The Abandoned Disciple

Lightning magic is a discipline that every Taoist priest of Dragon and Tiger Mountain must cultivate.

It is just that some people need to rely on an altar to cast lightning magic, while others require talismans.

Those like Zhang Gonglian, who can cast Palm Lightning without relying on any external aids, are few and far between in the entire Dragon and Tiger Dojo.

This was his absolute confidence as a High Priest of the Heavenly Master's Mansion!

However, Buddha Face's next move almost made Zhang Gonglian's hand tremble and miss his mark.

He saw Buddha Face slowly raise his hand in the exact same manner, his posture identical to his own!

"Palm Lightning!"

The exact same three words, spat from Buddha Face's mouth, sounded even more chilling.

The exact same blue electric light, the exact same thunderous crackle, and even the speed at which the lightning gathered was a fraction faster than Zhang Gonglian's!

Striking later, yet arriving first.

Boom!

The two extremely Yang and rigid lightning arts crashed into each other. Instead of canceling out, they erupted with a deafening roar!

Violent shockwaves blasted outward from the point of collision, causing the candlelight on the entire third floor to dance wildly and the curtains to fly about.

Zhang Gonglian felt an unrivaled, massive force travel down his arm. His entire right arm instantly went numb, and his chest felt as if it had been struck by a heavy hammer.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

He stumbled back seven or eight steps, each step leaving a heavy, muffled thud on the hard floor, until his heels firmly pressed against the edge of the altar behind him, barely managing to steady his stance.

The altar holding the Nine Heavens Divine Pill buzzed from the tremor.

In contrast, Buddha Face simply retracted his palm and stood there, his feet not having moved an inch.

The victor was instantly clear.

"How... how do you know Palm Lightning too!"

Zhang Gonglian's throat went dry, his voice changing pitch.

He stared fixedly at Buddha Face, all contempt gone from his eyes, leaving only overwhelming horror.

He was wrong.

Dead wrong!

What Buddhist outcast, what hunted enemy... it was all bullshit!

To cultivate Palm Lightning to such a degree, with power that faintly surpassed his own, was absolutely not a realm an outsider could reach by stealing the technique.

The only explanation...

A thought that chilled him to the bone exploded in his mind like a true bolt of heavenly lightning!

This person was a traitor to the Heavenly Master's Mansion!

This was his true tribulation!

Buddha Face did not take advantage of his precarious state.

He just stood there looking down condescendingly, his gaze sweeping over Zhang Gonglian as if examining a flawed toy.

"Tsk."

He clicked his tongue lightly and shook his head.

"Is this the final disciple my senior brother trained? For someone of this level to become the Heavenly Master is truly an insult to the title."

The disdain in his words cut deeper than a knife.

Zhang Gonglian's face darkened, a rare sight, as he glared at Buddha Face.

"I have never heard of my master having such a traitorous junior brother."

"Is that so?"

Buddha Face acted as if he had heard the greatest joke in the world. "Then did your master ever tell you how all his other martial brothers died?"

Hearing this, Zhang Gonglian's eyes widened in shock.

When he first became the Old Heavenly Master's final disciple, Zhang Gonglian had asked a question.

"Master! Master! Why don't I have any martial uncles?"

He still remembered how the usually kind and benevolent Old Heavenly Master's eyes had dimmed in that instant.

The old man merely let out a long sigh, said nothing, and turned away with a somewhat desolate air.

Zhang Gonglian remembered that lonely silhouette for many years.

Later, he learned in bits and pieces from his senior brothers that it wasn't that they didn't exist, but that they had all died.

They were killed.

From then on, this question became a taboo in his heart, and he never dared to bring it up to his master again.

Now, this question was placed right back in front of him.

And the answer was right in front of him too.

"Tell me your name." Zhang Gonglian felt a tightness in his chest.

"My name? Even if I told you, you wouldn't know who I am."

As he spoke, Buddha Face looked at the Nine Heavens Divine Pill, his eyes emitting something called desire.

"Just as I thought."

Zhang Gonglian sensed Buddha Face's covetousness toward the Nine Heavens Divine Pill.

He blocked the path to the Nine Heavens Divine Pill, pulled a yellow silk pouch from his pocket, and took out a talisman from inside.

He then slapped it fiercely onto his own body.

"This first pouch contains the Senzu Talisman. Don't mind the cheesy name, its effects are top tier! Stick it on your body, and boom, your spiritual energy is instantly refilled! Of course, it doesn't regrow missing arms or legs!"

Lin Mo's voice echoed in his mind from when he gave him the pouch.

The moment the talisman paper stuck to his body, a warm current exploded, like a long-parched riverbed welcoming a torrential flood, instantly washing through his nearly dried-up meridians!

Although most of the spiritual veins in his body were still blocked by an external force, just this temporary surge of abundant power allowed Zhang Gonglian to straighten his back once more.

With the help of this talisman, Zhang Gonglian felt he still had the strength to fight Buddha Face.

Buddha Face noticed Zhang Gonglian's change. Admittedly, Zhang Gonglian was a genius.

He himself had spent decades struggling to climb out of the abyss he had fallen into, only to regain his current cultivation, which was merely a fraction stronger than the younger man's.

If not for that, why would he take such an extreme risk to return to this place.

Today was the best opportunity, and also the only opportunity.

"Don't waste your effort."

Buddha Face's voice wasn't loud, but it carried a bone-piercing chill. Holding nothing back, he raised his hand and began sketching in the empty air.

Spiritual energy flowed at his fingertips, and the outline of a complex talisman instantly appeared.

"I could even kill my master, let alone you," he said casually, as if stating a trivial matter.

Before his voice faded, Zhang Gonglian's furious attack had already arrived.

Violent flames and surging lightning intertwined and merged, forming a devastating sphere that tore through the air, shooting straight for Buddha Face's face.

"Lightning Fireball? Heh, I know that too!"

Buddha Face sneered. Without even looking at the incoming attack, he casually waved the back of his hand.

The same lightning, the same fierce flames. A Lightning Fireball instantly took shape and met the attack head-on.

Boom!

The two homologous yet fiercely violent forces crashed into each other. A terrifying high temperature erupted instantly, sending waves of heat sweeping in all directions like a tsunami.

By the time the light dissipated, the talisman in Buddha Face's hand had completely formed. Runes flowed across it, emitting a bizarre and gloomy aura.

He flicked his finger.

The talisman turned into a streak of light, silently sinking into the Nine Heavens Divine Pill at the center of the altar.

Buzz!

Zhang Gonglian's body jerked violently. The pure pill energy that had been continuously flowing into his body felt as if it had been instantly severed by an invisible giant hand.

No, not severed, isolated!

He looked up abruptly, his eyes bloodshot, staring fixedly at Buddha Face. The feeling was like a drowning man having a basin of ice water poured over his head.

"What did you do!" His voice was hoarse, carrying a trace of trembling he didn't even notice himself.

Seeing him in this state, the smile on Buddha Face's face deepened, even carrying a hint of pity.

"Little martial nephew, it seems you are not a true Heavenly Master yet. Did your good master never tell you what this Nine Heavens Divine Pill really is?"

He clicked his tongue twice and shook his head.

"How truly pathetic, to actually hold back such a trick even against your own disciple."