Wedding Dress Divine Skill, Imperial Martial Art, The Greatest Treasure of the South Wasteland

Martial arts reach the heavens—Wedding Dress Divine Skill.

This phrase has echoed in the hearts of every treasure seeker for ages. Whether or not they actually dare to dream big, those four words always make their eyes light up and their hearts race. There are only a handful of techniques in the world worthy of being called 'Divine Skill'. If it’s labeled as such, even an average innate martial artist would be tempted. Just like Lady Simone, who’s always hung up on the Bright Moon Divine Skill.

To advance your own cultivation, realm is the main thing, but a good technique helps too—if your technique stinks, you’re stuck. Take the Golden Blade King: his realm’s strong enough, but he’s always a step short, can’t break through that barrier. A superior technique gives you that boost, lets you move forward smoothly. The Wedding Dress Divine Skill, as the core royal technique of the Southern Wasteland Ancient Empire, is naturally beyond question in its power.

Everyone found themselves in the dark, as if standing beneath a vast, starry sky. It was clearly just a cramped stone chamber—the floor wasn’t even that sturdy—but somehow it felt like gazing out at the endless wilderness, staring up into the cosmos. Overhead, golden symbols formed a ring, and at the very center, a thirty-meter-wide opening glowed. It looked like a Buddhist halo, solemn and sacred, almost like a celestial body slowly turning.

A peerless master carved this technique here, and that overwhelming sense of presence and profound mystery drew everyone in, making them want to explore it further. No one moved—a moment ago, enemies and allies were fighting, but now every last person was lost in the aura of the Divine Skill. The Supreme Six Harmonies Skill is on a similar level, but whether it’s because of the worlds’ differences, or the way it was passed down and copied, when we saw the Supreme Skill before it just made us thoughtful. But seeing the Wedding Dress Divine Skill now? That’s pure shock.

Jack Young was the first to snap out of it. In terms of martial arts realm, he’s now neck-and-neck with the Sword Saint, and his experience draws from many worlds, so he was the first to pierce the haze. His powerful mind kicked into gear, and in that very instant, Jack Young etched the entire Wedding Dress Divine Skill into his heart, then started rapidly understanding and decoding it.

Decoding it might be a long way off—the Wedding Dress Divine Skill is deep and mysterious and needs time to truly grasp. You’d need to discuss it with grandmasters to crack it. But understanding it isn’t hard: as the Divine Skill’s scripture flowed through his mind, Jack Young realized a surprising yet logical truth: 'This Wedding Dress Divine Skill is actually... a technique for refining essence into energy!'

That’s right—the Wedding Dress Divine Skill, though not exactly the same as the one from another world and not relying on white fluid 'semen', is powered by life essence. The difference is, instead of rooting in the lower dantian, it’s based in the heart. The heart gathers all the body’s strength. The heart is fire, it’s where all the blood flows, the source of life’s power. No wonder, once you master the Wedding Dress Divine Skill, your internal energy is endless, blazing hot.

If you had to pick the two most important parts of a person, it’d be the brain and the lower half, right? The brain’s for thinking and being yourself, the lower half’s for keeping the species going. If you swapped out every other organ for machinery, as long as your brain and your lower half are still yours, you’re still a living being, still have all your rights. The lower half stores essence, the brain stores spirit—makes sense. Every other organ just exists to keep those two alive.

Occult studies vaguely split into two schools: the school of sexual energy and the school of spiritual secret power. If you ask me, that’s probably where it all started.

If you had to pick a third most important part besides the lower half and the brain, the heart’s the obvious winner. Internal energy based on the heart isn’t quite about refining spirit into energy, but it’s not the same old essence-to-energy path either—it’s a whole new ballgame. (Note: In 'The Banner Hero', the Wedding Dress Divine Skill was described as a lower dantian technique. Here, we’re taking a different angle. Just so everyone knows!)

"This is another clever way to sidestep the whole gender gap," Jack Young thought, getting totally absorbed. In just a single breath, he pondered a ton of cultivation theories, and somehow, inspiration struck. A light flickered in his heart—a fuzzy idea sprouted and took root. He couldn’t quite figure it out yet, but it became an immortal seed of insight, ready to grow into a mighty tree someday.

"Ah..." Someone let out a long sigh—Wind Wushang. His voice was soft, but Jack Young caught one line: "No wonder this is the South Wasteland’s number one treasure, the foundation of transcendence, truly lives up to its name. In the end, I got it—this Imperial Martial Art..." Wind Wushang’s sigh was heartfelt, the kind you get after wishing for something forever and finally getting it. And the fact he snapped out of it so quickly shows just how strong his martial arts realm is.

