Chapter 10

Ximen Shuai smiled calmly. Originally, he had been quite wary of Gu Yan and Ye Wushuang, fearing that they might have some strange moves or strange treasures. He had dispersed the Qiankun Ring, using its divine consciousness to lock onto Ye Wushuang. As soon as she moved, it would lock her down, and he could deal with Gu Yan with his ancient sword. As for the others, he could easily handle them with his Daoist techniques.

The Palace Master said, "Ximen Shuai, weren't you always in the Western Continent? Why are you here in the Eastern Continent?"

Ximen Shuai smiled, "I came for the fragrance, Palace Master. We are so compatible, why let the people of Yunqing Mountain ruin our mood? How about..."

Before he could finish, all the talismans roared to life, and a hundred bolts of lightning struck Ximen Shuai simultaneously. Ximen Shuai needed time to react, but his ancient sword, which had its own spirit, immediately protected him, intercepting all the lightning.

At the same time, the ancient sword dimmed and fell. Ximen Shuai was greatly alarmed and hurriedly tried to activate his magical power, but the ancient sword had already gone dormant and was unresponsive. At that moment, a talisman flew out and attached itself to the ancient sword.

"Seal the ground!" Lin Fan said, "Quickly!"

Everyone was stunned. The ancient sword disappeared, vanishing as it fell.

Bai Mu and Lin Fan discussed, and Lin Fan tried to recall the events. He concluded that this was an impossible task. Hearing the conversation between the Palace Master and Ximen Shuai, he used his old trick, making all the talismans explode at once. He didn't know what the consequences would be, but he didn't expect the ancient sword to protect its master, intercepting all the attacks without any harm to Ximen Shuai. Even more unexpectedly, the ancient sword had gone dormant, which was too low in quality. Lin Fan, quick-witted, immediately sent a talisman flying to attach to the ancient sword.

Ximen Shuai was furious, "How dare you?" His true qi took form, breaking through the inn's walls and grabbing for Lin Fan. The ancient sword was not a divine object, and it had already been damaged by Gu Yan's flying sword and Ye Wushuang's Golden Crow flames. It had relied on the ancient sword for protection, and finally, Lin Fan's hundred bolts of heavenly thunder had extinguished it.

As Ximen Shuai moved, Gu Yan also moved. Ximen Shuai immediately calmed down and was greatly alarmed. "Not good, I'm going to be in trouble today." He now only had the Qiankun Ring left, which could lock Gu Yan's sword but not Ye Wushuang's scroll. In a hurry, he angrily shouted, "Righteous people only bully the weak."

Ye Wushuang blinked and asked, "What's wrong with bullying the weak?" The rules of the sect didn't say anything about not being able to fight with more people.

"Of course it's wrong," Ximen Shuai, being extremely cunning, used his divine consciousness to search for the ancient sword. The young Taoist said "Seal the ground," so the ancient sword was clearly trapped. The ancient sword had gone dormant, and he couldn't sense it, so he had to rely on his divine consciousness and spells to search slowly. Ximen Shuai said, "In our cultivation, we emphasize fairness and a one-on-one duel."

Ye Wushuang said, "But it was you who asked us to attack together."

Ximen Shuai firmly denied, "I never said that."

He sensed something nearby and was overjoyed, preparing to approach. Suddenly, he felt a heavy weight on his back and was greatly alarmed. His protective true qi had been broken without him noticing, and he felt a cold chill invade his bones. Ximen Shuai, a seasoned warrior, immediately abandoned the ancient sword, activated his true qi, and moved a hundred steps sideways. Almost instantly, a dull sound echoed from where he had been standing, like a stone sinking into deep water.

A cold sweat ran down Ximen Shuai's back. "Kui Water Yin Thunder?" He wasn't entirely sure.

Kui Water Yin Thunder, also known as Ghost Thunder because "kui" sounds like "ghost," is strictly speaking, a water thunder from the Five Elements Heavenly Thunder. However, Kui Water Yin Thunder is vastly different from water thunder. It is extremely harmful, not only breaking through protective true qi but also severely damaging magical treasures. The most formidable aspect is that Kui Water Yin Thunder is silent and invisible, and even highly cultivated people can only sense it when it is close. If the attacker and the target have similar cultivation levels, the target will be severely injured. If the target's cultivation is far lower, they might be killed on the spot. The downside is that once Kui Water Yin Thunder is released, the caster cannot control it. It moves slowly and explodes at a specific time and place. If the target moves, the Kui Water Yin Thunder is useless.

Each of the Five Thunders—Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth—has its own characteristics. Foundation Establishment cultivators can use them freely, but their power is generally average. As cultivation increases, so does their power. Besides increasing cultivation, the Five Thunders can only be enhanced through spells. The Five Elements generate and overcome each other, creating endless variations. Currently, the most famous school for studying thunder techniques is the Leishan Sect in the Southern Continent, which can transform the Five Thunders in countless ways. However, the only record of Kui Water Yin Thunder appeared during the great battle with the evil path three hundred years ago.

If it is so powerful, why doesn't anyone study it? That's because Kui Water Yin Thunder cannot be studied; there are no methods or spells. It is said that Kui Water Yin Thunder can only be understood through enlightenment, and only those who can freely use the Five Thunders can achieve this.

Is it that difficult? Lin Fan asked. Isn't it just combining the Five Thunders? Lin Fan could draw the Five Thunders talismans quickly and accurately. In his free time, he studied these talismans and discovered some secrets. No one had ever studied why the Metal Thunder talisman was drawn in a certain way or why the Fire Thunder talisman was drawn differently. Perhaps only someone as bored as Lin Fan would ask why the talisman could produce lightning. He also tried to see if he could take shortcuts and didn't need to follow the exact patterns in the Daoist techniques.

After much effort, Lin Fan understood some principles of the talismans and created his own thunder talisman. This talisman was quite complex, combining the essence of the Five Thunders talismans in a generating sequence and a counteracting sequence in the inner circle. The middle part was the essential pattern for activating the Five Thunders spell, and the most challenging part was drawing such a complex talisman in one stroke.

The first test subject was his sect master. When the Kui Water Yin Thunder approached, the sect master was puzzled but had no defensive thoughts and was hit. The sect master questioned Lin Fan and then sternly warned him not to use the Lin Fan Thunder Talisman unless facing a strong enemy and not to record the talisman's drawing method in any documents. The Lin Fan Thunder Talisman, designed by Lin Fan, was naturally named after him.

The sect master, well-versed and knowledgeable, knew about Kui Water Yin Thunder and understood that only a cultivator who had mastered the Five Thunders and passed the Nascent Soul stage could use it freely, with their elemental nature being perfectly balanced. Using Kui Water Yin Thunder through a talisman was something the sect master had never seen before. Although Kui Water Yin Thunder is extremely harmful, it is limited in power because it uses yellow paper as a medium.

Ximen Shuai was completely shocked by the reputation of Kui Water Yin Thunder. If he had really been hit, he would have at most spat out some blood and needed a couple of days to recover. Moreover, dealing with Kui Water Yin Thunder is simple if one is prepared. It moves slowly and explodes at a fixed point, so intermittent movement can avoid being ambushed.

Ximen Shuai was uncertain and gathered his true qi, "Which senior of the Leishan Sect used Kui Water Yin Thunder to ambush me?" Because only someone from the Leishan Sect could have cultivated Kui Water Yin Thunder.

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