Chapter 7 Tidal Currents

  The Daoist's demeanor changed in an instant, his entire being standing upright with a straight back, his whole body emitting a dense, dark aura that shot up to the clouds, as if connecting heaven and earth, like a pillar supporting the sky between the heavens. The centers of his palms emitted auras that extended for over three feet, expanding into two massive battle-axes, their energy swirling out in all directions, dispersing wind and cloud, howling and surging, giving one a sense of grandeur and majesty!

  At this scene, Mu Yuan couldn't help but exclaim, "Qibing Guangdao!" The shock in his heart was indescribable!

  The air soldier's light knife, that is the attainment of at least the sixth layer of Lianqi, achieving the Jindan Great Dao can use the divine power, even in the Changsheng Palace, only a few people have such attainments, even if it is Mu Yuan's master, Biyuan Old Dao, just barely Lianqi six layers, achieved Jindan, driving the air soldier, far from this sloppy Taoist using this kind of momentum, moving people's hearts!

  Looking again at the person standing opposite to the Taoist, it was a middle-aged scholar, with a high crown on his head, ancient clothes fluttering, holding a folding fan in his hand, and radiating dazzling light all over his body. Every time he waved the feather fan, it would stir up a huge storm, roaring and rushing, matching the Taoist's Qi soldiers from afar, not falling behind at all!

  "These two people are unfathomable, and with my current cultivation, approaching them would mean instant death, without any suspense!" Mu Yuan's cultivation was not high, but his insight was top-notch, and in an instant, he saw through the situation. Why bother chasing after Jiang Cheng? His true energy surged, and he immediately retreated, prioritizing avoiding this place!

  Who would have thought that his body would suddenly burst back, but it was as if he had hit an invisible wall. In an instant, a flash of colorful light appeared, and the whole person was like being trapped in a sea sponge, soft and weak without any strength, but making it difficult for him to escape. His heart was shocked, and at this moment, he didn't dare to use force either, stopping his body and waiting quietly.

  Jiang Cheng wasn't a fool either, he ran out for several dozen feet before stopping, but unlike Mu Yuan, he didn't turn around and flee. Instead, he found a low-lying area to hide in temporarily.

  Mu Yuan quietly gazed, and saw the sloppy Taoist and the middle-aged scholar facing off against each other, their powerful auras clashing, neither giving an inch. The empty space between them was already in shambles, with shattered rocks and fallen trees everywhere, pockmarked and uneven. The mountains beneath their feet had collapsed by more than half, with crack after crack crisscrossing the surface like a spider's web, shocking to behold!

  Now, the two people are motionless, their eyes tightly closed, their bodies radiating a brilliant light, and the feather fan is suspended in mid-air, yet a massive whirlwind is still stirring, as if the air has transformed into a Wind Qilin beast, clashing with the Taoist's energy soldiers. Where the energy soldiers meet the wind qilin, ring after ring of light circles are formed, shimmering in purple and red hues, dazzling to behold, spreading out in all directions.

  A mighty energy surges into the air, stirring up the celestial phenomena, wind rises and clouds surge forth, clouds hang down as if dragons are suspended upside down, an unspeakable grandeur that shocks!

  "This is a clash of divine consciousness, with spells and martial arts skills. It's likely that both have already exchanged blows, but neither can gain the upper hand. Now they are trapped in an even more perilous situation, where there is a risk of death at any moment!" Mu Yuan saw that the clothes on the two people were slightly torn, and he had already guessed that they must have been fighting for some time. He had burst in just as they entered the divine consciousness battle, forming a strong boundary in all directions. He was trapped inside and couldn't get out!

  The battle of wits, the most fundamental contrast is the cultivation of Taoist heart and willpower. Unlike the external release of true energy, one can still rely on the subtlety of magical techniques to win, but this kind of confrontation is the most perilous. It relies on the strength of divine consciousness and the subtlety of manipulation. Looking at these two people, they are both powerful, but who will emerge victorious, Mu Yuan has no idea!

