it.

However, Li Mu suddenly felt like the only thing left in his sight was that palm, which was moving slowly toward him but had a power that could crush the whole world. He felt suffocated, like an ant facing falling meteorites from the Ninth Heaven in the Milky Way.

It was said that when the Taoist Ancestor attained Tao, he held a horsetail whisk with his left hand, made a gesture with his right palm, and carried a sword on his back. This gesture was a symbol of the three powers of Taoism.

Now, the young Taoist priest's sword was still in Li Mu's hands.

The young Taoist priest derived a most powerful move with his horsetail whisk and palm.

Li Mu suddenly thought of countless moves, including the Wind-Cloud Six Moves created by himself, the nameless broadsword-using method that the Divine-winged Fox taught him, and the ultimate moves of various large sects… but he discarded all these moves at once.

If he used any of these moves, he would not survive the palm strike.

At the critical moment, all the moves and methods vanished from his mind.

Almost instinctively, he raised his hand and threw a punch.

It was the Zhenwu Boxing move.

This move was called "Laughing at Immortal Demons", which was more powerful than the move called the "Shattering of a Thousand Stars".

Mastering every move of the Zhenwu Boxing required a lot of energy and long-term accumulation. The result would be the opposite if one made any move forcefully before he mastered it. This time, perhaps because the young Taoist priest's palm strike gave Li Mu an unprecedented pressure, Li Mu successfully made the move called "Laughing at Immortal Demons", which contained great power which burst forth like a flood breaking through a dam.

Boom!

The fist and the palm collided.

Both the young Taoist priest and Li Mu tottered a few steps back.

For a moment, Li Mu felt that the power of his punch was infinite with an almost uncontrollable momentum. He was worried. If the excessive power were released and caused damage to anything other than himself, he would be deemed the loser. He hurriedly withdrew the power.

"Good."

The young Taoist priest looked surprised.

"I have never imagined that after thousands of years, Senior Yu would create such a peerless boxing technique that can resist my move of the two powers. It has truly broadened my horizon. What boxing technique is it?"

Li Mu managed to control the power surging in his body and said, "The Zhenwu Boxing."

"The Zhenwu Boxing?" The young Taoist priest's eyes lit up. He laughed loudly, which made his heroic bearing evident. "Good. The name suits this boxing technique perfectly. How many moves does it have? How many moves have you mastered?"

"It consists of eleven moves. I have mastered all the moves. I performed the seventh move just now." Li Mu lied calmly.

The young Taoist priest nodded and said, "Well, the first round is a competion for skill. We are neck and neck. The second round will be a competition for will. Mr. Li, please make your move first."

At this time, Li Mu no longer dared to be reckless.

He realized that the old faker was right. This descendant of gods were indeed powerful and not to be underestimated. Just now, he managed to withstand the young Taoist priest's palm strike of the two powers by performing the Zhenwu Boxing move called the "Laughing at Immortal Demons". If the latter had executed the palm strike of the three powers, he would probably not be able to resist the palm strike with his move.

Of course, he had mastered several boxing techniques other than the Zhenwu Boxing.

In the second round of competition, Li Mu directly created his own "Potential Realm" without reservation.

Everything in front of the young Taoist priest suddenly blurred. The square and all the flowers and plants in it disappeared, and a world of endless strong winds and rainstorms appeared. The sky was dark and gloomy, raindrops fell from the sky like soybeans, bolts of lightning flashed in the dark clouds, and the astral wind whistled strongly as if it could shatter the void barrier.

The Potential Realm was constructed by the will.

It was a competition of wills.

"I feel the killing intent of a broadsword."

The Young Taoist priest closed his eyes and smiled faintly.

The astral wind and torrential rain around him instantly turned into infinite Broadsword Intent. The Broadsword Intent and killing intent permeating the space between heaven and earth came at him relentlessly.

"Break!"

The young Taoist priest swung his horsetail whisk.

A gentle breeze blew through the air.

In an instant, the strong wind and torrential rain between heaven and earth vanished. The sky turned blue, the wind calmed down, the sun began to shine again, and the breeze blew gently. The killing intent and Broadsword Intent all over the sky suddenly disappeared without a trace.

