Cultivation: Start From Simplifying Martial Arts Techniques

Chapter 954: Rules of Time
Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

A day passed in the blink of an eye. Today marked the first major elimination at Qiankun Mansion, where thirty percent of those in the Sun Moon Realm would be eliminated.

Each Branch and the owners of the courtyards in each realm would naturally not be eliminated and did not face elimination tests. Simply occupying a courtyard was itself a display of talent and strength.

Thus, the easiest way to avoid elimination was to challenge higher-ranked positions.

At this moment, the 30th-ranked contestants in each realm were the busiest, as challenging this position was relatively easier.

Only the courtyard of the 30th-ranked Sun Moon Realm mid-stage in the Sky Sea Branch had not been challenged, as it was occupied by Chen Fei.

The strength of Chen Fei was still unclear to many, but someone who could battle above their level in the early Sun Moon Realm, and now had broken through to the mid-stage, was certainly stronger than the 30th-ranked position.

Moreover, today, Chen Fei was set to challenge Kuang Xingfeng, making this battle the most anticipated one of the day’s eliminations.

In front of the courtyard, Chen Fei stood calmly, watching the battles of other courtyards.

It wasn’t until an hour later that the battles in each courtyard gradually came to a close.

A gaze fell on Chen Fei. Turning his head, Chen Fei saw it was Lu Shuzhang and gave a slight nod in acknowledgment.

Lu Shuzhang, ranked twenty-seventh in the mid-stage Sun Moon Realm of the Sky Sea Branch, had achieved this result after half a year of cultivation.

Having broken through to the mid-stage Sun Moon Realm, Lu Shuzhang had been at the peak of the early stage when Chen Fei broke through, and thus also succeeded in his breakthrough.

However, as soon as Chen Fei broke through, the news spread throughout Qiankun Mansion.

Lu Shuzhang’s breakthrough news circulated briefly and then quieted down.

As a direct disciple of the Sky Resonance Court and the offspring of the Human Race Emperor, Lu Shuzhang was expected to receive considerable attention.

But in Qiankun Mansion, where the Human Race of the Return to Nothing Realm gathered, over ninety percent were in the Sun Moon Realm.

In this place, there were countless prodigies, and everyone’s attention was increasingly focused on those with more extraordinary talents.

Lu Shuzhang, who had recently broken through to the mid-stage Sun Moon Realm, managed to secure the twenty-seventh position this time, demonstrating exceptional talent.

However, this ranking only met their expectations of prodigies.

It was impressive but within the predicted range, lacking any major surprises.

What was considered a surprise?

A true surprise was someone like Chen Fei, who, upon appearing, dominated twelve peers from different Branchs in the same realm.

Dao Yuefeng floated in the air, observing the battles in each realm’s courtyard.

Dao Yuefeng’s gaze swept around before finally resting on Chen Fei.

Dao Yuefeng had already heard about Chen Fei’s upcoming challenge against Kuang Xingfeng.

Today, Dao Yuefeng came not only to oversee the Sky Sea Branch’s elimination test but also to see the outcome of Chen Fei and Kuang Xingfeng’s match.

Both were prodigies capable of battling above their level, but Chen Fei was clearly at a disadvantage.

Not in terms of talent but because of the short time he had spent cultivating.

With the competition in the Sky Sea Branch’s courtyards officially over, everyone’s gaze inevitably shifted to Chen Fei.

Chen Fei had not moved during the earlier battles, clearly waiting for the competitions to end so he could begin his challenge.

Chen Fei slightly lifted his eyelids, glanced around, and saluted Dao Yuefeng in the air before turning and heading towards the public area.

Chen Fei chose not to hold his challenge in the martial arts arena, as he could directly challenge for courtyards in other Branchs at this time.

However, no one had done this before because it was highly unpopular.

Unless you could battle above your level, which would change the situation entirely.

That would mean your talent far surpassed others in the Sun Moon Realm.

In Qiankun Mansion, possessing exceptional talent granted certain privileges. When one’s talent reached such a level, harboring resentment towards others was somewhat unwise, considering the potential future they might achieve.

