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Chapter 302: 302

Chapter 302 The Secret of Nine-leaf

This was not the third Heavenly Writing technique that Lu Zhou had just meditated upon . It was the grand technique, Scram, that the others were familiar .

The sound exploded in everyone’s ears like a clap of thunder .

To gain the power of speech recognition, even about unspeakable truths . To understand the words spoken by the tongues of beings in different worlds . This was the Power of Speech .

The densely packed energy blades that resembled golden needles were neatly gathered in the air . They were shattered by the soundwave as though they were made of glass . They vanished in the air and returned to nature . On the other hand, the 1,000 energy blades closest to Lu Zhou’s forehead seemed to be reflected as they shot upward .

Gong Yuandu’s huge avatar merely lasted for a breath . Then, the golden avatar exploded like a bubble under the force of the hurricane-like soundwave .

Several energy blades shot toward Gong Yuandu, taking him by surprise . He did not expect this . His protective energy layer was penetrated by the energy blades like a balloon . Some of the energy blades pierced his arms, face, back, and feet . A frightened expression could be seen on his face at this moment . A grunt rang in the air before he fell down .

Meanwhile, Hua Wudao’s Six Compatible Seal instantly shattered . The others reeled back and crashed on the ground as well .

Even Duanmu Sheng and Little Yuan’er who had experienced the impact of the grand technique, Scram, before were startled .

The Power of Speech truly exceeded everyone’s expectations . The soundwave continued to travel upward after Gong Yuandu was shot down .

Boom!

The weak barrier was broken by the soundwave from within as though it was a bubble . The barrier faded away .

Gong Yuandu fell to the ground .

Silence descended on the Evil Sky Pavilion .

Lu Zhou looked up . There was no longer a barrier . Uh… It seemed like the force of his attack was greater than before . This complicates things even more… What a headache!

Lu Zhou wanted to scratch his head . This was not what he had intended to do . ‘Now that the barrier is gone, what will the Noble Path do?’

Similarly, Leng Luo and the others were rendered speechless by what had just transpired . They rose to their feet and looked at the battered Gong Yuandu .

Lu Zhou turned to look at Gong Yuandu as well .

To everyone’s surprise, Gong Yuandu did not die . Although the barrier’s power was weak, it was still much more powerful than an elite with a Nascent Divinity Tribulation realm cultivation base . The grand technique, Scram, had instantly shattered the barrier, and yet, it could not kill Gong Yuandu .

‘How did he do that?’

Gong Yuandu lay on the ground for a moment longer before he struggled to push himself up and sat on the ground . He looked at the ground, uncertain if he should cry or laugh . He had lost completely . He was a man after all, and he had his pride . He would never allow himself to cry in front of others . In the end, he smiled and chuckled softly . He disregarded the pain in his body and said, “I’ve lost . ’

Lu Zhou looked at Gong Yuandu . “Have you thought about it?” “About what?”

“The reason you lost . ”

“I haven’t . ” Gong Yuandu shook his head . He looked at Lu Zhou with a smile before he shuffled to the table and took a seat across Lu Zhou .

The two of them poured themselves some wine .

“You have 100 years left… Are you going to throw that away?” Lu Zhou asked .

Gong Yuandu sighed . “There’s something you don’t know, Brother Ji . ” He raised the wine jar and poured it into his mouth . After a few mouthfuls, he lowered it and said, “I don’t have that long . ”

“Why?”

“I’ve spent my essence and blood a long time ago…” Gong Yuandu said . Essence and blood were the basis of life .

Lu Zhou frowned slightly and asked, “Just to improve your cultivation base?” .

Gong Yuandu coughed violently twice . A splash of red could be seen . He had coughed up blood . He wondered if it was due to the damage he sustained from the grand technique, Scram, or if it was due to his old injuries . Strangely, when he coughed up blood, half of his hair turned white . He seemed unbothered as he wiped the blood off the edge of his lips and took another sip of wine . He even managed to smile as he said, “A little more . ”

“Hm?”

“Just a little more… and I’ll be at the Nine-leaf stage . ”

The others who were standing nearby were thoroughly shocked .

Anyone who had an inkling of common cultivation knowledge would know what Nine-leaf meant . Eight-leaf was the limit attainable by humans . Up until now, there were no cultivators who had successfully reached the Nine-leaf stage . At the very least, nobody knew about any Nine-leaf elites .

Even in the Misty Forest where humans seldom tread or the whirlpools in the seas where no one dared to travel to… there were no Nine-leaf elites . There were no records of such individuals in all the books accessible to men as well .

“Just a little more… and yet, it’s an uncrossable chasm,” Lu Zhou said .

“Brother Ji, can’t you feel it?”

“Feel what?” Lu Zhou asked . “A sense of danger, the feeling of your life slipping away . It’s peculiar and unexplainable…” Gong Yuandu lowered his voice and said, “Whenever my cultivation base improves… I’d feel that I’ve aged . I’m aging quickly, and there’s nothing I can do to stop it…”

There was a hint of helplessness in Gong Yuandu’s eyes as he said . “Whenever I try to stop it, the Primal Qi that I’ve painstakingly accumulated would leave my sea of Qi . ”

“When did you start having these feelings?” Lu Zhou asked .

“During the tenth year inside the Mausoleum of Swords… and the 30th year . ”

“So, during the first instance, you stopped it, but during the second instance, you did not . ”

“I had no choice . ” If his hair had not been covered in grime, his silver mane would have been obvious .

Lu Zhou seemed to be lost in his thoughts as well . ‘If what he said is true, the limit of a human’s cultivation is the Eight-leaf stage . Alas, I only have him as a reference . That’s fewer than I like . ’

Gong Yuandu began coughing again . With this cough, his hair turned completely white . Even the grime could not mask the color of his hair . The others were shocked to see this . They did not understand what was happening . Lu Zhou looked at Gong Yuandu’s white hair . Realization dawned on him before he softly said, “Fool . ”

“If I didn’t, I would’ve died instantly . ” Gong Yuandu laughed again . He no longer drank the wine . His right hand was shaking . “Sometimes, there’s nothing wrong with being a fool . ” Then, he lifted the wine jar and poured its contents into his mouth . The wine agitated his belly . However, he seemed to not be bothered by the discomfort . He was enjoying himself . It had been a long time since he had felt this way after he had entered the coffin . The sting of the wine made him feel human and alive .

Unfortunately, with every mouthful of wine, Gong Yuandu’s completely white hair seemed to whiten even more if it was possible . The dirt fell off from his hair . His skin was so wrinkled that it no longer resembled skin . It would not be exaggerating to say it looked like tree bark . “Truth be told, when I attacked… I had a fleeting illusion that I could kill you,” Gong Yuandu said with a chuckle .

“If I didn’t have some matters to attend to, you would’ve been a dead man when we met at the Mausoleum of Swords,” Lu Zhou said confidently .

Gong Yuandu nodded listlessly . He remembered the Seven Terminal Formation and his Demon Sword in the Mausoleum of Swords .

Lu Zhou could tame the Demon Sword and break the Seven Terminal Formation . Defeating Gong Yuandu was definitely a lesser feat .

“Brother Ji, you’re older than I am and possess a much more profound cultivation base… Soon enough, you’ll feel the same things I’ve felt,” Gong Yuandu said with a chuckle, “Perhaps, all our seniors felt the same way as they looked for a breakthrough . ”