  After waiting for about half an hour, the sloppy Taoist's body suddenly shook slightly, and his whole body was filled with a fierce glow. The dark light that had been swirling around him suddenly shot up like a whale spouting water, forming a huge black turtle above his head. With a loud roar, the sand flew and the stones walked, the trees fell and the forest rushed, and Mu Yuan's body shook even more violently, causing blood to flow from all seven orifices. In a panic, he closed his eyes, sat still, and let the true energy of longevity circulate throughout his body. His mind sank into a state of deep tranquility, like the calm at the bottom of an ancient well, and he felt much better.

  The Taoist's movement caused the feather fan in the middle-aged scholar's hand to suddenly flutter and dance, flying up and down at an extremely fast speed, leaving behind countless afterimages. Above his head, a purple aura burst forth, transforming into a majestic qilin with a purple glow, its four hooves stomping, its single horn a light gray color, emitting an aura of majesty and balance!

  Dark purple gas clashed, and in an instant a dazzlingly brilliant light circle formed between the two people, its radiance even more intense than the sun at its strongest. Even with his eyes tightly shut, Mu Yuan still felt as if his eyes were being pierced, his heart racing wildly, his entire body feeling like it was being pricked by needles, the discomfort extreme!

  Then came a deafening explosion like thunder, with rolling flames and waves of air, large pieces of rocks and trees flying angrily in the sky, all around was a loud roar as if it had turned into a turbulent river, surging sea waves, everything seemed to have been transformed into boiling water, the heavens and earth were overturned, mountains collapsed!

  Then came a long laugh, and the atmosphere around suddenly dispersed. Mu Yuan's whole body felt free, and he jumped up to see a purple light tearing through the sky, and left without looking back.

  A Taoist stood on the mountain peak, his feet beneath the crumbling mountainside, the energy in his hands dissipating. He looked up at the sky and laughed uncontrollably. Mu Yuan was stunned, unsure of what to do, but flew forward, asking about victory or defeat.

  The Taoist looked at Mu Yuan and didn't respond, only smiling as he said, "From the moment I met you, I knew you were a disciple of the Longevity Palace. Among the ancient Five Elements, only the Qinglong lineage has established its own sect, renowned in the cultivation world. The other four paths have fallen into obscurity. I am from the Xuanwu lineage, cultivating the true energy of the tides. This lineage is passed down through a single transmission and I don't want it to end with me. Today, I'm passing on the Tides Flow to you, hoping that one day, perhaps you can reunite the Five Elements and restore their ancient glory!"

  Mu Yuan hadn't had time to say anything when he saw the sloppy Taoist point at his own brow, and immediately a mysterious mantra spread over, like the water of rivers and lakes, endless and changing, in the sea of consciousness, suddenly there was an additional piece of refining Qi mantra.

  The entire process of transmission took only an instant. When Mu Yuan looked at the Daoist again, he saw that he had closed his eyes with a faint smile on his face, and was already dead.

  Mu Yuan stood there in a daze, with a sense of confusion in his heart. The sloppy Daoist, whose name and origin were unknown, had an astonishing cultivation that shook the heavens and earth. Who would have thought that he would fall today? Life is unpredictable, and nothing is more unpredictable than this.

  In the distance, a black shadow suddenly appeared, and Jiang Cheng burst out. Mu Yuan reacted quickly, snapping his fingers to release a sharp true energy, which was immediately countered by the power of Shui Yuan from the green gourd, transforming into a green wooden divine spear that blocked him.

  Jiang Cheng was closer to the two, and the impact he suffered was even more severe than Mu Yuan's. Moreover, his cultivation method was far inferior to Mu Yuan's, and it did not bring much benefit to his physical body. Unlike Mu Yuan, who could use his Longevity True Qi to seal his five senses and avoid danger, Jiang Cheng was now seriously injured and caught up by Mu Yuan. After a few rounds, he was pierced through the body by Qingmu Divine Spear and let out a loud cry before falling to the ground dead!

