Celestial Taoist

Chapter 34 Testing Taoist Techniques

In the world of Heavenly Punishment, on the spacious bluestone square of the Heavenly Dao Legion's new recruit camp, people come and go in an endless stream. Countless new recruits line up to cultivate and practice Daoist arts, and the air is filled with rich and mellow spiritual energy of heaven and earth.

The void in the very center of the square suddenly twisted slightly, and a circle of shimmering white light rippled out like waves. As the light receded, two figures embracing appeared out of thin air.

It was Su Qingyao and Li Mofan, who had just returned from their previous careers.

The two remained embracing, Su Qingyao resting her cheek on Li Mofan's shoulder, her arms wrapped around his waist. Her breathing hadn't fully calmed, and her face still looked pale and delicate. Li Mofan held her waist with both arms, his body steady, instinctively pulling her into his embrace.

This sudden scene instantly silenced the noise in the recruit square.

The once noisy square fell silent in an instant, and all eyes turned to the two of them, filled with astonishment, curiosity, and disbelief.

Who doesn't know the famous Su Qingyao?

She possesses exceptional talent, stunning beauty, and an extraordinary background. She is aloof and cold, keeping strangers at bay and as cold as ice.

But at this moment, she was nestled in a man's arms without any hesitation, their bodies pressed together, their posture intimate, completely devoid of her usual aloof and unapproachable demeanor.

Whispers arose quietly, everyone's eyes were filled with amusement, they frequently glanced at each other, their gazes shifting back and forth between the two, and speculations and discussions were secretly brewing in their hearts.

"Isn't that Captain Su? Why is she hugging a man?"

"Good heavens, I've never seen her so close to anyone before. Just who is this kid?"

Rumors spread like wildfire, quickly reaching beyond the recruit camp.

The message traveled a long way before finally reaching a secluded cloud-top villa within the legion without a sound.

Inside the secluded courtyard, the pavilions were elegant and the air was filled with ethereal mist. A young man dressed in a moon-white Taoist robe stood with his hands behind his back in front of the viewing railing. He had a handsome face, a gentle and refined temperament, and an air of authority about him.

A tall servant bowed behind him and reported respectfully in a low voice: "Sir, news has just come from the recruit camp that Miss Su has just returned from another world and was seen embracing a young man in the recruit camp square. Their posture was extremely intimate, and the news has spread throughout the entire recruit camp."

The young man in the moon-white Taoist robe stiffened slightly, his originally gentle and peaceful gaze suddenly narrowed, and a barely perceptible hint of hesitation flashed across his eyes.

He stood quietly in place, gazing at the surging clouds in the distance, his aura gradually fading away, leaving only silence.

After a long silence, his voice was soft and indifferent, revealing neither joy nor anger, but carrying a hint of suppressed bitterness:

"Understood, you may leave."

The attendant dared not say anything, bowed respectfully, and quietly withdrew from the courtyard.

"Su Qingyao?...Su Qingyao..." the young man muttered repeatedly.

In front of the cultivation room, Su Qingyao and Li Mofan stood facing each other, their expressions aloof and distant. She spoke softly, her tone calm yet carrying a hint of estrangement: "You should go back first. My spirituality is now sufficient, so I don't need to seek you out for spiritual cultivation anymore."

Li Mofan stood still, gazing at Su Qingyao's cold and indifferent eyes.

The warmth of being in the same room in the other world and embracing each other upon returning was still vivid in her mind, but in an instant, she returned to her aloof appearance, as if she had only experienced an illusion.

He even said that there was no need to exchange them anymore. A thousand words were stuck in his throat, but in the end, they only turned into a low reply: "Okay."

He didn't linger any longer, gave Su Qingyao a deep look, and then turned and left silently.

As he walked out of the training room area, he was constantly met with strange looks and whispers from the new recruits. It was clear that the scene in the recruit camp square had already spread far and wide, and everyone was talking about his relationship with Su Qingyao.

He ignored the gossip of others and walked straight toward the training ground of the recruit camp.

The training ground was vast, filled with individual rooms made of fine steel, where new recruits practiced their Dao techniques and competed in cultivation. Although many were practicing their skills, Li Mofan paid no attention to them, heading straight for a testing room of over 300 square meters. There were only a handful of such large rooms in the training ground; usually, these rooms were full of Foundation Establishment cultivators, but today quite a few were empty.