In the Sky Sea Branch, those in the Sun Moon Realm who were assured of not being eliminated closely followed Chen Fei, eager to witness the clash between the two prodigies.

Dao Yuefeng smiled slightly, intending to take a look. Suddenly, he furrowed his brows.

Dao Yuefeng’s figure abruptly vanished from the air, reappearing at the center of the City Lord’s Mansion in Sky Sea City.

In the central area of the City Lord’s Mansion stood a massive Heavenly Mix Instrument.

It was well-known that Yuefeng controlled the Karmic Laws, but causality was a principal rule composed of multiple secondary rules, much like the rules of strength.

Dao Yuefeng controlled the secondary rules and, thus, could not account for every detail, leaving some gaps.

The Heavenly Mix Instrument was a precious tool that assisted Dao Yuefeng in managing affairs on a daily basis.

Recently, Dao Yuefeng’s focus had been on calculating the whereabouts of a seventh-tier Open Heaven Realm Open Heaven Realm Ancestor of the Evil Clan.

Calculating a seventh-tier being from the perspective of a sixth-tier was prone to backlash and information distortion.

Therefore, Dao Yuefeng primarily worked on deducing the movements of the Evil Clan’s emperors and most of the Rule Integration Realm experts to infer the situation of that seventh-tier Open Heaven Realm Ancestor.

Just a moment ago, the Heavenly Mix Instrument showed an anomaly.

It wasn’t the appearance of the seventh-tier Open Heaven Realm Ancestor but rather a strong spatial fluctuation at the boundary between the Evil Clan and the Human Race.

Dao Yuefeng’s hands moved, and countless runes spread in all directions. His form became faint and seemed to blend into the void.

In less than the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, the anomalies around the Heavenly Mix Instrument vanished, but a dozen or so phantoms of Human Race Emperors appeared around Dao Yuefeng.

At this moment, aside from a few special areas requiring full protection by Human Race Emperors, the remaining Emperors had all projected themselves to Sky Sea City.

Within Qiankun Mansion.

As Chen Fei proceeded, the number of Sun Moon Realm practitioners following him increased, reaching a peak especially after passing through the public area.

Upon entering the Fire Away Branch, Chen Fei observed his surroundings.

Overall, it was not much different from the Sky Sea Branch, though there were some minor differences in details.

The Sun Moon Realm practitioners of the Fire Away Branch looked at Chen Fei with ambiguous expressions.

In the late-stage Sun Moon Realm area of the Fire Away Branch, Kuang Xingfeng stood before the twenty-fifth courtyard.

Recently, in the courtyard battles, Kuang Xingfeng had defeated the previous holder of the twenty-fifth position, and now, with a mid-stage Sun Moon Realm cultivation, he stood at the twenty-fifth spot in the late-stage Sun Moon Realm.

Previously, Kuang Xingfeng’s challenge against the Sky Sea Branch’s late-stage Sun Moon Realm’s twenty-ninth position did not fully showcase his strength. Choosing the twenty-ninth position was more about maintaining a slight advantage over Chen Fei.

Other Branchs’ practitioners saw Kuang Xingfeng at the twenty-fifth position and expressed surprise.

This recent event had not yet spread to other Branchs.

Many looked at Chen Fei’s back, growing more pessimistic about his challenge.

Not only because of previous reasons like Chen Fei’s shorter cultivation time, but they also felt that Kuang Xingfeng’s talent might surpass Chen Fei’s!

After all, even though both involved battling above one’s level, the difference between the thirtieth and twenty-fifth positions in different Branchs was a completely different concept.

It might have seemed like only a five-position difference, but the difficulty of overcoming that gap was substantial, especially when battling above one’s level.

Kuang Xingfeng stood before the courtyard with interest, watching as Chen Fei approached. A smile appeared on his face.

Although Kuang Xingfeng knew Chen Fei was coming, he had first challenged the late-stage Sun Moon Realm.

To Kuang Xingfeng, whether Chen Fei came or not had no effect on him.

