Chapter 303: Grandmaster Domain (I)

A thunderous boom erupted.

Explosions, shouts, and screams echoed throughout Wuji Manor. Some unfortunate martial artists were caught in the aftermath of the battle and let out shrill cries of agony.

Lin Zheyu dealt with the bodies and swiftly rushed toward the direction he had agreed upon with Li Mengxi and the others. Although he was extremely interested in battles between Force Transformation realm martial artists, he knew his own limits. A fight at that level was not something he could take part in right now.

Even though he had just easily dealt with two martial artists who had cultivated true strength, those two had only just grasped a trace of it. They were still very far from transforming all the power within their bodies into true strength. That level of strength was only slightly superior to ordinary Marrow Refining realm martial artists.

Boom, boom.

Even from far away, the energy fluctuations from the battlefield where Elder Yang and Wang Chen were fighting could still be felt. Lin Zheyu turned his head toward the direction of the plaza with a grave expression, but he could see nothing. He took a deep breath, extinguished the thoughts rising again in his mind, and arrived at the courtyard where the Li Family was staying.

"Young Master Zhao, you are finally here!" Li Wensi stood anxiously in the courtyard. When she saw Lin Zheyu leap in from outside the wall, she finally let out a small sigh of relief.

"Is everyone all right?" Lin Zheyu asked.

"We are fine, but sixth uncle has not returned yet," Li Mengxi said with some concern.

Sixth uncle had gone to attend another meeting, where a battle between Force Transformation realm martial artists had also broken out. He was somewhat worried about Li Guoming's safety.

"Do not worry. He should be fine. Those people seem to be trying only to restrain the Force Transformation realm martial artists of Wuji Manor. They do not appear to intend a massacre," Lin Zheyu said in reassurance.

If they truly intended to slaughter indiscriminately, Wang Chen would have charged straight into the crowd during the battle, and even Elder Yang would have been forced to hold back.

"

Mhm.

" Li Mengxi gave a soft response, yet the worry on his face did not fade because of Lin Zheyu's words.

Lin Zheyu lightly leapt onto the rooftop. Li Mengqi stood there quietly with her longsword in hand, gazing toward the distant sky.

"Young Master Zhao, your injuries are all right now?" Li Mengqi asked softly.

"They're nothing serious," Lin Zheyu replied.

Following Li Mengqi's gaze, he looked toward the distant sky. That was the central region of Wuji Manor, where a black and white energy could be seen collding, almost appearing like Yin and Yang spheres, erupting with terrifying energy fluctuations. Lin Zheyu could not make out the figures within the spheres and could only see the collisions between the two energy orbs.

"What level of strength are those two?" Lin Zheyu asked curiously.

He had caught a fleeting glimpse of the battle between Elder Yang and Wang Chen. Although they were incredibly powerful, their fight was markedly different from the one unfolding in the sky. In Elder Yang's battle, Lin Zheyu could vaguely make out residual images of the combat. In the sky, however, there were only two massive energy spheres colliding, with no figures visible within.

"Grandmaster realm," Li Mengqi said.

She pondered briefly and continued, "The energy spheres you see are the external manifestation of a Grandmaster Domain pushed to its extreme. The human body has limits. Once one reaches the peak of the Force Transformation realm stage, the limit of life itself is reached, and ordinary methods can no longer bring further improvement. One can only proceed by starting from the mind.

"The Grandmaster Domain is when a martial artist transcends the realm of true intent, fully integrates their martial cultivation, and condenses an even stronger will of a grandmaster. By fusing that will of a grandmaster into the life energy field, a domain unique to a grandmaster is formed."

Li Mengqi understood Lin Zheyu's lack of knowledge in this area and explained it to him in detail. From her explanation, Lin Zheyu finally understood what a Grandmaster Domain was. It was a unique domain formed after a grandmaster martial artist refined everything they had learned in their lifetime, comprehended grandmaster will, achieved dual perfection of body and mind, and fused their spiritual consciousness into the Grandmaster Domain.

