His gaze secretly swept towards Zhu Yue below. The latter was also stunned by this turn of events, but his gaze soon flickered for a moment as he regained his cool.
“This kid’s luck is pretty good. To think he even managed to draw out elder Zong Ming…”
Zhu Yue’s eyes were cold. He and Chen Yuan had originally planned for the latter to oversee the match, allowing him to secretly make things difficult for Zhou Yuan such that he would have no chance at all.
However, it seems that these methods could no longer be used.
Even so, Zhu Yue did not really care, because they were only one of his many contingencies.
Zhou Yuan cupped his fists together and asked, “Elder Zong Ming, how will we be competing in this match?”
The other disciples curiously looked over. They too wanted to know what kind of match it would be. After all, the Ethereal Form technique was not like offensive techniques which could be judged based on power.
Zong Ming softly chuckled. “The essence of the Ethereal Form technique lies in two areas, speed and neutralization power.”
Zhou Yuan gave a faint nod. The technique allowed one to etherealize the body, causing one’s speed to rise to a level that ordinary people would find difficult to match. The Ethereal Form technique also gave the ability to neutralize any force that struck the body, making these two aspects the essence of the technique.
“Hence, today’s match will be based on your speed and neutralization power in the ethereal form.
Zong Ming gazed at the majestic green mountain before him as he suddenly took a deep breath before abruptly blowing.
Whooooo!
The breath of Genesis Qi that emerged was akin to the milky way. It swept through the air, completely covering the green mountain. Boundless Genesis Qi whizzed about the mountain like a million astral winds, booing and hissing.
A faint but enormous pressure spread from it.
Everyone watched this scene in shock. A breath of Genesis Qi from the elder could be said to be earth-shaking. Such power was practically immeasurable.
“This mountain has already been enveloped by my Genesis Qi. Once you enter, you will be exposed to my Genesis Qi pressure, making you feel as if you are carrying a mountain on your back. Besides this, the astral winds my Genesis Qi has turned into will attack you. You will be unable to avoid, and can only bear the attacks with your bodies. This will reveal how much power your ethereal form can neutralize.” Zong Ming grinned.
The numerous disciples cried out in shock when they heard this. To reach the peak, the two of them would have to rely on their speed while neutralizing the astral winds. It was a very appropriate test for the Ethereal Form technique.
“How about it, do the two of you feel this is fair?” Zong Ming looked towards Zhou Yuan and Zhu Yue.
A serious look appeared on both their faces, but they still nodded in the end.
“Since the two of you have no objections…”
Zong Ming waved his sleeve as two paths opened at the foot of the mountain, before his voice sounded like thunder.
“Let the match begin.”
“Let us see which of you is more adept at the Ethereal Form technique!”
Chapter 244 Fast as Lightning
Genesis Qi astral winds wreaked havoc on the lush, green mountain, like blades made from wind as they swept past, shredding even the air to pieces...
Under the countless watching gazes, Zhou Yuan and Zhu Yue stood at the foot of the mountain. The two looked at each other, iciness appearing in their eyes.
“Zhou Yuan, I admit that you have some talent. In a few more years, you will likely have a place in the Cangxuan Sect.” Zhu Yue’s eyes were ice-cold. Soon after, he let out an icy chuckle as he said, “However, your mistake was to hop out now.”
“The current you still does not have the qualifications!”
Zhou Yuan laughed and responded, “You can save these words for when you reach the peak before me.”
“Stubborn fool.”
Zhu Yue shook his head, mockery flashing in his eyes.
Rumble!
A split second later, robust Genesis Qi simultaneously erupted from Zhou Yuan and Zhu Yue’s bodies. The two transformed into flashes of light as they charged into the green mountain enveloped by berserk Genesis Qi.
The instant they entered, Zhou Yuan and Zhu Yue’s figures paused slightly.
It was due to the suppression from elder Zong Ming’s Genesis Qi, making the air akin to a quagmire. The movements ordinary individuals who entered would be greatly restricted, making it difficult for them to advance.
“Ethereal Form!”