In Kuang Xingfeng’s mind, while Chen Fei’s talent was impressive, it did not threaten him, and he believed that he would surpass Chen Fei in the future.

His goal was not the mid-stage Rule Integration Realm but the Human Race Emperors.

Chen Fei stepped into the courtyard’s battle circle.

“Sky Sea Branch’s Chen Fei, here to seek guidance!” Chen Fei said, looking at Kuang Xingfeng and cupping his hands in greeting.

“Fire Away Branch’s Kuang Xingfeng, please!”

As soon as the words were spoken, the Abyss Sword appeared in Kuang Xingfeng’s hand, and a massive ripple emanated from him, spreading out in all directions.

And at some point, Kuang Xingfeng abruptly vanished.

Although Kuang Xingfeng was present when he spoke, and even when the ripple spread, he was still there.

Yet, in retrospect, it felt as if Kuang Xingfeng had never been there at all, as though his voice had been nothing more than an illusion.

The Heavenly Illusion Time Severing Technique was a legacy from the legendary Heavenly Illusion Emperor.

Among the numerous emperors in human history, the Heavenly Illusion Emperor could be ranked in the top five, even the top three, due to his mastery over a temporal illusion rule that slightly involved time.

With time being revered and space being dominant, even a slight manipulation of time in illusions allowed the Heavenly Illusion Emperor’s combat power to reach astounding levels.

The Heavenly Illusion Time Severing Technique was such a legacy.

Kuang Xingfeng did not acquire this technique only after entering Qiankun Mansion.

Given Kuang Xingfeng’s demonstrated talent, he was brought into one of Fire Away City’s top forces long before, where he received the Heavenly Illusion Time Severing Technique and had an exceptional affinity with it.

Because of this, Kuang Xingfeng was able to defeat the twenty-fifth position in the late-stage Sun Moon Realm despite being at the mid-stage Sun Moon Realm.

At that moment in the battle circle, even outsiders could not discern Kuang Xingfeng’s location. Only those at the peak of the Sun Moon Realm could vaguely sense his presence.

However, if Kuang Xingfeng did not make a move, even those at the peak of the Sun Moon Realm could not forcibly pinpoint his location.

If it was so difficult for those at the peak of the Sun Moon Realm, it was nearly impossible for those below to find Kuang Xingfeng.

Chen Fei, wielding the Qianyuan Sword, had a towering Eternal Night Manifestation behind him, with mountains appearing faintly in the background.

Soul Dissolution at seventy percent!

Chen Fei’s aura surged at an astonishing rate, surpassing the intensity of Kuang Xingfeng’s aura within moments.

While many were still searching for Kuang Xingfeng’s trace, Chen Fei’s overwhelming aura had already pervaded the entire battle circle.

Everyone was astonished as they saw Chen Fei unleashing his restricted technique without even locating his opponent.

Moreover, the magnitude of the aura increase was so exaggerated that it seemed like he was relying on a single powerful strike.

What kind of battle strategy was this, directly going all out without warning?

Chen Fei spun the Qianyuan Sword, and the world around him suddenly slowed down.

Every speck of dust floating, every breeze brushing by, took on detailed patterns and rhythms in Chen Fei’s view.

Suddenly, three figures of Kuang Xingfeng appeared ten miles ahead, with the sword lights from the Abyss Sword intertwining and merging into a massive beam of light filling Chen Fei’s sight.

“Boom!”

The explosive sound surged into the sky. The Dust Law Sword blocked in front of Chen Fei, and the Pillar Mountain emitted a ring of thunderous light, absorbing and deflecting all the force.

Pillar Mountain, as a supernatural power, could channel all incoming force into the earth, making it unnecessary for the user to be on the ground to activate it. Even in mid-air, the Pillar Mountain’s effect remained effective.

This supernatural power, Pillar Mountain, had a simple characteristic: it enhanced Chen Fei’s defense and the strength applied to him.

“Good defense. Let’s see how you handle this sword.”

Kuang Xingfeng’s voice echoed, and the three figures of Kuang Xingfeng blurred into three hundred!