Within a Grandmaster Domain, the grandmaster was invincible. A Grandmaster Domain was a terrifying ability that far surpassed combat awareness and was comparable to foresight. Once you entered a Grandmaster Domain, every movement, every breath, the flow of blood qi, and even the beating of your heart could not escape the grandmaster's perception. The moment you moved, the grandmaster would know your next action, make a prediction, and strike first. To defeat a grandmaster, one could only rely on power far exceeding the opponent's and break technique with sheer force. Alternatively, one had to possess a Grandmaster Domain as well, blocking the opponent's domain perception and suppressing them through a domain or raw strength.

"So that is how it is!" Lin Zheyu felt enlightened and, at the same time, understood Elder Yang's level of strength.

Previously, he had thought that Elder Yang, like Pavilion Master Huang Baizhong, was also in the Grandmaster realm. Unexpectedly, that was not the case. Elder Yang was only a Force Transformation realm martial artist, though his seniority appeared to be very high.

"Then what about Martial Innate realm?" Lin Zheyu asked curiously.

"There are not many related records within the Li Family, so I can only give you a rough explanation. A Martial Innate realm martial artist is one who, after becoming a grandmaster, pushes their spiritual will to the extreme and tempers themselves with it, allowing the body to return from acquired to innate, breaking the shackles of the life limit, and continuing to cultivate and improve. The records in the Li Family's texts are very vague. If you wish to know more, you can enter the Wuji Sect and consult the sect's own classics," Li Mengqi said as she shook her head.

"I see. Many thanks for clearing up my doubts," Lin Zheyu said in thanks.

The battle in the sky was extremely intense, destroying large swathes of buildings on the ground and leaving Wuji Manor in complete disarray. Under the deliberate control of the Wuji Sect grandmaster, the two combatants rushed out of Wuji Manor and entered the mountain forest.

Boom.

At this moment, a terrifying black and crimson figure suddenly erupted from the ground. That person laughed wildly and charged toward the mountain forest, vanishing from sight. Immediately afterward, a golden radiance filled with benevolence shot forth in pursuit of the black and crimson figure and disappeared into Wuji Manor.

Lin Zheyu and Li Mengqi stood on the rooftop and observed for a long time. When they saw the fighting within Wuji Manor gradually subside, the two of them finally let out a small sigh of relief. Battles at this level were far too terrifying and not something they could take part in.

Li Mengqi's eyes were filled with gravity as her thoughts raced.

The yao martial artists have become this rampant, to the point of daring to launch a direct attack on Wuji Manor.

As her thoughts raced, Lin Zheyu's voice sounded.

"Miss Mengqi, just now I heard you mention yao martial artists. What exactly are yao martial artists?" Lin Zheyu asked. He already had a rough guess in his heart, but he still needed confirmation from Li Mengqi.

"They are a group of martial artists who have taken an evil path. This world contains yaos, demons, living corpses, aberrant ghosts, and all kinds of powerful and terrifying beings. Those martial artists whose latent potential has been exhausted and who can no longer advance in martial cultivation have studied these yaos, demons, living corpses, and aberrant ghosts, and developed another path to increase their strength. They draw inspiration from these demonic beings and combine Baleful Yin force with blood qi energy to walk a twisted and aberrant path unlike any other," Li Mengqi said softly.

Hearing this, Lin Zheyu could not help but think of Blazing Flame Blood-Burning Powder. Back then, the apothecary had told him that some martial artists deliberately purchased such powerful medicines with equally terrifying side effects to research ways for yaos, demons, and humans to coexist. He had not expected that someone had actually succeeded, and with strength this terrifying.

"It seems the battle is over. I will go take a look," Lin Zheyu said.

"Be careful," Li Mengqi reminded him.

Lin Zheyu nodded, his figure moved, and he vanished from the spot. When the martial artists saw that the battle had ended, they emerged one after another. Lin Zheyu investigated the surroundings and found that the yao martial artists who had appeared so suddenly were already gone, with no further signs of fighting. Large numbers of Wuji Sect disciples began to clean up the aftermath.

It seems it has truly ended,

Lin Zheyu thought to himself.

