Chapter 521: Feigning Weakness to Deceive the Enemy

Lin Dong obediently focused his attention on his arms. His right hand, gripping the Ruyi Stool, and his originally hanging left arm both moved slightly backward.
Liu Cangju took action. He stepped forward firmly with his right foot—a step of five or six meters—reaching Lin Dong in an instant. Raising his right palm, he struck at Lin Dong’s left arm.
Lin Dong immediately used the Ruyi Stool to block the attack against his left arm.
Whoosh…
A gentle breeze blew, and Liu Cangju’s right palm strangely halted abruptly before swiftly descending toward Lin Dong’s chest.
Bang…
With a loud noise, Lin Dong crashed hard into the stone wall and was unable to stand up.
“You… you cheated!”
Managing to force some blood to his lips, Lin Dong glared at Liu Cangju. Though most of it was feigned, the power of that punch was indeed significant. With his strength at the Eighth Stage of Xin Ni, even enduring such a strike inevitably caused pain in his chest.
He wasn’t Liu Cangju—someone who would disdain probing an enemy’s strength. Moreover, his own cultivation speed was twice that of ordinary people, so he wasn’t reluctant to expend a great deal of spiritual energy to break through the enemy’s energy barrier and investigate.
A strong warrior at the Fourth Stage of Xin Ni could cause pain in his chest to a strong warrior at the Eighth Stage—this punch was definitely not ordinary.
Thus, Lin Dong became more cautious. The world was full of surprises. If Li Xun could kill a warrior at the Fourth Stage of Xin Ni with just the Second Stage strength, it was possible that a warrior at the Fourth Stage could also defeat one at the Eighth Stage.
“Cheated?” Liu Cangju snorted. He felt Lin Dong didn’t deserve an explanation from him.
With spiritual energy surging into his right palm, Liu Cangju lightly raised his arm. It seemed like an indifferent wave of his sleeve, but in reality, he was using the killing technique of the Jin Shi Sect. Truth be told, almost every time he attacked, it was the most powerful Pai Yun Palm of the Jin Shi Sect. He was proud and arrogant, but rather than torturing his enemies slowly like chicks, he preferred to kill them instantly in public or showcase his formidable and terrifying strength.
Without a doubt, with that casual wave of his sleeve, Lin Dong was flung aside.
After flying over ten meters in a row, Lin Dong finally crashed to the ground, sliding five or six meters along a deep groove before stabilizing himself.
The only thing that surprised Liu Cangju and the elders was that, despite being severely injured, Lin Dong could still keep his eyes open.
“When did the Tian Jian Sect’s spiritual techniques acquire such remarkable resistance?” Chi Yu Feng and the elders frowned, unable to understand where Lin Dong got such incredible resilience.

Liu Cangju felt somewhat ashamed—after three consecutive attacks, he still hadn’t managed to kill a single warrior, and that too without using any spiritual pills. This was quite ironic for him.
“Since you’re still alive, don’t blame me for being ruthless.”
Liu Cangju crouched low and slammed his palms hard onto the ground.
Silent and imperceptible at first glance, it seemed as though his palm was merely pressing lightly against the ground. It was slow, and not even the small stones around it trembled.
But in reality, Lin Dong sensed a force beneath the ground—far more powerful than what he had encountered before resisting Liu Cangju’s palm—coming toward him from below.
Its speed was like lightning, and its power surpassed even surging waves.
There was no disturbance in the wind or sand, but beneath the ground, something akin to lightning was in motion, accelerating and growing stronger as it moved. It wasn’t hindered by the soil at all; instead, it seemed to draw energy from the ground for its own use.
This was the fourth stage of the Golden Vision Sect’s Cloud-Pushing Palm: Earth Rumbling!
If Liu Cangju could break through the ninth level of the Heart Reversal Phase and enter the ranks of peak warriors, and once he mastered the final stage, Stormy Clouds, he could unleash a single palm strike, harnessing the wind and clouds within dozens of miles for his own advantage. With just one strike, the ground would shake, and clouds thousands of miles away would swirl—truly a earth-shattering force.
Even with this Earth Rumbling technique, given Lin Dong’s strength at the eighth level of the Heart Reversal Phase, if he tried to block it with his energy shield, it might not be fatal, but he would likely still get injured.
Without hesitation, Lin Dong channeled his spiritual energy into the Wish Bench. The part of the bench that touched the ground instantly extended a long spike, which quickly dug into the ground before spreading out to form a shield beneath it.
Boom!
The next moment, the energy struck the shield, causing a thunderous explosion. After blocking most of the opponent’s energy, Lin Dong restored the Wish Bench to its original state, allowing the remaining force to hit his energy shield. He was sent flying like a cannonball.
After spinning and tumbling in midair, Lin Dong crashed to the ground with a loud thud.
The group of elders and Liu Cangju looked closely. In the dim light, Lin Dong’s eyes were still open.
“That’s impossible! Even a warrior at the Mind Phase, no matter how skilled they are, can’t withstand our Golden Vision Sect’s Cloud-Pushing Palm.”
“Exactly. If such a skill really existed, a mere warrior at the Mind Phase could resist a warrior at the fourth level of Heart Reversal Phase. Then, what if it were a warrior at the Heart Reversal Phase? Could they not even resist a peak warrior?”