He took a deep breath, his spiritual energy slowly surging, and a golden Dao Foundation quietly appeared around him, its faint spiritual light flowing around him. He fully activated the Dao Foundation, and the golden ball bombarded the testing device in the center of the room one after another. Each impact produced a muffled boom, and the values ​​on the light screen above the testing device jumped and burst continuously, with the attack values ​​fluctuating between five hundred and one thousand two hundred.

An attack with a normal attack power of 500 points is enough to break through the physical defense of a level 25 talent cultivator; while a terrifying attack with a peak attack power of 1,200 points can even break through the physical barriers of an ordinary level 50 talent cultivator.

It should be noted that Li Mofan's current level is only level thirty-five.

He still felt lingering resentment, so he decided to unleash his newly acquired Taoist technique—the Amorous Sword.

With a slight focus of his mind, the golden Dao Foundation sphere hovering beside him slowly drifted to his front, and his spiritual energy and omnipotent energy surged into it simultaneously. The golden sphere instantly burst forth with dazzling spiritual light, its halo unfolding layer by layer, transforming in an instant into a small, gilded sword, its sword intent restrained yet its sharpness concealed.

The next instant, the golden sword hurtled through the air with a sharp, piercing force, and slammed into the spiritual energy testing device in the center.

A deafening boom echoed through the testing room as the golden dagger, imbued with a chilling sword intent, slammed into the dark dummy testing device.

The light suddenly surged, the test screen flickered wildly, and the numbers soared, breaking through the 2,000 mark and finally settling at 2,080 points.

The violent spiritual energy shockwave spread outwards from the testing device, creating gusts of air that caused the surrounding walls to tremble slightly, and stone chips and fine powder fell down in a flurry.

This level of attack power far exceeds the maximum peak of his ability to simply activate basic Dao techniques and Dao foundation attacks.

With a cultivation level of thirty-five, a single sword strike could deal two thousand points of damage. Not to mention an ordinary level fifty talent, even if he were to clash with Ling Canghai, a single unexpected move could injure him.

Li Mofan stared at the glaring numbers on the screen, but felt no joy. Instead, his pent-up frustration surged even more intensely.

Unwilling to stop there, he stirred his mind again, drawing upon his spiritual power and omnipotent energy once more.

The golden Dao Foundation sphere reappeared, condensing and unleashing swords time and time again.

Golden sword shadows slammed into the testing device one after another, creating a deafening roar. The values ​​on the testing screen fluctuated wildly, rising and falling repeatedly, with the lowest value still above 1,500 points.

The sharp little sword swirled and roared in the spacious testing room, the wind howling and the aftershocks carving shallow sword marks into the ground.

Li Mofan unleashed the Amorous Sword technique again and again, without deliberately holding back his strength or suppressing his emotions, letting out all the resentment in his heart through the sword moves.

He swung his sword countless times until his omnipotent energy was completely exhausted, at which point he stopped, and the gilded sword transformed back into a golden Dao Foundation sphere, slowly disappearing into his body.

Looking at the slowly calming spiritual light on the testing instrument, Li Mofan's eyes darkened; the power of the Amorous Sword far exceeded his expectations.

By this point, he was no longer troubled by Su Qingyao's estrangement and change. That fleeting warmth could not ultimately overcome the long-suppressed resentment surging in his heart—since embarking on this path of cultivation, he had never truly had a smooth journey.

From being abruptly thrown into the portal by Mr. Xuan and falling into this unfamiliar world of Heavenly Punishment in a daze; to being manipulated at will by the mage Han Li and having no control over his own safety; and now, even though his cultivation has gradually increased and he has comprehended a new path, he still cannot escape the situation of being controlled and played with by others.

He suddenly felt that he had cultivated this path in vain.

Even if one learns Taoist arts, condenses the foundation of Tao, and possesses power far exceeding that of ordinary people, in the end, it is no different from being on Earth—still unable to control one's own destiny, still subject to constraints at every step, still unable to control one's own fate, and never possessing even a trace of true freedom and confidence.