From Wang Chen's outburst to the end of the incident, the entire process lasted less than fifteen minutes. This place was not far from Wuling City, and those yao martial artists were likely very worried about being discovered by the powerful martial artists guarding Wuling City. If that happened, they would have no chance to escape.

After confirming that there was no danger, Lin Zheyu turned and entered an empty alley, circulating the Ninefold Origin Lock Art as the blood qi energy fluctuations around his body rapidly subsided. Relying on the Tortoise Breath True Technique alone, he was not confident he could conceal the immense blood qi energy within his body without Elder Yang noticing. When he arrived at the arena plaza, the entire area was unrecognizable. On arena six, the platform paved with bluestone had been reduced to nothing but shattered rubble, with no trace of its original form.

"So much destruction. Is this the strength of a Force Transformation realm martial artist? It is truly unbelievable," someone exclaimed in astonishment, deeply shocked by such overwhelming, destructive power.

"You are overthinking it. This kind of destructive power belongs only to powerful Force Transformation realm martial artists. Just look at who made the move. That was a peak Force Transformation realm expert of the Wuji Sect." Another person poured cold water on the discussion. "Even among Force Transformation realm martial artists, the gap in strength is enormous."

***

This level of power is far too astonishing. It can already rival the legendary cultivators,

Lin Zheyu thought as he looked at the devastated site, his heart filled with shock.

Starting from the blood qi realm, as martial cultivation advanced, a martial artist's strength became increasingly terrifying. If Force Transformation realm martial artists were already this powerful, then Martial Innate realm martial artists must be even more fearsome, comparable to the legendary cultivators.

Lin Zheyu could not help but speculate that this world might once have been a cultivation world, only for the immortal path to decline for unknown reasons, allowing martial cultivation to rise in its place. Just as he was marveling at the terrifying strength of the Force Transformation realm martial artists, a Wuji Sect disciple walked over.

"Young Master Zhao, this is something Master Yang instructed me to give you. Master Yang had urgent matters and left first, but he specifically ordered me to wait here. When I saw that you had not arrived, I was just about to deliver it to your residence," the Wuji Sect disciple said respectfully.

He handed over a bottle of medicinal pills and said, "These are Nine Yang Rejuvenation Pills. They can help the body recover quickly."

Elder Yang had seen Lin Zheyu struck by Wang Chen's punch and guessed that he had been seriously injured, so he specially prepared this pill.

"Thank you," Lin Zheyu said as he accepted the medicinal pills.

He opened the jade bottle and took a sniff. An extremely rich medicinal fragrance rushed toward him, clearing his mind by several degrees.

Seeing that Lin Zheyu seemed about to take one on the spot, the Wuji Sect disciple hurriedly reminded him, saying, "Nine Yang Rejuvenation Pills are very potent. Young Master, it would be best to take one after you return. After consuming the pill, use blood qi to drive the medicinal effect and accelerate absorption. The recovery will be even better."

"I understand. Thank you for the reminder," Lin Zheyu said as he nodded and put away the medicinal pills. His injuries had already healed long ago. The effect of Origin Force was countless times stronger than these pills. As long as he had sufficient energy, he could completely restore his injuries.

"Did Elder Yang defeat that yao martial artist?" Lin Zheyu asked.

"I am not sure. However, when I arrived, there was no corpse of that yao martial artist on the ground. They must have escaped," the Wuji Sect disciple replied.

He paused briefly before continuing, "The martial cultivation exchange is likely to be suspended for a few days. As for your arena challenge, once the exchange resumes the day after tomorrow or in three days, you can continue your challenges."

"Alright," Lin Zheyu replied with a nod, indicating his understanding. He stayed a while longer, and after finding nothing else, returned to the courtyard where he was staying.

That night, Li Guoming returned. He had only suffered minor injuries and was not seriously hurt. His luck had been poor, as the yao martial artist had been hiding right beside him, so he was affected when the sudden outburst occurred.

After this incident, people from several factions were taken away by the Wuji Sect for thorough investigation. Those hidden yao martial artists had entered using invitations from those factions. Just as the Wuji Sect disciple had said, the martial cultivation exchange was suspended, but only for two days. After two days, it resumed as usual.