Even Princess Flower Shifter was a beat slower—her whole body shuddered, and she let out a long breath, finally snapping out of her trance.

Once she came to, Princess Flower Shifter couldn’t help but ponder for a moment, then her whole body jolted and her gaze turned sharp. Jack Young snapped back too—this wasn’t some nerdy martial arts seminar, it was a fight for survival! Jack Young’s eyes flashed cold, scanning the room. The golden symbols on the ceiling gave off a faint glow, so he could still see a bit. But in the dim light, Wind Wushang’s figure was nowhere to be found.

A formless killing intent spread out, icy as bone-chilling wind, snapping everyone out of their Divine Skill daze. Whether it was the Golden Blade King, Silverblade King, Lady Simone, Jack Young, or Princess Flower Shifter, they all felt a strange, chilling aura. The hidden killing energy was so strong and weird, no one could figure out where it came from or who it was aimed at.

"Not good, over there!" Jack Young whipped his head around toward Sandlord.

Sandlord suddenly let out a wild roar and drew his blade for a furious strike. He must’ve sensed mortal danger—no time for holding back or hiding tricks, so he unleashed his signature move. Countless blade energies whirled around him like a tornado, and for a moment, it was as if a heavenly dragon had crashed down, trapping him in the center. Even his figure was swallowed up by the raging sandstorm vortex. Every grain of sand was his blade energy, each with unbelievable power. This move was both attack and defense, Sandlord’s infamous desert technique—Great Sandstorm.

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"Haa—!" The sandstorm kept growing, and Sandlord’s furious roar exploded from within: "You wanna kill me? Not so easy! I’ve survived a heavenly dragon crashing down—I crawled back from hell itself!!" That time, he was disfigured, suffocated, nearly died. But that near-death experience let him break through to the Innate Realm and invent this devastating sandstorm move. If he unleashed it in the desert, it’d stir up endless sand and grit, making it ten times deadlier.

Cruel, domineering, merciless—this move was like a force of nature, impossible to resist. Anyone who dared rush into the sandstorm of blade energy would be shredded to bits, suffering a thousand cuts.

A ghostly voice echoed from the void—Wind Wushang: "Not bad, it does have a bit of that 'Heavenly Dragon Descends' flavor. But sorry, you’re not the only one who came back from there..."

Whoosh—Jack Young’s ear picked up a faint, almost imperceptible sound. That sharp, uncanny sensation returned. He couldn’t see a thing, but a wisp of killing intent slipped into the Great Sandstorm. Suddenly, the massive eye of the storm vanished, leaving Sandlord standing there, dumbstruck, staring at his blade.

"You... sneaky... bastard..." Sandlord gritted his teeth and spat out his final words: "Screw... you..."

With a sickening splatter, Sandlord’s body burst into countless streams of blood. His limbs, torso, neck, and head—all spraying everywhere. Thump, thump—he crumbled like he’d been sliced up by a laser net, collapsing into a pile of bloody chunks.

A king at his peak, a desert overlord with ambition, brains, and cunning—just like that, dead?!

Just like Fu Menglong back then.

"Impossible!" Princess Flower Shifter blurted out. "A Heavenly King can’t instantly kill a peak King! Even if a Heavenly King’s stronger, it’s not by that much! How did Sandlord die? How did Wind Wushang break through the Great Sandstorm’s defenses without a sound? Instant kill at this level—no Heavenly King can do that!"

Could it be... he’s already reached the Sacred Origin Realm?! The thought circled in her mind, but she kept it to herself. Morale was low enough—no need to make things worse.

But Jack Young saw right through her and spoke up: "No, he’s definitely not above Sacred Origin. Even among Heavenly Kings, he’s not the strongest! Sandlord was right—he used a trick to set him up, but his real strength isn’t all that!" Jack Young turned and shouted at the Golden Blade King: "Get over here!"

The Golden Blade King snorted, then darted over. The three of them formed a triangle, each guarding the others, defending the outer circle with all their might.

Wind Wushang’s voice echoed from the void: "Calling it a trick isn’t fair, because this trick has killed plenty. First one I killed was him—for daring to call himself 'Tongtian', he broke my taboo. Now it’s your turn. Get ready to die."

"Hmph, we’ll see about that!" Jack Young suddenly grabbed the Golden Blade King and Princess Flower Shifter by the waist: "I’ve got an idea—let’s go!" Whoosh—Jack Young kicked off the platform, leaping into the pitch-black abyss below.

"Clever." Wind Wushang appeared, waved at the Silverblade King with a cold face: "Go after them—kill them all, don’t let a single one escape!"

"Yes!" Wind Wushang’s instant kill of Sandlord fired them up—the whole group charged down, murderous intent blazing.