Chapter 66: Evenly Matched

Clang! Clang! Clang!
Within the snowy valley, the sound of weapons clashing echoed incessantly.

After the initial probing, both Lu Sheng and Shi Ying were now fighting with their full strength.

Though Shi Ying was renowned for his immense power, Lu Sheng’s strength, after enhancement, was by no means inferior. The two battled for hundreds of exchanges, yet neither could gain the upper hand.

Instead, the accumulated snow on the ground was swept up and scattered in all directions by the force of their whirling blades and massive pillars. Most of the snow was pulverized by the impact, transforming into clouds of mist.

“Your strength is truly impressive—no wonder you dare face me head-on!” Shi Ying stood atop a boulder jutting from the snow, his expression dark as he spoke to Lu Sheng.

Ever since he had grasped the true essence of the Divine Elephant Crossing the River and inherited the authentic legacy of the Divine Elephant Power, Shi Ying had not found a single peer in strength within his realm.

Yet now, before him stood Lu Sheng, merely a martial master, whose might was already on par with his own. Moreover, with the Hunyuan Art that Lu Sheng cultivated, the combined energy from three dantian allowed his total internal force to match that of a grandmaster.

This realization filled Shi Ying, ever proud of his own talents, not only with rage but also a surge of jealousy—for Lu Sheng was only eighteen years old, a full eight years his junior.

---

Across from him, Lu Sheng felt a mixture of surprise and delight.

“The Divine Elephant Power truly lives up to its reputation for sheer strength,” he thought. “I have come to the right place this time!”

He knew his own circumstances best. While his strength seemed equal to Shi Ying’s, it was in fact the result of a triple amplification.

Having perfected the first stage of the Three Treasures Art and achieved mastery over the manipulation of his essence, energy, and spirit, Lu Sheng could alter them at will, even in the midst of battle.

Whenever his weapon met Shi Ying’s, he used his enhanced strength—only then could he contend with Shi Ying on equal footing.

“When my essence, energy, and spirit reached a value of twelve, it seemed to hit a peak. The extra point zero one was only achieved by forcefully consuming flood dragon blood and flesh!”

To reach twelve, Lu Sheng had spent just over a year cultivating the Hunyuan Soul-Refining Orb inside the body of the dragon-whale, absorbing its nutrients. After that, his essence, energy, and spirit barely increased at all, except for the additional point zero one gained after escaping the deep sea and consuming the flood dragon’s blood.

“In short, my physique has reached the utmost limit possible before blood refinement and marrow cleansing—yet my strength is only twenty-one thousand jin.”

“This is partly because my internal cultivation is still low, and partly because the Hunyuan Art does not particularly emphasize raw strength.”

“My body’s potential has not been fully realized!”

The Hunyuan Art might be unparalleled in refining internal energy, but in other aspects, it was not supreme. At least in terms of amplifying raw power, Shi Ying’s Divine Elephant Power surpassed his own.

“Moreover, by obtaining the Divine Elephant Power, I can increase my strength even further—and, by mastering the Great Strength Technique alongside it, I can attain the second stage of the Nine-Nine Profound Art!”

Lu Sheng was confident about his ability to master the Divine Elephant Power. Though he had not yet grasped the transformative techniques of the Nine-Nine Profound Art, nor could he manifest the bloodline of the divine elephant, if Shi Ying—who lacked such a bloodline—could master it, then Lu Sheng, by transforming his essence, energy, and spirit to match Shi Ying’s, should certainly be able to as well.

Upon mastering the Divine Elephant Power and using it to enter the Great Strength Technique, Lu Sheng could then complete the first stage of the Nine-Nine Profound Art and ascend to an even higher realm. This was the true reason for his desire to obtain the Divine Elephant Power.

---

“Transformation of the womb, shifting form at will, harnessing primordial yang; guiding energy, consuming elixirs, and wielding great strength—these are the three Heavenly Gang and three Earth Fiend techniques innate to the first layer of the Nine-Nine Profound Art.”

“I have already mastered five of them. Once I learn the Great Strength Technique, I can progress to the Refinement of Qi into Spirit!”

Refining essence into energy, refining energy into spirit, and returning spirit to emptiness—these are the first three stages of the Nine-Nine Profound Art, all focused on tempering essence, energy, and spirit.

For Lu Sheng, who could freely manipulate his essence, energy, and spirit, progressing through these stages posed little challenge. The only difficulty lay in mastering the three Heavenly Gang and three Earth Fiend techniques that accompanied each stage.

Because these eighteen techniques were all related to the physical body and integrated into the Nine-Nine Profound Art, Lu Sheng could easily master six with each stage of cultivation.

Though these techniques were not essential to the core of the Nine-Nine Profound Art, choosing not to learn them would make it far harder to master them later.

He had deliberately stayed at the first stage for two years, determined to master all six techniques before advancing.

---

“Shi Ying’s current strength is roughly equal to mine after triple amplification—about sixty thousand jin!” Lu Sheng estimated.

With sixty thousand jin of force, Shi Ying’s might even surpassed some newly ascended martial lords, who only had fifty thousand jin.

Truly, he was among the most formidable below the level of martial lord!

“However, though his strength is immense and his weapon unbelievably heavy—the totem pillar must weigh at least a thousand jin—”

It was the first time Lu Sheng had seen anyone wield such a weapon. Yet in Shi Ying’s hands, it seemed as light as straw, used with effortless ease.

Because of this, although Lu Sheng’s enhanced strength matched Shi Ying’s, he was always slightly disadvantaged in weapon clashes.

After all, his own long blade, forged from several mystic weapons, barely reached two hundred jin in weight. In terms of weaponry, he was at a disadvantage.

“Still, though the thousand-jin totem pillar is devastating, it also hampers endurance!”

According to common practice in this world, weapon weight was kept below one percent of a warrior's strength to preserve stamina.

Lu Sheng’s long blade was perfectly suited to his current power. Shi Ying’s pillar, on the other hand, seemed overly heavy.

“Although I have not begun blood refinement and my stamina is not as great as a grandmaster’s, with the Three Treasures Art, my recovery rate is also tripled. Add to that the merit I can use to restore myself—”

“In a protracted fight, when Shi Ying’s strength wanes, I will naturally defeat him!”

With this in mind, Lu Sheng devised his strategy: to fight a war of attrition, wearing Shi Ying down while carefully managing his own recovery for a sudden decisive strike.

---

Opposite him, Shi Ying was making his own calculations.

“This kid has decent strength and is even faster than I am. But I am already a grandmaster, my organs fully tempered and blood refinement underway—my endurance far surpasses his.”

“In time, his strength will inevitably fade!”

Unknowingly, both had settled on the same strategy.

Thus, as the battle resumed, though the contest seemed even more dazzling, it lost the previous ferocity.

Both waited for the other to reveal a flaw, searching for the one opportunity that would secure victory.