  Mu Yuan condensed his energy into fire, burning the corpse of Jiang Cheng. He returned to the mountain peak and kowtowed heavily in front of the disheveled Daoist's Dharmakaya. In a low voice, he said, "Senior, although I don't know your name, and I didn't quite understand what you said... but I will definitely cultivate diligently and carry on your lineage! As for the ancient Five Elements' Way, I have never heard of it before, but if fate permits in the future, I will not disappoint your expectations!"

  With a burst of true fire on his hands, he cremated the corpse of the sloppy Taoist priest, dug a hole on the spot, and buried it. He muttered to himself, "Dust returns to dust, earth returns to earth, I hope that in the next life, you will have the opportunity to return to the Great Way."

  After worshiping the sloppy daoist, Mu Yuan didn't leave in a hurry, but instead sat down and carefully comprehended the true essence of the sloppy daoist's leftover tide-like flow technique!

  In ancient times, a self-proclaimed Broken Void True Man created the Five Elements Qi Soldiers and swept across the land, dominating for a time. Under him were five disciples, each cultivating one of the five elements: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. After the Broken Void True Man ascended to immortality, his five great disciples became disunited and scattered, causing this astonishing divine ability to appear only briefly, and then not reappear for thousands of years.

  Until over a thousand years ago, Feilongzi of Xiūmùdào established the Chángshēnggōng, the Five Elements Way, and finally showed some momentum in the cultivation world. As for the other four ways, they fell into the world, unknown where to go.

  Mù Yuán naturally wouldn't know these, his heart and spirit immersed in the sea of knowledge, a section at a time of scriptures and incantations slowly flowed through, allowing Mù Yuán to become even more transparent regarding the mysterious and unparalleled path of the Grand Dao.

  Tidal flow is based on the nature of water, driving its own true energy. Nothing in the world is softer and weaker than water, yet it can flow and change shape at will, changing with the mind. When placed in a square, it becomes square; when placed in a circle, it becomes circular. However, when attacking something strong and hard, nothing can overcome it. It's a kind of mysterious and magical technique.

  If we say that Changsheng Jue is a method for cultivating one's character and regulating the body, then Chaoxiang Liu is a method for harmonizing with heaven and earth, and mastering external forces. Freely transforming the meridians, penetrating every pore, reaching everywhere, gathering and dispersing energy, changing with every thought. Changsheng Jue emphasizes birth, while Chaoxiang Liu emphasizes transformation.

  It is said that when one is impoverished, they change; when they change, they flow; and when they flow, they endure. The heavens, the earth, and all things, even seemingly eternal and unchanging sun, moon, stars, mountains, rivers, and seas, are all undergoing subtle changes beyond human comprehension. Practitioners must constantly transform themselves to harmonize with the ever-changing heavens and earth, which is the way to establish oneself.

  Mù Yuàn repeatedly pored over the true essence of the Tides' Flow, reading it back and forth several times until he had memorized it thoroughly. Only then did he slowly begin to sense the water element energy in the surrounding environment, absorbing it drop by drop according to the principles of the tides, channeling it into his meridians.

  The primordial water of the external world is like a drop of dew, flowing into the meridians and transforming into a babbling brook. It flows through each major acupoint, gathering together to form small lakes. Finally, all rivers flow eastward into the sea, and in the Dan Tian, it transforms into a vast ocean.

  Thus, Mu Yuan's divine consciousness self-examined, and in the midst of his lower abdomen, a ball of cyan light revolved, forming a shape like a green dragon, containing vigorous vitality, extending to all four limbs and hundreds of joints, just like a giant tree with roots, branches, and leaves. In addition, there was also a small cluster of dark ink-like light, flowing back and forth like water, emitting a low rumbling sound, as if it were the ebb and flow of the tide on a moonlit night, with seawater rising and falling. A small black turtle lay dormant within, almost imperceptible, yet its spirit was unparalleled, causing Mu Yuan's heart to feel joyful!