"Mr. Li, the power of your Potential Realm is really…"

Before the young Taoist priest could finish speaking, his face suddenly changed again.

Broadsword Intent began to spread among the blue sky and white clouds once again. The breeze brushing his face instantly turned into sharp cutting Qi. The sunlight covered his body like thousands of cutting blades, and even the leaves of grass under his feet stabbed the soles of his feet like poisonous needles.

"That's a good change."

The young Taoist priest exclaimed in admiration.

He lifted his foot and stamped hard on the ground. All the atmosphere of spring within a range of hundred meters disappeared.

A faint Taoist Sense permeated the air, and the sounds of bells pealed across the sky.

Flowers rained down from the sky.

Wisps of a strange fragrance wafted through the air.

Pink petals fluttered in the air and collided with the broadswords made of cloud, rain, wind, and grass knives in the distance. Suddenly, numerous misty ripples spread out, and the beauty and vitality that once bloomed disappeared in a flash. The scene was mesmerizingly beautiful.

Buzz—!

The sounds of bells rang out again.

Li Mu's Potential Realm broke into pieces and vanished.

"Mr. Li, thank you for letting me win… Eh?"

The young Taoist priest named Indestructible smiled. While he was speaking, the left sleeve of his white robe was ripped apart by the invisible Broadsword Intent, and a tear as long as a finger appeared. He refrained from saying what he was about to say.

Li Mu smiled faintly. A drop of cold sweat slid down his temple.

"It's so dangerous."

The young Taoist priest broke down his Potential Realm of Broadsword Intent corresponding to the 24 Solar Terms at a faster rate than he had imagined. The sounds of bells probably had something to do with some kind of Cultivation Method that the young Taoist priest practiced, and they might even have something to do with his Potential Realm… The young Taoist priest, who was a descendant of gods, really deserved his reputation. Li Mu felt more pressure when facing the young Taoist priest than when he had to face the ancestors of the six major clans.

"What about the result of this round of competition?" Li Mu asked with a smile.

The surprised look on the young Taoist priest's face soon disappeared and was replaced by a look of excitement. He said, "Well, I really didn't expect that. Let's call it a tie."

"A tie?

"How could this monk be so shameless?

"You have broken my Potential Realm. So what? About the cut on your shoulder, I'm afraid that if I had exerted strength more secretly and subtly, your head would have been removed. Don't you feel ashamed to call it a tie?"

A ripping sound rang out.

The sound came from Li Mu's right sleeve.

The Sword Intent ripped his left sleeve open.

Li Mu's expression underwent several changes.

"Hadn't he noticed this?"

"I lost this round of competition." Li Mu didn't want to take advantage of his opponent. He directly admitted defeat for the second round of competition.

Breaking down a Potential Realm was much more difficult than creating one.

The young Taoist priest broke down Li Mu's Potential Realm, and the Sword Intent produced by him ripped Li Mu's sleeves open. It was obvious that he would have gained the upper hand over Li Mu if it were a real fight. Li Mu remained almost undefeated after having been in the universe for so many years, but he could afford to lose graciously.

The young Taoist priest thought for a moment and then said, "Okay."

"Let's move on to the third round." He strode over to Li Mu and said, "This round of competition is for strength. Mr. Li, I don't mind telling you that my right arm has been endowed with magical powers since I was a child. When I was three years old, I could break the void barrier with one punch. When I was ten years old, I could kill masters in the General Realm with one arm. When I was twenty years old, I could defeat kings with only one arm… In my sect, my right arm is called the 'God's Right Arm'. Watch this!"

He bent the right half of his body backward and used the heel of his left foot and the tip of his right foot to transfer force. The force erupted from the point of contact between his right foot and the ground. His right leg tautened like a bowstring, the line from the coccyx to the cervical vertebrae was like a bow, and his right arm was like an arrow that shot out with all the strength that his body could exert.

Li Mu narrowed his eyes.

"Well, I've practiced the eighth set of radio gymnastics for nearly 20 years, and I've never met a match in terms of strength. Therefore, I would like to see how powerful your 'God's Right Arm' is."

Li Mu was full of confidence.

He threw a punch.

It was a simple straight punch.