The Imperial Martial Pill Venerable

The Martial Tower Banquet, on the fighting stage!

A flash of silver and a blur of white—two figures intertwined, the clang of weapons ringing out continuously. Down below at the banquet, the assembled Martial Artists watched with rapt attention, letting out gasps of amazement from time to time.

"Truly, the new generation surpasses the old. The young people these days are incredible, far stronger than I was at their age." Yao Qingming smiled faintly. As he watched Qin Ya and Lu Yin below, his eyes revealed a mix of surprise and admiration.

"The talent of these two is indeed frightening, especially... Qin Ya’s," the White Fox standing behind Yao Qingming remarked coolly. "When he first came to the Lake Tower, he could barely contend with Wang Yan. I never thought he’d reach this level in such a short time. It’s a miracle, I must say."

"Indeed. You can’t measure this Qin Ya by normal standards," the Conical Hat Guest chuckled, his voice slightly hoarse. "The kid’s a little monster."

"Hah, a little monster, you say?" Yao Qingming gave a faint, noncommittal smile.

Before his eyes, the silver figure flickered nonstop, conjuring several disorienting illusions. Combined with the elusive Ghost Shadow Step, it did give Qin Ya some trouble at first. However, thanks to his extraordinary perception, he quickly adapted.

"Is this all the speed you’ve got?" Qin Ya said with a cold laugh.

To Qin Ya’s surprise, Lu Yin had not only comprehended the Illusionary Great Trend, but his understanding of the Wind’s Great Trend was also profound. The two Trends complemented each other, pushing Lu Yin’s speed to a level nearing the Celestial Essence Realm. But he had the misfortune of facing Qin Ya.

Qin Ya cultivated Chasing Wind and Shadow, a top-tier Body Technique Martial Skill, so his speed was already at its peak. Adding his own comprehension of the Wind’s Great Trend on top of that made him significantly faster than Lu Yin. Since Lu Yin’s illusions couldn’t fool him, the duel gradually fell into Qin Ya’s tempo.

’Damn it.’ 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

With a low grunt, Lu Yin’s form split into nine figures as he charged forward again. But Qin Ya simply swept his longspear, ignoring the other illusions, and lashed out directly at the one to his left—which was, in fact, Lu Yin’s true body.

’Ghost Shadow Step!’

With the internal command, he executed Ghost Shadow Step. His figure flashed, instantly dodging the spear strike as an illusion took his place. But Qin Ya merely smirked, retracted his spear, and whipped it around in a half-circle behind him.

Lu Yin chopped down with the edge of his hand, sending two silver blades of light tearing through the air. They clashed hard against the longspear and shattered. Lu Yin used the momentum to pull back and retreat.

"Heh, that trick doesn’t work on me anymore," Qin Ya said with a cold smile, planting the butt of his longspear on the stage. His entire being radiated an imposing aura that seemed to soar to the heavens.

’Bastard,’ Lu Yin thought, gritting his teeth.

Against any other Martial Artist of the same Realm, even one in the Celestial Essence Realm, Lu Yin would have been able to put up a fight by relying on the unpredictable nature of his Illusionary Great Trend and the supreme speed of his Wind’s Great Trend. But he had to run into Qin Ya.

A monster whose perception was so Heaven-Defying that illusions were useless, and who was even faster than him. The sheer frustration of it all made his expression turn colder.

"What’s wrong? Weren’t you going to defeat me? Come on, then," Qin Ya said with a cold smile, beckoning with his finger, his eyes filled with mockery.

"Alas, Lu Yin has truly met his bane this time," Su Chang lamented. "With his two Great Trends, Illusion and Wind, he should have been able to contend with the Celestial Essence Realm. But as it happens, Teacher Qin is the perfect counter to both."

"Haha, Brother Lu must be so frustrated! He just came out of seclusion only to be completely shut down by Teacher Qin," Xiao Yunchen said with a hearty laugh, raising a large bowl and taking a swig of wine.