Shouted Zhou Yuan and Zhu Yue.
Nearly half of their figures began to gradually etherealize under the crowd’s watching gazes as their speed rapidly rose.
Fast as lightning.
A series of gasps rang out in the vicinity of the green mountain, clearly shocked by the speed Zhou Yuan and Zhu Yue had displayed.
“Although the Ethereal Form technique is only at the mid grade little Heaven tier, it does have its merits.” Yang Xiu’s eyes narrowed, smiling as he observed the rapidly moving figures on the mountain.
Lu Feng’s expression remained indifferent. “No matter how fast they run, they will only be rabbits, still merely prey in the eyes of a real predator.”
“Who do you think will win?” Asked Yang Xiu.
Lu Feng uncaringly replied, “It will depend on how much Zhu Yue has concealed his abilities.”
While the two were conversing, the two figures on the mountain seemed to leave behind a trail of mist as they advanced. It was at this moment that the Genesis Qi that enveloped the mountain began to rear its fangs. Genesis Qi darted forth transforming into countless glowing Genesis Qi knives.
These knives seemed to cover the sky and land as they swiftly descended upon the two figures.
Ch ch!
Zhou Yuan and Zhu Yue were unable to dodge, having no choice but to receive the attacks with their bodies.
Therefore, in a short span of a dozen breaths, fresh blood began to appear on their bodies, cut after cut appearing one after another.
Even so, anyone could see that Zhou Yuan and Zhu Yue had used the etherealized parts of their bodies to receive the attacks. Although their bloody appearances looked extremely miserable, the majority of the force had been neutralized by the Ethereal Form technique.
From start to end, their figures were neck to neck.
In the short span of a few minutes, the duo had already reached the halfway point.
Even till now, however, both parties were still equal.
Zhu Yue's gaze swept across Zhou Yuan from the corner of his eyes. Soon after, iciness flashes in his eyes as the corners of his lips lifted slightly.
"It's time to show you the difference between us!"
Rumble!
With a thought, the apertures in his body instantly lit up. In a short few breaths, the number of apertures in his body rose from 30 plus to 45.
He had clearly began to reveal his hidden strength.
As more and more apertures were opened, everyone saw Zhu Yue's body grow more and more ethereal as faint mists began to spread around it.
Swish!
His speed soared, overtaking Zhou Yuan in a single breath. His body met the innumerable Genesis Qi knives head-on as he rocketed towards the peak.
Zhu Yue's sudden explosion of speed instantly drew numerous gasps from the surroundings of the mountain.
"As expected, he has concealed his strength!" Numerous disciples sighed in amazement. They could naturally sense that Zhu Yue's Ethereal Form had grown even more formidable.
Gu Hongyi's hands began to clench tightly, her teeth biting into her red lips as she stared at the figure that had fallen behind.
Han Qiushui could not help but remark from the side, "It's over for him Hongyi. Zhu Yue's mastery of the Ethereal Form is much greater than Zhou Yuan's."
From the looks of it, Zhou Yuan’s
first level mastery was practically unable to compare to Zhu Yue.
Gu Hongyi did not speak, merely continuing to stare. She believed that Zhou Yuan would not lose so easily.
Somewhere else, Shen Wanjin, Qiao Xiu, Xiao Tianxuan and the rest anxiously watched the widening gap between the two individuals of the mountain, their eyes filled with worry.
“Go little Yuan bro!”
But there was nothing they could do besides sending out prayer after prayer in their hearts.
“You were so arrogant previously, but you shall now have a taste of what it feels like to eat a rotten fruit." There was a look of ecstasy mixed with excitement in Zhu Feng's eyes when he saw this. Soon after, he began to laugh.
Sighs rang out in the vicinity of the mountain, pained looks on the faces of the disciples that practiced the Ethereal Form technique.
Even more disciples however, were enjoying the show, happy to see Zhou Yuan being suppressed. After all, if Zhou Yuan performed too outstandingly, the rest of them would appear useless in comparison.