“As the leader of the Heavenly Sword Sect and the youngest peak warrior in the Great Han Kingdom, with his talent, there’s no spiritual technique he can’t learn. If he masters this technique, no one in the world will be able to harm him, let alone the Golden Vision Sect causing him serious injuries.”

Exclamations filled the air. The elders of the Golden Vision Sect understood better than anyone the power of the Cloud-Pushing Palm, which was also their pride. Logically and emotionally, they couldn’t accept the idea that someone with the strength of a Mental Phase warrior could withstand the attacks of a Heart-Rebellion Phase powerhouse.

“Cangju, did you hold back?” asked one of the simpler-minded elders.

Liu Cangju ignored him but mentally noted this elder. The words seemed harmless, but from his perspective, they could only mean one thing: either questioning his loyalty to Chi Yufeng or doubting his strength.

Either way, Liu Cangju was extremely displeased. Though he was exceptionally talented, even if he made a grave mistake or caused Chi Yufeng to resent him, he was still destined to become the next leader of the Golden Vision Sect. With such talent, not even Chi Yufeng, the current leader, would dare to do anything to him. Throughout the Great Han Kingdom, the most dangerous people were those peak warriors who operated alone, followed by young talents with the potential to reach that level. No sect would reject such disciples unless absolutely necessary. To do so would be a betrayal of past leaders and would bring shame upon them, preventing others from joining the sect in the future.

If a sect couldn’t even accommodate a disciple with such potential, let alone others.

Still, Liu Cangju didn’t want to alienate Chi Yufeng, which was why he ignored the elders and listened only to him. Though he was among the best heirs in the history of the Golden Vision Sect, he was still just a disciple, holding a position above many elders—all thanks to Chi Yufeng’s indulgence. At Chi Yufeng’s age, he wouldn’t abdicate for another twenty or thirty years. Even if he did, it might be misinterpreted as Liu Cangju forcing him to step down. He didn’t want to be constrained by the sect elders during that time.

The only way to resolve the resentment in Chi Yufeng’s still-angry heart was to kill Lin Dong instantly.

Liu Cangju moved swiftly and appeared in front of Lin Dong. His eyes slowly closed, and his entire body entered a state of floating illusion. Spiritual energy gathered in his palms like surging tides before suddenly being sent toward Lin Dong’s head.

The howling wind—this palm strike filled Chi Yufeng with ecstasy, and even the elders of the Golden Vision Sect who were dissatisfied with Liu Cangju were filled with surprise. None of them had expected Liu Cangju to achieve a new understanding of the Cloud-Pushing Palm at this moment. In the earlier stages of the Golden Vision Sect’s Cloud-Pushing Palm, it appeared calm and unassuming, yet hidden within it was deadly force. A single palm strike seemed weak on the surface but could actually shake the heavens and earth. Such a powerful technique was extremely effective for ambushes or confusing enemies. Even in direct combat, it offered significant advantages—delivering a palm strike could easily make the enemy think it was just a probing blow, but upon contact, the first impact alone could deal heavy damage, even giving a slight edge against an equally strong opponent.

However, the final stage of the Cloud-Pushing Palm brought about stormy winds and a mighty momentum. Though it lacked the deceptive effects of the earlier stages, its fierce winds were awe-inspiring and terrifyingly dominant. Although Liu Cangju’s palm strike had not yet shown the effects of stormy winds, hints of it were already visible, and it was even possible he might fully master it before reaching the ranks of peak warriors. This was undoubtedly a huge surprise for the Golden Vision Sect. After all, Liu Cangju already possessed the strength of a Reverse Phase Four warrior, and his progress in cultivation was rapid. Mastering the stormy winds stage early could boost the sect’s overall strength. Moreover, the stronger Liu Cangju became, the lower the chance of his downfall.

The Golden Vision Sect dared to surround and attack Yun Cangqiong, the sect leader of the Heavenly Sword Sect, for the sake of a Dream Wisdom Tree, confident that their sect’s spiritual arrays could withstand any enemy. Accelerating Liu Cangju’s progress to the ranks of peak warriors was also of utmost importance to them. If the Golden Vision Sect did not have a genius disciple like Liu Cangju, they might attack Yun Cangqiong for the Dream Wisdom Tree, but they certainly would not go so far as to kill him, thereby incurring an irreconcilable feud with the Heavenly Sword Sect.

In this attack on Yun Cangqiong, the Golden Vision Sect went all out to ensure that Liu Cangju would not become a target of revenge from Yun Cangqiong, a peak warrior. As for the Heavenly Sword Sect’s retaliation, although it would cause significant losses to the Golden Vision Sect—especially with the heir of the Heavenly Sword Sect posing a major threat—so long as Liu Cangju remained unharmed, the sect still had the strength to withstand destruction.

Boom!
Lin Dong swung his Ruyi Stool, intercepting Liu Cangju’s two palm strikes mid-air. With a loud explosion, his entire body sank into the mud along with swirling dust.

“Great!” Chi Yufeng shouted in triumph.

Liu Cangju stood proudly, his gaze sweeping around; his presence forced even all the elders to cheer.
With thick dust swirling, no one doubted that Lin Dong was now in tatters, his flesh torn apart.
Yet none noticed that in the distant sky, the Tianpeng Bird was flapping its wings and flying swiftly toward them.