The other Martial Artists also struggled to hide the astonishment on their faces.

"Sigh, this Qin Ya is just on another level."

"His skill in the Alchemy Dao is monstrous, and his talent in Martial Arts is monstrous, too. It’s just too shocking. I’m telling you, where in the world did this kid come from?"

"I heard he’s from a place called Anxing City in Qingyu County."

"Huh? Never heard of it. Can’t believe a small city like that could produce a True Dragon."

.........

Faced with Qin Ya’s taunts, Lu Yin actually calmed down. He took a deep breath and said in a cold voice, "This next move is the fruit of my two years in seclusion. I was saving it for Su Chang, but it seems I’ll have to use it on you first."

"Hm..." Qin Ya’s expression grew a little more serious.

The Lu Yin before him had undergone some kind of indescribable change. His Cultivation was still at Earth Element Realm Perfection, no stronger than before, yet the surrounding Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi stirred, sending out ripples like waves on water.

"Wind Shadow Illusion Technique!"

Following his cold shout, the Lu Yin in front of them slowly dissipated like a phantom bubble. The crowd gasped in shock—had a man just vanished into thin air on the stage?

"What’s happening? Did Lu Yin disappear?"

"How can a living person just vanish? What’s going on?"

"Uh... I think I’m seeing things."

The crowd cried out in alarm, looking all around in search of Lu Yin’s figure. Yet even after scanning every corner of the entire Martial Tower, they found nothing.

"He vanished?" The pupils of Su Chang and the others constricted.

As far as they could see, there was no one on the stage but Qin Ya.

"What’s going on? Brother Lu actually vanished!"

Xiao Yunchen cried out.

But a flash of surprise crossed Yao Qingming’s eyes as he said, "He didn’t vanish, he concealed himself. What a clever kid. Lu Yin’s understanding of the Great Trends is quite profound to be able to use them to this degree."

’So the Seven Great Prodigies of the Imperial Capital aren’t just for show, after all,’ Qin Ya thought with a faint smile. With his powerful perception, he could sense that Lu Yin hadn’t disappeared but was merely hidden somewhere on the stage.

’So instead of making illusions to distract an enemy, this is a skill to hide himself completely? And he’s concealed his killing intent and even his scent so perfectly.’

"A skill that deeply integrates the Illusionary Great Trend and the Wind’s Great Trend. To achieve this level is truly surprising," Qin Ya remarked with a calm smile, not a hint of panic on his face. This level of composure earned the admiration of many onlookers.

Yao Qingming nodded, his eyes filled with praise. He said slowly, "To remain so composed when he can’t even see his enemy... that level of mental fortitude is something many Martial Artists of the older generation lack."

Then, Yao Qingming turned to the White Fox and the Conical Hat Guest beside him. "Both of them are true prodigies, dragons among men. Who do you think will win?"

After a moment of thought, the Conical Hat Guest spoke. "In terms of raw talent, Qin Ya is superior. But in this particular battle, with his Wind Shadow Illusion Technique, Lu Yin has put himself in a virtually unbeatable position..."

"Oh? So you favor Lu Yin?" Yao Qingming asked with a faint smile.

"Correct."

"And you, White Fox? Who do you favor?"

The White Fox replied after a moment, "I don’t know. The duel has reached a point where I wouldn’t be surprised by either outcome. Therefore, I cannot make a judgment."

"Then let’s just watch and see!"

.........

On the stage, Qin Ya stood as straight as a javelin, his expression calm and his perception fully extended. But Lu Yin was hidden too well; Qin Ya’s senses couldn’t get a clear lock on him. To make matters worse, Lu Yin wasn’t staying in one place but was constantly shifting his position around the stage, making it even more difficult for Qin Ya to perceive him.

Suddenly, with a SWOOSH...

"Ngh..." Qin Ya rapidly retreated. ’That was close!’