Elder Zong Ming sat on a tree as he looked towards the now leaving Zhu Yue, before turning to Zhou Yuan. The former's eyes suddenly squinted as he mumbled, "The apertures in this kid's body…"
From the looks of it, he would never be able to catch up.
Numerous disciples shook their heads inside. As expected, there was no point to this match at all. No matter how talented Zhou Yuan was, he had only been learning the Ethereal Form technique for a month. What about Zhu Yue? Nearly two years.
However, there were some sharper disciples that suddenly remarked in uncertainty, “Eh, Zhou Yuan’s speed seems to be getting faster and faster…”
The moment these words were heard, the crow began to closely observe. Sure enough, they discovered that Zhou Yuan’s speed was rising little by little. Although it was not as explosive as Zhu Yue’s earlier burst, the increase was extremely stable.
“The… the apertures in his body are being unblocked one by one…” Said someone in shock. They could just barely make out dots of light appearing and linking one after another on Zhou Yuan’s body.
Such a sight was not foreign to those who practiced the Ethereal Form technique, it was an indication that an aperture had been unblocked.
Elder Zong Ming let out an amused chuckle when he saw this. His perceptive abilities were naturally extraordinary, and had managed to discover the truth with a single look. Zhou Yuan’s apertures were likely already unblocked by him, but had not been properly linked up due to the lack of time. As such, when his Genesis Qi began to circulate, the apertures would be connected one by one...
Swish!
Under the countless astonished gazes, more and more light dots appeared on Zhou Yuan’s body, while his speed also grew faster and faster. Mist began to surge around him, as if was riding on a cloud.
Every gaze was tightly fixed on the faintly discernible light dots on Zhou Yuan’s body.
Each one represented a newly linked aperture.
“There’s already 43 apertures…” Gasps would sound out from time to time, the numerous disciples stupefied. No one had expected Zhou Yuan’s mastery to have also reached such a high level.
Moreover, the aperture light dots were still increasing.
After a dozen breaths, it reached 48.
A number that had already surpassed Zhu Yue.
Hence, a large portion of Zhou Yuan’s body began to etherealize, faint mist spreading from within as his speed soared to the limits. The countless astral wind knives that shot towards him ending up passing straight through his body, only leaving behind tiny sprinkles of blood...
Zhou Yuan’s figure once again appeared a dozen or so feet behind Zhu Yue, rapidly catching up.
“Wow!”
Countless cries of amazement rang out in the surroundings of the mountain. No one had imagined that Zhou Yuan would really catch up!
“God damnit!”
Zhu Yue was naturally able to detect the piercing sound of rushing wind behind him. A gaze swept to his back from the corner of his eye, fury appearing within his eyes when he saw the rapidly approaching Zhou Yuan.
Zhu Yue took in a deep breath as he made a seal with one hand. One could only watch as apertures also began to light up on his body.
“Zhou Yuan, did you believe that 45 apertures is my limit!”
With a low howl, dot after dot began to light up on his body.
It was obvious that Zhu Yue had been forced to use his full power.
Two figures bolted up the mountain like lightning, while also appearing akin to two clouds.
Many disciples could only barely make out the two blurry figures within...
Everyone’s eyes were wide open, watching the race without blinking.
“Zhu Yue’s apertures has already reached 54…”
“Zhou Yuan’s has also risen above 50…”
“This is way too crazy!”
Countless whispers emerged. Shock was apparent on everyone’s faces as they watched the two figures persistently nipped at each others heels. Only a third of the distance was left to the peak.
No one had expected such a neck to neck race.
Zhu Yue’s lead had already been forcibly taken back inch by inch by Zhou Yuan...
Zhu Yue’s expression turned extremely dark and stormy at this moment. Zhou Yuan’s stubbornness had already exceeded his expectations.
“All 58 of my apertures are already opened, a strength that I have concealed for a long time. It had originally been for the sake of stealing the limelight during the seven peak martial meet, so I never imagined that my hand would be forced today!”
Zhu Yue violently gritted his teeth. Most importantly, even his full power was unable to crush Zhou Yuan. Instead, it was as if he was tenaciously holding on to the former’s tail.
