Chapter 1302: Becoming A Half-Sage

By now, Ye Qing’s Earthly Sovereign True Body was charred, dry, and lifeless, and his yang god was dark, frozen, and devoid of any spirituality.

It was as if his physical body would burn into charcoal, and his mind would disappear completely at any moment.

At the last moment, the Earthly Sovereign True Body and the yang god abruptly exhaled a breath of qi into each other.

Like the hottest summer suddenly welcoming a cool breeze, or the coldest winter witnessing a warm sun, the scorched, ashen Earthly Sovereign True Body suddenly regained its vitality, and the dead, cold yang god gradually recovered its spirituality.

Hot and cold, yin and yang. The two energies kept cycling endlessly and painting a profound imagery in the sky.

Bit by bit, the ashen blackness covering the Earthly Sovereign True Body was replaced by translucent flesh, blood, and skin. Its vitality was growing stronger and stronger as well.

As for the yang god, the blue ice of death covering its surface was fading, and it was growing increasingly pure, dense and powerful.

Once the Earthly Sovereign True Body and the yang god had reached some sort of balance, they stepped forward and overlapped with one another.

Rumble!

At that moment, it was as if heaven and earth could not bear their weight; as if the cosmos wasn’t big enough to fit its stature. A long, heavy rumble echoed throughout the mountain as the wind blew ten thousand kilometers, and the clouds scattered into nothing.

It was at this moment Ye Qing’s aura and energies skyrocketed as if he had broken some sort of limit. They became one with the sky and the ground.

“What a terrifying aura...”

Yuan Zhantian, Mei Qihe and Bai Huaxian were all stunned by Ye Qing’s newfound power. Li Qingping was the only one who remained calm and collected.

This process would continue for another teatime or so. Finally, Ye Qing’s growing aura and energies hit some sort of new limit and came to a stop.

“The sky has nine levels, and the earth has nine wildernesses. His will is higher than the heavens, and his force is wider than the earth. How wonderful!”

Li Qingping praised as he sensed the aura and energies Ye Qing was emitting.

“You’re right, Li Qingping. The Mad Lord is stronger than me.”

Yuan Zhantian confessed, but there was no disappointment on his face whatsoever. There was only determination and fighting spirit.

After Ye Qing’s aura and energies had hit their peak, they began declining as if it was withdrawing into their shell. At the same time, Ye Qing’s gigantic figure began shrinking as well.

A few breaths later, he had returned to human size. Then, he landed on the Unbounded Platform.

THUMP!

Ye Qing’s feet elicited no sound when they hit the floor, but an invisible, indescribable wave washed out toward the surroundings. The entire East Radiance Mountain seemed to shudder because of it.

“Congratulations for crossing through the firmament and advancing, Mad Lord.”

“Congratulations, Mad Lord.”

“Congratulations, Brother Ye.”

As soon as he landed, Li Qingping, Yuan Zhantian, Mei Qihe and Bai Huaxian immediately stepped forward to congratulate him.

“Thank you, everyone.”

Ye Qing respectfully returned their salutes one by one. “Without your aid, there is no way I could have successfully overcome this tribulation and become a Half-Sage. I will never forget the favor you have done unto me today.”

Yuan Zhantian waved him off. “Cut it out. At most, we fought a few battles. We weren’t of any help at all.”

“You are wrong, Brother Yuan.”

Ye Qing said smilingly, “Not only did you aid me in my breakthrough, you even accosted yourself to stop those who harbor malicious intent toward me. If that doesn’t count as helping, then what does?”

“I will not soon forget the favor you all have done unto me, and I swear that I will repay it one way or another. Please, do not hesitate to call upon my aid should you need me in the future.”

“You exaggerate, Brother Ye. If I’m not mistaken, you were probably going to be fine even if we didn’t stop your enemies.” Mei Qihe smiled. “You were prepared for them, weren’t you?”

“My preparations are one thing, your favor is another. How can I mix them together?”

Ye Qing did not deny Mei Qihe’s guess. “You sincerely lent me a hand, so it is only right that I respond with equal sincerity.”

“Bah! To hell with all this talk about sincerity and favor! If you really want to thank us, then just treat us to a drink and a fight!” Yuan Zhantian declared candidly.

“I’ll decline the fight, though I certainly do not mind debating the Dao with you!” Li Qingping said smilingly.

“Heavens, you’re such a mood killer.” Yuan Zhantian rolled his eyes at Li Qingping.

“I’m more than happy to drink, fight, and debate with you all.”

Ye Qing let out a soft chuckle before looking at Li Qingping. “In fact, I look forward to engaging you all in a true spar. Especially you, Brother Li.”

After he became a Half-Sage, he became capable of identifying Bai Huaxian, Mei Qihe and Yuan Zhantian’s true strength in one glance. However, the same could not be said for Li Qingping. The young man remained as unfathomable and invisible to his senses like that lofty mountain that stretched all the way into the clouds, or the abyss that spanned deeper than the light could reach.

Although they had fought earlier, it obviously didn’t count. Therefore, he desired a true fight against Li Qingping.

“I look forward to it as well.”

Surprisingly, Li Qingping responded affirmatively and with a hint of eagerness in his eyes.

If Li Qingping were to be honest, Ye Qing was powerful before, but he was at best an average warrior in his eyes. Now though, now the man was truly qualified to meet him in combat.

“Hey you! When I ask you for a fight, you keep finding excuses to turn me down. But when he asks you for a fight, you agree to it immediately?!”

Yuan Zhantian grunted, “What, you looking down on me or something?”

Li Qingping did not say anything. He simply smiled.

“The hell does that mean?” Yuan Zhantian was puzzled.

“Don’t you get it? He’s saying that yes, he’s totally looking down on you!” Bai Huaxian smirked.

“Really?” Yuan Zhantian exclaimed in surprise.

“Remove that question mark. You know it to be true.” Mei Qihe gave Yuan Zhantian a consoling pat on the shoulder.

“Do you think so too?” Yuan Zhantian looked at Ye Qing next.

Ye Qing’s response was a smirk and a figure-it-out-yourself look.

Yuan Zhantian: “...” Suddenly, Yuan Zhantian felt humiliated.

“It looks like someone thinks I’m sweet-tempered just because I’m being reasonable today. My moniker isn’t the Heaven Turning Great Sage if I don’t beat all of your asses today! Don’t stop me!”

Yuan Zhantian rolled up his sleeves and got ready to fight everyone present, power gap be damned.

Everyone grew closer with each other even as they fooled around.

Buzz...

It was at this moment the sky suddenly split apart, and brilliant colors spilled out into the open. They turned what was a plain sky into a picturesque painting.

Of course, one should not forget that the essence of this phantasmal beauty was death, chaos, and destruction.

A giant wine gourd had appeared in the sky as well. It shook violently as thick, massive shockwaves swept out of it and kicked up an endless spatial storm.

That was what was creating the colors; the spatial storms clashing into one another and dissolving into colorful chaos and destruction.

The next moment, several beams of light gushed out of the wine gourd, and an angry roar echoed throughout the mountains.

“I won’t forget this...”

The roar abruptly vanished into the horizon, and the beams of light immediately gave chase.

One of them was flying toward Ye Qing’s group though. It landed on the Unbounded Platform in just the blink of an eye and took the form of Xiahou Zun.

Xiahou Zun examined Ye Qing for a brief moment before nodding in satisfaction. “Your vigor is rich, your mind is full, your body and mind are one, and you have achieved infinity via harmony between yin and yang. Excellent!”

He then glanced at Li Qingping and added, “You are guaranteed to become a Sage just like this brat.”