“Zhou Yuan, you forced me to do this!”
“No matter how great of a price I’ll have to pay, I will crush you beneath my heel!”
Zhu Yue knew that he would definitely be mocked if he lost to Zhou Yuan and returned to the inner mountains. Hence, the former had to grab victory at any cost.
A resolute look appeared in Zhu Yue’s eyes.
With a deep breath, a scarlet pill was rolled out from under his tongue, before being swallowed into his stomach.
Chapter 245 Corporeal Stage
Once the scarlet pill entered Zhu Yue’s stomach, a surge of heat exploded from within it, like magma as it frantically flowed through his channels.
This pill was known as the Level Breaker Pill, and was said to have the effect of temporarily raising the power of one’s Genesis techniques. There were some negative repercussions however, though the current Zhu Yue clearly could not be bothered by such things to achieve victory.
He knew that he would likely lose all face if he lost to Zhou Yuan here.
Therefore, he absolutely could not lose.
Scarlet-red surfaced in Zhu Yue’s eyes as an evil look flashed within them. In the next instant, his speed abruptly soared, a flash of red faintly visible in the mists swirling around his body.
In a short few breaths, he had widened the lead once again.
With the Level Breaker Pill, Zhu Yua’s speed was now comparable to the Ethereal Form technique with over 60 apertures unblocked...
*Uproar*
An uproar once again swept through the surroundings of the green mountain, everyone stunned by Zhu Yue’s sudden explosion of speed. No one had expected him to have concealed his abilities so deeply.
“It’s truly hopeless now…” The crowd shook their heads. Zhu Yue’s explosion of speed this time was just too frightening. His figure had practically become mist, the sky full of astral wind knives unable to stop him for even a split second.
This level of mastery was already fast approaching the second level.
Han Qiushui’s mouth hung wide open as she involuntarily muttered, “Has Zhu Yue’s mastery already reached such heights?”
Gu Hongyi frown
ed deeply, somewhat uncertain. Although she had felt that Zhu Yue was hiding his abilities, had he really hidden them to such an extent? The current level of Zhu Yue’s Ethereal Form was already very close to the second level.
The situation did indeed look extremely bad for Zhou Yuan.
“Why does it suddenly seem as if Zhu Yue is on steroids!” Yelled Shen Wanjin, his eyes filled with worry. Just as Zhou Yuan had been about to surpass Zhu Yue, the latter suddenly released another burst of speed.
Moreover, the sharp acceleration this time was basically despairing.
Qiao Xiu sighed regretfully. “It has not been easy for Junior brother Zhou Yuan to reach this level. He’s only spent so much time on the Ethereal Form technique after all. If he had more time, reaching the second level would have been just around the corner.”
Nearby, Yaoyao’s eyebrows also knitted together slightly when she saw this scene.
On the tree, elder Zong Ming’s indifferent gaze merely swept of Zhu Yue as a bright light fitted past the depths of his eyes, clearly detecting something. His hand began to rise, and just as he was intending to speak, he suddenly let out a soft cry of surprise.
His gaze was currently looking towards Zhou Yuan, who had now been left far behind, as a look of interest appeared in his eyes.
It this very moment, he could sense that the Genesis Qi in Zhou Yuan’s body had begun to ripple violently.
Evidently, Zhou Yuan did not intend to give up just because Zhu Yue had suddenly rocketed ahead.
On the mountain, Zhou Yuan’s figure was akin to lightning. No panic appeared on his face as he gazed at the figure to his front that was rapidly pulling ahead. Instead, he took in a deep breath of cold air.
The swelling pain from the Spirit between his brows was growing more and more intense.
It was an indication that the Spirit was about to ascend from the perfect Illusory stage to the Corporeal stage.
The truth was that he had felt his Spirit was on the verge of a breakthrough during these past few days. For the sake of stability however, he had slightly suppressed it. And now was finally the time for it to be released.
His Spirit sat between his brows with the Saint Spirit Crystal revolving above it. Holy light spread from the crystal that continuously tempered the Spirit.
Dragon Prince Yuan c1-1251 Page 135